How Safe is Your Nonprofit? Five Steps Every Board Should Take

“It takes leadership to improve safety.” These are the words of Sir Jackie Stewart, the Formula One Racing great and safety pioneer who used his leadership to make a big difference in a very dangerous sport.
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These words apply to human services nonprofits as well. Such organizations face complex safety risks. They operate residential facilities, shelters, gymnasiums, pools, kitchens - the list goes on - and each venue presents unique challenges. Moreover, many nonprofits serve vulnerable populations, and virtually all operate under significant cash constraints. These factors increase and complicate the risk profile.

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So, how can the nonprofit board improve safety? Here are five must-do steps:

1. Take ownership of safety. Safety risks are intertwined with the details and nuances of programs, which are closer to the purview of the staff than the board. Thus, boards may feel that safety is a matter best handled exclusively by staff. Step 1 is for the board to take ownership of safety in partnership with staff (more on how below). Program safety is an enterprise issue that requires thoughtful planning, action and resources at several levels. The board can play a key role in making sure such efforts are undertaken.
2. Form a Safety Committee and establish the “safety framework.” Although it isn't realistic for most boards to operate in the weeds of program safety, the board can inform itself and oversee staff safety decisions through a Safety Committee comprised of both board and staff members. Together the Committee should review your “safety framework" -  your organization's most significant safety risks and the policies and procedures that address those risks. For example, what guard-swimmer ratios, pool scanning rules, and rest break schedules are needed to minimize the risks of pool accidents? What background checks, staffing and supervision minimums, and safe facility configurations are necessary to minimize the risks of abuse at a youth runaway shelter? The Committee should seek out best safety practices from third party sources, including public safety officials and the organization's insurance providers.
3. Monitor safety. The safety framework should include monitoring and self-reporting by staff leadership, with the board overseeing the process via the Safety Committee. Effective monitoring looks not only at whether accidents occur, but also at how the organization’s operation conforms to the safety framework. For example, if an organization has designated minimum staff-client ratios, criminal background checks, or facility ingress-egress restrictions, it should regularly monitor and report how well it is observing these standards.  
4. Be especially aware of the safety framework during financial stress. Nonprofits operate under significant cash constraints and revenue volatility; and all safety standards have a cost. The urgency created by a financial shortfall can crowd out safety concerns and tempt the organization to loosen the safety framework to bridge the gap. The board should be especially sensitive about preserving the safety framework when financial issues arise, and look for safe solutions. Your organization's red lines of safety are in place for good reasons. Crossing those lines even temporarily can put your clients and your entire mission at risk. It is appropriate to review and adjust the safety framework from time to time, but it is better to do so in "calm weather," not under the pressure of managing a financial shortfall.
5. Establish the right norms.  Norms are set by what is permitted, not by what is codified. Environments in which violations of safety procedures are overlooked send the wrong signals, undermining the safety framework and mission effectiveness. You can set a strong tone and establish the right norms by making safety a board priority and insisting on monitoring and full compliance.

Your leadership on the board can make your organization safer. Running safe programs is at the very heart of organizational effectiveness for nonprofits, which exist to help people not to put them in harm’s way. A strong safety framework, with active involvement by the board, will speak loudly to your employees, members, funders and the community about the integrity of your mission.

An experienced CEO and senior executive, Jim Keane serves as a consultant for mission-driven organizations.  Learn more at www.KeaneAndCompany.com

 
​Photo by Alex Holyoake on Unsplash