Latest news, alerts, and events.
Latest news, alerts, and events.
Returning to the workplace is the conversation we are all having both formally and informally with our friends, our peers, and our attorneys. Protocols, policies, and expectations abound, and in it all is a great amount of hesitation and uncertainty about what it looks like to do the right thing for the people on our team and the communities where we live. To be sure, we are not “just going back to work” ever again. Our collective conscience has shifted and individuals feel different about the workplace. So pretending that it will all just “be normal” or “as it was” is likely an unhelpful place to start when it comes to meeting your whole team where they are.
The recent decision by the CDC, which is largely based on trusting that everyone will do the right thing, has only made for more distrust and confusion about how employees feel and employers respond in their decision to return to the workplace. As a result, we see everything from no rules to mandates and requirements, to abandoning all pandemic safety protocol. Adding to the hesitation and confusion is the layer of political ideology, rather than science, that seems woven into many decisions. This is leaving too many who distrust these decisions and question what lies ahead for each of us and our teams.
As nonprofit employers and stewards of missions focused on ensuring the greater good for our communities, the pressure is high for us to strike the right balance in our approach to reopening physical work spaces. Our organizational cultures must be in the forefront as we navigate the murky waters of our policies and the law. This means, of course, there is no one right answer for how you will determine the rules of your workplace related to vaccine requirements and disclosure, masking, sanitation, and potential virus exposure.
What we do know is that appropriate decisions for your organization rely on careful consideration of three components – culture, law, and policy. Starting with culture means you are more likely to set the right tone and process with your team, which in-turn will build trust and acceptance for the harder decisions that lie ahead.
Recently, Foraker was quoted a Chronicle of Philanthropy article, “Nonprofits Struggle with the Move from Remote Work to Safely Returning Employees to the Office.” This interview was an hour after our latest COVID Rapid Response webinar, Navigating In-Person Workplaces and Events, with Dr. Lisa Rabinowitz, staff physician, Alaska Division of Public Health, and Dr. Joe McLaughlin, state epidemiologist, where nearly 100 nonprofit leaders asked compelling questions about reopening. We recorded that webinar, and it is posted along with many other resources on our COVID relief page. You’ll find:
Additionally, the National Council of Nonprofits published a list of articles with insights and tips on reopening to consider:
All these articles and resources offer each of us a place for reflection as we draft our own response and subsequent policy and protocols. What these articles can’t know is how to center your organizational culture in your decisions. To that end, I offer a few initial questions for your consideration:
These questions are just the beginning of what it will mean to center culture in your decisions to return to a physical work environment or not. Know that we are ready to help you navigate choices as you keep your team safe, the community safe, and our missions moving forward.
Finally, I want to share with you a quote that Operations Board member Jim Beck, senior program officer at the Mat-Su Health Foundation, recently sent to me. It’s from The Compassionate Manager: A Trauma-Sensitive Approach to Managing in the Era of COVID-19: “Return to our places of work is not the goal. It is a means towards a more important end: one of personal, team and organizational healing and renewal.”
Thank you, Jim, for sharing this. And thank you to all the dedicated nonprofit professionals in Alaska who have been guided by their missions while doing the very hard work of keeping their organizations running.
-Laurie
Join us for our Catalyst Summer Series to lay the foundation for more effective leadership. This is an opportunity to reflect on your leadership goals by leaving comfort behind, shifting your context, and leaning in to coaching. Each course is $30 to attend.
Catalyst Alumni – we invite you to attend to refresh your knowledge and continue your growth!
If you are interested in growing your leadership skills, consider applying for the full Catalyst for Nonprofit Excellence program that will kick off on September 13. It is not required to apply for the program in order to attend the summer series – everyone is welcome to attend.
Do you have a big goal, dream, or result you want to create? Achieving it will likely require being uncomfortable along the way. In this interactive webinar, you’ll be introduced to a foundational tool from the Catalyst for Nonprofit Excellence leadership series: The Comfort Zone. You will learn what your Comfort Zone is, the value of moving outside it, and the four-step process to leaving comfort behind to consistently create the results you want with more enthusiasm and confidence. Register here.
In this interactive webinar, you’ll be introduced to a foundational tool from the Catalyst for Nonprofit Excellence leadership series: The Context Window. You will connect how thoughts lead to results and learn how to shift your context to create more of what you want personally and professionally. Register here.
What do you want for your organization? Are all your people enthusiastically taking steps in that same direction? In this interactive webinar, you will learn a proven system for coaching individuals to get everyone moving towards a common goal. In addition, Be More U’s Head Coach Darren Kaulius will reveal hot tips for success and common pitfalls in the coaching process. Register here.
Do you want to leverage your unique strengths as a leader and learn how to apply them more fully for better results? Are you looking for more work-life balance? We invite you to apply to the Catalyst for Nonprofit Excellence program. The program will start on September 13. Applications are due July 9.
As organizations reopen their offices, many questions have come up about how to safely resume on-site operations. Foraker recently gathered some experts who shared insights and resources on how to communicate with employees about vaccinations and what to consider when developing in-person programming. You can view the webinar here. More resources are available on the COVID page of our website under the heading Returning to the Workplace. If you have additional questions or insights to share with us, please let us know.
Thanks to the advocacy of the National Council of Nonprofits and its state association members, including Foraker, recently released guidance confirms that nonprofits will have access to American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. This includes funds coming directly from the federal government, as well as dollars flowing into state, local, and tribal governments.
To help organizations interested in applying for funds, we are pleased to announce a new website that describes ARPA and highlights points of access for nonprofits. Foraker is proud to be a partner in this effort, along with other Alaska organizations listed on the website. We especially thank the Alaska Municipal League for developing and hosting the site.
We encourage you to visit the site – share it with others – and help us update it if you have information to contribute. You can see specific programs for nonprofits here – and a link to send us your comments or questions.
For additional information, you may also view a webinar we held this week that answers many questions about ARPA that are specific to nonprofits.