How much are you willing to pay?

We work with a lot of different types of nonprofits and small businesses. Nondisclosure agreements have become the norm in many circles and have worked their way into termination and exit strategy processes. Why?

NDA's make sense if you're privy to trade secrets or specific proprietary strategies. Learning trade secrets and plans in business and then using that intel to the advantage of a competitor or to start your own business may warrant some protection. But why are they so prevalent in nonprofits and ministries? What are we doing that warrants this kind of protection?

Are we protecting unethical or illegal behavior or culture? Are we hiding flawed or immoral behavior through NDAs? Are we buying the silence of whistle-blowers?

Are we preserving our reputation? Are we so afraid of the influence of former colleagues that we prevent them from talking ill of our organization under fear of retribution?

Consider this before instituting the policy of using NDA's:

*Outline what information needs to be protected. Perhaps you want to protect names of donors or proprietary marketing and business strategies. Identify what is specifically unique and proprietary to your organization that requires protection.

*Consider what about your organization you fear having exposed. Is it a violation of core values or mission or strategies that may not be seen in a positive light by those outside of your organization? How might the consideration of using an NDA reveal what realignment is necessary?

NDA's have a place but we need to reconsider when, where and why they are appropriate.

-Mindy Muller, CFRE, President/CEO of CDP

#nonprofits #communitydevelopmentprofessionals #nda