Crisis Readiness: Start Now
By Michael Anderson
A membership organization on the brink of closing its doors. A community health center faced with dramatic cuts to available government dollars. A progressive movement organization facing unprecedented attacks.
Throughout 2025, we have seen and worked with organizations in crisis.
When organizations are in crisis, any existing organizational weaknesses become magnified - these might be a disengaged board, a revenue mix that is highly restricted, a strained CEO/board chair relationship, or any number of challenges. What can be borne or ignored when times are good can quickly become the primary roadblock when the wind changes.
Unfortunately, in times of crisis, leaders often have limited mental (or emotional) bandwidth to address fundamental problems in operations, personnel, capacity, or stakeholder relationships.
Fortunately, organizational strengthening is good risk preparedness, and good for your organization even if risks aren’t realized!
When Tangelo Tree comes into a crisis situation, we are rarely dealing solely with the crisis itself. We are also:
Verbalizing observations and options that have been off-limits, building new norms around honest, transparency, and directness.
Preparing leaders to tackle rather than avoid difficult conversations and decisions, pushing for progress toward timely decisions even when there appears to be no good solution or pathway.
Facilitating tough conversations on longstanding weaknesses.
Nurturing a mindset of “imperfect but actionable” when sifting through competing priorities, resisting FOBO (Fear of a Better Option) as decision paralysis.
This focused, trustworthy partnership is what we bring to the room.
But why wait for the storm to hit? The same objectivity and commitment to “cautious urgency” that helps organizations through a crisis is equally powerful in building a sound, resilient foundation before one emerges.
Whether you are currently facing an unprecedented challenge or are proactively preparing your organization for the uncertainties ahead, don't go it alone. Make Tangelo Tree your partner in strengthening your foundation for crisis resilience. Contact us today to get started.
