July 14, 2021

The events of 2020 and 2021 have heightened awareness of the need for more and better risk management in the nonprofit sector. Enterprise risk management (ERM) is a long-term investment that improves an organization’s financial strength, operational efficiency, program effectiveness, and resilience during uncertain times.

Sponsored by GRF CPAs & Advisors, Getting Started with Enterprise Risk Management, A Guide for Nonprofits was prepared for the ERM initiative at NC State University. The report outlines the case for ERM; details how to identify/prioritize risks and conduct risk management & monitoring; and demonstrates effective ERM in practice. The templates in the report’s appendix provide valuable guidance for any organization thinking about risk management during these challenging times for nonprofits.

This guide incorporates insights and valuable experiences from a number of non-profit organizations about their implementation of enterprise-wide risk management practices. The guide is loaded with an extensive amount of practical suggestions that will be incredibly helpful to other non-profit leaders as they seek to strengthen their understanding of the rapidly evolving risk landscape in today’s complex business environment.

Practical ERM Resources

The objective of this guide is to provide an extensive amount of practical ERM resources specifically tailored to all types and sizes of nonprofit organizations. The guide provides practical suggestions for nonprofit organizations, whether they are exploring ERM, in the early stages of implementation, or looking to strengthen current processes in place.

ERM Templates

We are especially excited that the guide provides a comprehensive outline of the entire ERM process along with several easy to use templates available for download (download the templates as Word documents here). These resources can be leveraged to facilitate risk-related discussions as well as to identify, assess and manage enterprise-wide risks that could have a significant impact on an organization’s ability to achieve its mission and strategic goals.

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