Are You Prepared?

Planned Parenthood couldn't have handled this better. Komen could have. Time will tell how any of this will affect the two groups and their fundraising. But you can bet there was a lot of Monday-morning quarterbacking going on in both camps. There probably still is.

If you think this couldn't happen to your organization, you're wrong. Sure, your mission isn't controversial, and you shy away from politics and religion. But the thing about land mines is that no one plans to step on them. So given that even the most seemingly innocuously missioned organization can find itself in the center of a crisis, the question is: Are you prepared to deal with it? Do you have a plan in place so every member of your organization knows what to do and say — or not — in the face of any reasonably foreseeable scenario? If the bulk — or even just a large portion — of your funding comes from one source (a no-no to begin with), what would you do if that source suddenly goes away — as in overnight? Or what if the tide of public opinion suddenly turns against you, and your organization finds itself in the middle of a fundraising or public-relations maelstrom? Like in a matter of minutes — after your executive director makes an untoward statement at a press briefing, or your organization's ethics, results or transparency are called into question by the local media?