Two Critical Strategies For Survival
The world has changed in just several short months and we have been asked to lead a different way of operating as nonprofits in health & human services, higher education, and associations. During this crisis, organizations have had to drive technology and operational changes that might normally take years, in just several weeks. Staff and leadership should be applauded for the massive transformations they have made in such a short time. Even though we are starting to realize new ways of business, we must continue to use this crisis to drive even deeper change for ensuring future viability and relevance.
The two most relevant strategies for long-term viability are:
The rapid advancement of digitization and technology solutions to augment or enhance service delivery.
Growth through mergers and affiliations to diversify revenue and create margin significant enough to afford technology investments.
Technology is collapsing walls and allowing organizations to capture data, make informed decisions, and design person-centered experiences for customized service delivery. We can use technology solutions to reinvent outdated business models. Technology solutions can allow services to be decentralized out of physical infrastructure directly to in-home solutions for education, healthcare, or other value adds.
Leaders have an opportunity to use this crisis to exponentially increase technology adoption and business model transformation. Smaller organizations may struggle to achieve these transformations because of the resources needed for technology investments or providing staff capacity to explore innovative ideas.
Many organizations are looking at mergers and affiliations as the most viable way to scale and achieve the size needed to invest in technology resources for improving outcomes or the experience of those being served. This crisis has also brought to light the importance of having a diversified revenue strategy to ensure a broad portfolio of services to better manage risk and exposure. Mergers and affiliations are offering solutions to ensure viability and longevity in the coming storm.
Many leaders have expressed one or both of these as vital areas of focus in the coming 12-24 months. It is clear that the financial crisis created by COVID-19 is going to have systemic ripples for the next several years, so it is more important than ever to be aggressive and intentional in pursuing relevant strategies to sustainability.