​4 Tips for Nonprofits to Continue to Navigate COVID-19

Just like individuals and for-profit businesses, nonprofits are still trying to find the best way through the current health crisis. In addition to paying employees and keeping the lights on, they also are trying to determine how to fulfill their missions.

It’s no small task, and there are no easy answers.

But for those of you who run vital nonprofits, we compiled some tips and links to help you make your way through.

• Keep communicating. Now, more than ever, it’s vital to keep having conversations with your boards, donors, employees, volunteers, supporters, clients, and community members. If you need to scale back your services or resources, make sure to let everyone who’s impacted know. It’s best to use the communication channels you’ve already developed to keep all your stakeholders updated.
• Take care of yourself. It’s easy for those who work for or run nonprofits to burn themselves out during the best of times. The need for your services often never ends. And although that’s especially true now, you need to make sure you’re getting enough rest, good nutrition, and exercise. Also, make sure your staff or co-workers are also practicing good self care.
• Seek out resources. Early on during the pandemic, we created some checklists and other pieces of information to help nonprofits find their way through this incredibly challenging situation. We regularly provide updates about all of the pieces of legislation and other COVID-related information as it becomes available. The National Council of Nonprofits has also put together a ton of resources.
• Start planning for the future. It may seem counter intuitive to try to look ahead when you feel like you’re just trying to survive the now.

But planning now can help you be attuned to unexpected opportunities that may arise now, specifically:

• Start considering how you can leverage technology now and in the future for fundraising and communicating.
• Ask yourself and your board if your staffing is adequate and if you have the right people in the right positions.
• Review your mission and vision and decide if it’s time to make tweaks. Look at how you deliver your services and how disruptions impact your ability to carry out your mission.
• Are there ways you can improve your internal processes and streamline activities on a programmatic and administrative level?
• Also, consider partnerships with other nonprofits and businesses that allow you to support each other.

Bonus consideration: We know there’s a lot going on right now. But one area we’re encouraging all of our clients to consider is that of risk management. Ask yourself how well prepared are you and your nonprofit to handle a crisis like the one we’re all experiencing right now. Although it’s hard — and sometimes tiring — to imagine worst care scenarios, it’s also important so that you can be prepared.

If you need help sorting through these ideas and plans, don’t forget we’re always here to help.

This communication is intended to provide general information on legislative COVID-19 relief measures as of the date of this communication and may reference information from reputable sources. Although our firm has made every reasonable effort to ensure that the information provided is accurate, we make no warranties, expressed or implied, on the information provided. As legislative efforts are still ongoing, we expect that there may be additional guidance and clarification from regulators that may modify some of the provisions in this communication. Some of those modifications may be significant. As such, be aware that this is not a comprehensive analysis of the subject matter covered and is not intended to provide specific recommendations to you or your business with respect to the matters addressed.