While it may feel like there are two Americas right now, nonprofit leaders working on the front lines of our most pressing societal problems have a unique opportunity to reinforce the strength of our communities.
The good news: For many of us, we can flex the muscle memory we honed after the 2016 and 2020 elections. We’re also gleaning information in real time about American values, priorities, and hopes, and these insights need to shape our conversations as we move forward.
Whether this is your first time navigating post-election uncertainty or the third, here are three immediate steps we recommend you take to prepare for the new administration.
Plan for Various Scenarios
We don’t yet know what the incoming administration’s priorities will be, but we have some ideas — Project 2025, Trump’s fiscal policies and tax agenda, including Agenda 47 — and a sense that certain industries, such as health care, climate, and education will be deprioritized over others, such as tech, finance, and criminal justice.
Now is the time to start thinking through all the possible scenarios, focusing on your operating environment, business, and revenue. What scenarios would uplift your mission? Suppress it? How would you respond to unexpected momentum or unexpected losses, such as an influx of funds or a loss of state and federal dollars? In all scenarios, can you move quickly? What will you say yes to if opportunities arise?
One word of caution: it’s easy to spiral, so set a time limit for this exercise — we suggest no more than a few hours. We also recommend revisiting these scenarios in February and June, when more information is known and it becomes clearer which changes are unfolding.
Pay Attention to the Economy and Know Your Cash Position
Watch the movement of the S&P, shifts in inflation, and the Consumer Confidence Index closely, as these financial trends will tell us much about donor sentiment and family economic outlook and will indicate whether we should anticipate shifts in philanthropic behavior.
How many days of cash do you have now? How many days of cash will you have on February 1 and April 1, for example, and how did you arrive at those numbers? Now is the time to work with your board, key staff, and any advisers to anticipate different cost and revenue considerations with regard to your revenue model. We recommend planning for increased prices due to tariffs and revisiting projected health insurance costs. Call your banker to say hi and review your current line of credit and savings.
Stay Grounded in Your Values and Overcommunicate
Revisit your core values and make it clear to stakeholders how you make them a part of your everyday operations and will continue to adhere to them, regardless of scenario.
Communicate with internal and external stakeholders almost excessively. Develop top talking points that answer where your organization is going, why, and how. Share them often and ensure your key leaders on the staff and board are well-versed in them, too. Also, align your staff and board around the “what ifs” you will need to consider regarding new funding opportunities, especially if there are explicit political connotations. Those will need talking points, too.
