Reforms key to NGOs weathering Coronavirus financial crisis

Casey Kelso

True internal change will be tested soon as NGOs face potential massive layoffs. Well-managed NGOs are more likely to survive, while those distrusted by staff and donors alike risk going under.

The coronavirus pandemic has meant a downturn in fundraising events and corporate donations for charities, with Oxfam announcing layoffs of almost 1,500 staff and closure of operations in 18 countries, and US non-profits needing huge government support (US$60 billion) to survive. For a number of well-known international NGOs, the financial difficulties come on the heels of an internal crisis of management and accountability that damaged external reputations.

Transparent and accountable decision-making about redundancies and budget priorities will be tested inside NGOs in the weeks ahead. Why should one care about their internal controversies? Because public trust depends upon what happens inside charities. Matching internal culture to external ideals repairs reputations and maintains morale, enabling NGOs with global reach and budgets to achieve their missions.

INGOs reputational meltdown

Public confidence in some high-profile NGOs was shaken in 2018 and 2019 by headlines about poor governance and mis-management. Unhappy staff complained of sexual harassment and bullying. One employee even took his life in part due to poor management.

Long-serving Amnesty International employee Gaëtan Mootoo ended his life in the organisation’s Paris office in May 2018 after suffering stress at his organisation. Gaetan Mootoo, who had investigated human rights violations in West Africa for over 30 years, left a note in which he spoke of work pressures and poor management support. An independent inquiry commissioned by Amnesty concluded in 2018 that “organisational culture and management failures are the root cause of most staff well-being issues.”

That same year, the UK’s Charity Commission began an investigation into the way Save the Children UK handled allegations of sexual harassment involving its chief executive and director of policy. The inquiry concluded in March 2020 that there were “serious weaknesses in the charity’s workplace culture”. The Charity Commission also issued a warning to Oxfam Great Britain about how it handled allegations of misconduct against staff working in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake. “At the heart of this issue is how power is managed,” leading to pervasive bullying and toxic work environments, according to Oxfam’s own independent review.

In mid-2019, anti-corruption NGO Transparency International employees went public with concerns that their senior leaders were bullies. Several employees went on record with The Guardian: “Staff used to ask questions at meetings. Now even that is censured or looked on as disloyal,” said one.

Rather than protecting their reputations at all cost, these international NGO have begun to “walk the talk”. Each has initiated reforms to prioritise staff well-being, dialogue with employees, and engage their board trustees in building healthier workplace cultures.

Amnesty International has created a whole new range of measures for staff well-being, such as on-line counselling, clear internal communication channels for greater transparency, and a whistleblowing system.

The investigation found that two-thirds of employees thought that their well-being was not a priority for top leadership. More than 50% did not feel valued. And almost half of respondents reported that they did not feel able to ask questions that challenged the status quo.

“Internal issues were heightened by harsh external attacks on human rights activists,” explains Colm Ó Cuanacháin, a senior Amnesty International manager for 10 years until late 2019. “We handled that mounting pressure -– online trolling, detentions and shootings — as a matter of security briefings, security clearances and training for staff. But we weren’t improving quickly enough on building staff morale and well-being.”

At Oxfam International, senior leadership realised that to address issues to do with changing power relationships is a long-term journey. “All the work we’ve done to improve is only part of much more that’s still in front of us,” says Oxfam’s director of strategy, Doris Baesler. With that realisation, Baesler says Oxfam has adopted both the “hardware” of reform, such as mandatory training and whistleblowing mechanisms, as well as the “software” of informal drop-in webinars and feminist principles to promote an internal culture of inclusion, diversity and equity.

Employees at Transparency International are now encouraged to speak up if they disagree. A leaked 2018 employee survey had found over 60% of staff felt that different views and opinions were not valued by management and that they could not disagree with senior managers without fear of retaliation. “All debates are good debates in a healthy organisational culture,” according to Daniel Eriksson, the newly hired interim Managing Director at Transparency international. “If you need to close the door to talk freely at work, then it’s a sign that things need to change.”

All four international NGOs have started to learn the lesson that board trustees need to keep oversight over organisational culture. Save the Children UK, for instance, has strengthened working culture by appointing three new trustees from diverse backgrounds. Oxfam had already commenced a global governance reform for greater accountability, which is pending adoption.

At Transparency International, a newly hired integrity officer will support a group of board members appointed to monitor staff satisfaction, well-being, culture, and engagement.

A charity’s values are its strength and inspire public support for the organisation’s mission. New conversations have begun around power, diversity and inclusion inside international NGOs. How these charities envision power being distributed in an ideal workplace has to reflect the standards they advocate to governments. And how their top leaders engage with employees, especially now as the coronavirus public health crisis may cause redundancies, will shape their organisation’s longevity and sustainability.

This article has been republished with author’s permission. The original can be read here at Medium.