Giving Compass' Take:

• Kris Putnam-Walkerly offers philanthropists advice on how to analyze their crisis reaction for more efficient giving towards coronavirus prevention.

• How are you monitoring your crisis reaction? Why is it important not to get stuck in slow motion as the pandemic continues? 

• Learn more about why everyone in the philanthropic sector should increase their giving throughout the coronavirus.

Want to understand where your organization falls on the crisis reaction spectrum? Ask yourself if any of these six behaviors sound familiar and then, if you haven't already, embrace what makes you most effective and leave behind what's holding you back.

1. Your first instinct is to hide.

Rather than one of the philanthropists out front making headlines, you’re in retreat mode, unsure of what to do, frozen with fear, a deer in the headlights. But if you let fear take over, and then run for the hills, you exist in a separate privileged reality without the necessary knowledge, connections and relationships to be an effective leader.

2. You're waiting to see what happens next.

During COVID-19, there are any number of factors and unknowns from technology to government funding that will continue to unfold and impact the sector. But if you hit the pause button you're missing out on change-making opportunities.

3. You're giving fast.

This is like triage at the hospital. You identify and prioritize the areas of greatest needs and get the money out the door as quickly as possible. Maybe that means additional funding to existing grantees, or funding that helps keep first responders safe. Or you’re helping to shore up local crisis response funds.

4. You're giving differently.

Deadlines, funding parameters, applications and more have changed so you can achieve your mission by offering critical and relevant support to grantees when and where they need it most.

5. You're creating new response mechanisms that haven't existed before.

Many community foundations are at the heart of some of these new endeavors creating central crisis response funds. Other philanthropists are recognizing that together with new partners and collaborations they'll get more done.

Read the full article about crisis reaction giving by Kris Putnam-Walkerly at LinkedIn.