Month: September 2010

In a move aimed at improving both skills and image, higher ups in the Philippine police forces have directed commanders to review their forces for crisis management capabilities. The Manilla Bulletin reports:

Police Regional Office 6 (PRO 6) Director, C/Supt. Samuel D. Pagdilao Jr. during last Tuesday morning’s turn over of command ceremony at the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) specifically mentioned the “continuous retraining of Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) and Public Safety Battalion units on anti-hostage and terrorism operations especially in bus, building, boat and airplane assault tactics.”

Following the recent hostage debacle top cops in the area had little choice but to take action, but it remains to be seen whether this is a true overhaul or merely a well-timed PR move.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc. , an international crisis management consultancy, and author of Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training.]

I came across an article on “The Chronicle of Philanthropy” dated back to March of 2009 about non-profit deficits and how in the USA, the deficits are resulting in loss of programming, staff and services. You can find this article at http://philanthropy.com/article/Nearly-a-Third-of-Charities/63052/ .

In the non-profit world, “deficit” is almost a dirty word, falling into the ranks of other taboo words like “advocacy”. The article speaks of how one third of the non-profits in the USA had operating deficits in 2008. While in Canada, when I did research a few months ago, most said in census that they expected their funding to remain stable or actually increase. But non-profit deficits are what you have to deal with no matter where you are located in the world.

Some organizations that I have worked with, have run deficits for short times, but immediately developed a plan on how to get rid of the deficit. The most I have seen in a deficit is about 3% of the organization’s annual income. This is still manageable. But there are probably other non-profits in the world that run a deficit more often and with a higher percentage of their annual income. But if a non-profit is running a deficit, there are a few actions they can take. They are:

• Reallocate some core funds – If your non-profit receives core funding, then you may be able to reallocate some of the core funds to cover the deficit, by finding economies in your core expenditures.
• Donor fundraising – If your organization relies on donors, then it’s important to kick up your advertising campaign and get your board tapping into their contacts to help raise money to cover the deficit.
• Grant fundraising – There are some grants out there that don’t have a lot of turnaround time. Most funders will not cover deficits, but if you find a funder who will pay for a part of a program that your core funding now pays for in the fiscal year that you are running the deficit, then you can direct those extra funds where you need them provided it abides by the agreement entered into with the first funder.
• Bank line of credit – You could go to your financial institute and see if your organization can get a line of credit. Keep in mind, banks don’t lend you money when you need it, they loan it when they know you have income that will come in shortly that will cover the loan. So if your deficit occurs because of the timing of funder payments, you may be able to get a line of credit from your bank.
• Go to your funder – If all else fails, contact your funder and explain the situation and see if there is anyway, your organization’s next funding cheque can be sent out sooner, explaining that it is a result of cash flow problems, if that is the problem.

Question of the Day: What strategies have you seen non-profits use to rid themselves of a deficit situation?

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For more resources, see our Library topic Nonprofit Capacity Building.

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Hotels in the U.S. Virgin Islands, a popular tourist destination, were given a scare this week when the eye of Hurricane Earl passed within 65 miles of heavily populated St. Thomas island. While the clear need for crisis management was acknowledged by all, the way individual hotels handled the situation varied widely. TMC News has the story:

“There are certain core strategies that all the hotels keep,” said V.I. Tourism Commissioner Beverly Nicholson-Doty. “But I think each of the branded properties have a certain corporate culture with how they deal with visitors. You’ll find variances from one hotel to the next, and you’ll see that difference with any type of crisis.” On St. Thomas at Wyndham Sugar Bay Resort and Spa, which caught the worst of the hurricane-force wind from the north, hotel visitors were given bag lunches, asked to stay in their rooms at 2 p.m. and were told an automated phone message service would inform them about dinner plans. No alcoholic beverages were served.

Less than five miles away at Marriott’s Frenchman’s Reef and Morningstar Beach Resort, which is on the St. Thomas south side and faced milder winds, there wasn’t an empty seat inside the lobby, as hotel guests socialized while playing board games, dominoes and cards. The bar was busy, the gift shop was thriving, and there was no talk of a curfew.

Luckily for everyone involved, the true capabilities of the hotels were not put to the test as the hurricane turned away from the islands and storms in the region began to dissipate. Although the storm’s brief business disruption may cause short-term financial losses as customers shy away from the region, there shouldn’t be any significant effects felt by local businesses.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc. , an international crisis management consultancy, and author of Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training.]