Weathering the storm: best practices for nonprofits in crisis

Abstract

Nonprofit organizations are as susceptible to crisis as any organization as exemplified by Livestrong's attempts to outlive Lance Armstrong's downfall and Planned Parenthood (PP) overcoming Susan G. Komen for the Cure's (SGK) policy to defund organizations under investigation. The public battles held on social media during crises such as these have forced organizations onto new battlegrounds. Supporters for each of these nonprofits proudly shared their thoughts via tweets (e.g. #IstandwithPP) and status updates, as the organizations raced to control the situation. PP had tweeted SGK's policy change creating a bevy of support while sending SGK into a reversal that is still costing racers. Surveys were distributed following Armstrong's performance‐enhancing drug use confession and SGK's funding policy announcement to determine attitudes toward giving after organizational crisis. The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) was used to assess the strength of attitude, social norms, and perceived behavioral control on the intent to donate to these organizations. The use of TPB expands nonprofit marketing horizons by helping better understand stakeholder intentions and their causes. On the basis of the findings, best practices for nonprofits handling crisis were identified. In particular, organizations need to know their target audiences, know what will make supporters remain, look at crises as opportunities for renewal, be honest, and apologize when appropriate.Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Leadership and Governance in Times of Crisis: A Balancing Act for Nonprofit Boards

“…For instance, the refugee crisis beginning in 2015 had immediate and wide-ranging impacts on nonprofits in Europe, leading organizations to reconsider their service delivery models, organizational structures, and ability to quickly react to changing conditions (Meyer & Simsa, 2018). Previous studies have discussed nonprofits' responses to crises, particularly concerning cases of public relations and financial scandals (see Kinsky et al, 2014), and more recently, the effects of systemic financial crisis affecting large segments of the nonprofit sector (Lin & Wang, 2016). In these scenarios, leadership is required to ensure swift action, but the source of that leadership is more ambiguous.…”

Nonprofit Scandals: A Systematic Review and Conceptual Framework

“…Instead, people with growth mindsets are more willing to support organizations that have transgressed in the past but now do good, while people with fixed mindsets prefer to support organizations that have never done wrong (Septianto, 2020). Another example of personal characteristics moderating the negative impacts: After cyclist Lance Armstrong’s doping scandal, previous donors to his Livestrong charity remained more favorable toward the charity and were more willing to donate than people who had not previously donated (Kinsky et al, 2014).…”

Nonprofit organization communication, crisis planning, and strategic responses to the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…Such readiness for renewal can help organizations move toward resilience and renewal in the face of crises (Seeger et al, 2003 ; Ulmer et al, 2019 ). As Kinsky et al ( 2014 , p. 277) argue regarding nonprofit crisis communication, “Organizational crises, although often surprising, can be an opportunity for organizations to review missions, values, and strategies to identify needed areas of change to allow for organizational growth and revitalization.”…”

“…Because NPOs are held to high‐ethical standards and public expectations, they can suffer negative consequences when their actions fail to match expectations (Kinsky et al, 2014 ). NPOs in particular face a wide range of operational crises and paracrises that could impact their high‐priority goals (Herman et al, 2004 ; Spillan, 2003 ).…”