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Nonprofit & Foundation Resilience:
Resources
Nonprofit & Foundation Resilience:
Where to Start
Use this guide to review your organization’s preparedness or find help with a specific issue. If you need a resource that is not listed here, please ask me.
Strategic and crisis communications depend on your organization’s circumstances. I’m happy to discuss what you need and suggest next steps.
Good practices for any nonprofit
Two columns: your situation and resourcesSwipe left to see the resources
| If you want to | Start here |
|---|---|
| Get an institutional assessment of our organization Read the nonprofit assessment guide | Standards for Excellence Institute — online self-assessment against a national code of nonprofit ethics and accountability, with optional accreditation and licensed consultants. Nonprofit Risk Management Center — organization-wide risk assessments. BoardSource — board and chief executive assessments. Alliance for Justice and We The Action — Risk Assessment Clinic (see Check our legal compliance). |
| Adopt basic board and governance policies Read the nonprofit governance guide | National Council of Nonprofits — Good Governance Policies: conflict of interest, whistleblower, document retention and more. Independent Sector — Principles for Good Governance and Ethical Practice. |
| Set a social media policy Read the nonprofit social media policy guide | Nonprofit Risk Management Center — 5 Steps to Managing Social Media Risk: how to fold social media into existing policies. |
| Shore up our finances Read the nonprofit financial resilience guide | Nonprofit Finance Fund — templates and financial consulting. Propel Nonprofits — office hours open to non-clients. |
| Check our legal compliance Read the nonprofit legal compliance guide | Alliance for Justice and We The Action — Risk Assessment Clinic: a 90-minute one-on-one session in which a trained lawyer walks your organization through Alliance for Justice’s Advocacy Check-Up and helps map next steps. Request a session at nonprofit_support@nonprofitdefense.org. USCNL — 10 Key Issues in 501(c)(3) Compliance: a compliance roadmap. |
| Review our document retention policy Read the nonprofit document retention guide | Public Counsel — annotated records management and retention policy template, with editable Word versions. |
| Need a lawyer Read the guide to finding nonprofit legal help | We The Action — matches 501(c)(3)s with volunteer lawyers for defined projects. United for Freedoms Legal Defense Fund — helps pay for and find counsel. Democracy Protection Network — legal advice for eligible organizations. Your state nonprofit association — often knows local pro bono firms. |
| Strengthen our cybersecurity Read the nonprofit cybersecurity planning guide | Digital Defense Fund — Full Security Evaluation: a survey of your systems and practices, followed by recommendations, a custom security plan and help putting it in place. Start with an intro call through the contact form on its site. Ford Foundation — Cybersecurity Assessment Tool: self-assessment. UC Berkeley Cybersecurity Clinic or another clinic through the Consortium of Cybersecurity Clinics. Democracy Security Project — guides on safe online habits and securing devices. Democracy Protection Network — help putting security practices in place. |
| Make our building or office secure Read the nonprofit office security guide | Democracy Security Project — office safety guidance and vulnerability assessments. |
| Plan for staff and event safety Read the nonprofit staff and event safety planning guide | Bridging Divides Initiative — directory of de-escalation trainers. Vision Change Win — Get in Formation: A Community Safety Toolkit. Democracy Security Project — safety trainings and emergency action plans. Democracy Protection Network — help setting up security practices before a problem arises. |
If a specific issue comes up
Two columns: your situation and resourcesSwipe left to see the resources
| If | Start here |
|---|---|
| We received a letter or request from a congressional committee Read the congressional inquiry response guide | Democracy Protection Network — apply for fast legal, crisis-communications and security help; first reply within three business days. Protect Democracy — Nonprofit Investigations Toolkit: what to do with letters, subpoenas and data demands. USCNL — Congressional Investigations Tracker: see who else is being investigated and on what grounds. |
| The IRS, our state attorney general or another agency contacted us Read the government agency contact guide | Democracy Protection Network — apply for legal help. USCNL — explainers on IRS and state attorney general investigations. Center for Constitutional Rights — If an Agent Knocks: what to know if federal investigators get in touch. |
| A government grant or contract was ended or changed Read the government funding change guide | Democracy Forward — legal help when government action may be unlawful. Nonprofit Legal Defense Network — pro bono lawyers. United for Freedoms Legal Defense Fund — grants to pay your lawyer. |
| We have questions about our DEI programs Read the nonprofit DEI program review guide | Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law — advice on DEI legal risk. Nonprofit Legal Defense Network — pro bono help with executive orders, including DEI. |
| We’re having trouble with our bank, such as delayed transfers Read the nonprofit banking and financial access guide | Charity & Security Network — guidance on bank “derisking” and financial access. |
| We’re facing online harassment, or a member of our community is Read the nonprofit online harassment response guide | PEN America — Online Harassment Field Manual: step-by-step response. NYT Open — How to Dox Yourself on the Internet: remove personal details from people-search sites. Democracy Security Project — safety planning and digital-safety guidance for people being targeted. Access Now — Digital Security Helpline: help securing accounts (help@accessnow.org). |
| We have a cybersecurity problem, such as a hacked account Read the nonprofit cybersecurity incident response guide | Access Now — Digital Security Helpline, 24/7 rapid crisis response: help@accessnow.org. The Builders — volunteer cybersecurity experts. Democracy Protection Network — cybersecurity help for eligible organizations. |
| We have concerns about staff or event safety Read the staff and event safety response guide | If anyone is in danger, contact local law enforcement first. Democracy Protection Network — security assessments and support. Democracy Security Project — security planning and referrals to security experts. |