In the Moment
pic from Spear
Nonprofits or a business at times are in a moment of excitement or caught up in the excitement of others or the reaction of others and make choices based on external influences. A nonprofit should always wait a day before jumping into a decision that has not been vented internally with the pros and cons. The organization may be excited today about a decision and everyone feels good but tomorrow will always come. Tomorrow ultimately brings the reality of the decision to make everyone feel good as a having been the right or wrong choice for the strength of the organization.
Nonprofits in the last two years have struggled between using cash reserves, furloughing people or laying people off. I remind nonprofits that using cash means that the organization is deciding to reduce their ability to have a back up plan if things get worse. While reducing staff hours or laying staff off is a hard emotional action, an organization’s viability has to be decided first. It is better to be able to increase hours or hire people back or hire new employees than to go out of business.
In the moment of government cutting or donors reducing their giving there is the clamor that there are too many small nonprofits. I promote the opposite should happen to really obtain the biggest impact of each dollar. I think there are too many large nonprofits.
Small for profit businesses are the strength of the US economy and the thousands of small nonprofits I place under the same umbrella. The $100,000 plus salaries of larger nonprofits reduces the impact they have on the economy. Each $100,000 can employ at least three individuals to provide much needed services and bring the money directly back into the economy.
