I’ve sat in enough boardrooms and leadership conversations to know that the most dangerous moment for any organisation isn’t when the crisis arrives. It’s the weeks and months beforehand, when the warning signs are visible, but nobody is quite willing to say what everyone already suspects.
The plenary panel discussion at Trustee Exchange tackled this head-on. And what unfolded was an honest conversation that leaders need to hear sooner rather than later.
In this article, I want to share what the panel revealed about leading through financial and human pressure, and why the organisations that will come through this period are the ones brave enough to tell the truth about leading charities through financial pressure.
The Triple Whammy
The panel didn’t mince their words. The charity sector is currently experiencing what they described as a “triple whammy”, a simultaneous collision of three forces that, individually, would each be challenging enough:
- Rising costs. Everything from energy bills to staff salaries is more expensive than it was two years ago. Organisations that budgeted conservatively are finding that those budgets no longer reflect reality.
- Falling income. Donor fatigue is real. Grants are more competitive. Corporate partnerships are harder to secure because of the protectiveness and competition. The funding landscape has shifted, and not in the sector’s favour.
- Rising community need. The very communities charities exist to serve are under greater pressure than ever. Demand is increasing precisely at the moment capacity is shrinking and rising, and perceived rises in living standards push people away from the “volunteering spirit”.
The cumulative effect of these three pressures isn’t just financial, it’s deeply human. Staff are burning out. Leaders are making seemingly impossible decisions. And the people who need help the most are caught in the middle.
As somebody who has worked in the public sector and charity sector, I can co-sign these signals all too well. A consistent rise in pressures creates an environment where honesty feels tiresome, especially when solutions are hard to come by. For me, I have recognised that sound emotional intelligence, judgement, and honesty, backed by a solid framework, can help rebuttal these challenges when leading charities through financial pressure.
Structure Is Not the Same as Purpose
One of the most clarifying moments of the panel came when the discussion turned to the difference between an organisation’s purpose and its structure.
It sounds like a straightforward distinction. But in practice, many boards conflate the two, and it costs them dearly.
Purpose is enduring. It’s the reason the organisation exists. It’s the answer to the question: who would suffer if we disappeared tomorrow?
Structure, on the other hand, is the vessel through which purpose is delivered. And vessels can, and should, change when circumstances demand it.
The panel was unequivocal on this: if a structure is no longer viable, boards must act decisively rather than delay. Clinging to a structure that no longer serves the mission isn’t loyalty; it’s a disservice to the very people the organisation was built to help.
This is harder than it sounds. Structures become identity. Teams become attached to the way things have always been done. Boards can fall into the trap of protecting the organisation’s shape rather than its soul.
But the panel’s message was clear: when the structure and the purpose come into conflict, purpose must win. Every time.
My fellow board members know that I am an advocate for good strategy that has been collaborated on, decided, and recorded in a coherent fashion. But I am also an advocate of translating that strategy into performance.
This may look like an operating plan and model that clearly helps an organisation meet their strategic objectives. In my view, if the performance does not have a thread from the purpose, the structure and delivery do not matter.
Radical Candour and the Bank Balance
If there was one practical takeaway from this session that I’d want every trustee and board member to carry with them, it’s this: know your actual bank balance.
Not the projected balance. Not the theoretical balance based on expected income. The actual balance. Today. Right now.
The panel spoke about the need for “radical candour” in financial conversations, an honest, unflinching look at the numbers that cuts through optimistic forecasting and gets to the reality of where the organisation stands.
Too often, financial reporting in the charity sector focuses on budgets, variances, and year-end projections. These are useful. But they can also create a false sense of security when the gap between projected income and actual cash in the bank is quietly widening.
The panel recommended regular organisational health checks, not just annual reviews, but frequent, honest assessments of financial position. And the most important number in those health checks? Cash flow. What’s in the bank? What’s coming in. What’s going out. And how long can the organisation sustain itself if circumstances don’t change?
It’s an uncomfortable conversation to have. But it’s far less uncomfortable than the alternative of failing while leading charities through financial pressure.
Personally, I am big on this idea of employing unit economics and allowing these numbers to tell organisations the real picture behind their business health. It takes things down to the product and pipeline level and avoids assumptions.
Experience has taught me that it is easy to establish financial controls and get comfortable, but it is difficult to create genuine growth and get people to honestly say, “Let’s start again, but properly this time”.
What Leaders Can Do Right Now
The panel didn’t leave the room without practical guidance. Here is what I distilled from the discussion:
The panel didn’t leave the room without practical guidance. Here is what I distilled from the discussion:
- Separate purpose from structure, clearly and deliberately. Write it down if you need to. What is the enduring purpose of your organisation? What structures currently exist to serve that purpose? Are those structures still fit for purpose? These are questions every board should be able to answer without hesitation.
- Introduce radical candour as a cultural norm. This starts at the top. If trustees and senior leaders aren’t modelling honest financial conversations, it’s unrealistic to expect them to happen at other levels of the organisation.
- Move to more frequent financial health checks. Quarterly board reporting isn’t sufficient in an environment this volatile. Monthly cash flow reviews, even brief ones, keep leadership grounded in reality.
- Act decisively when structural change is needed. Delay doesn’t make difficult decisions easier. It makes them more expensive, financially and humanly.
- Protect your people. The “triple whammy” isn’t just a financial problem. It’s a human one. Leaders who acknowledge the emotional weight their teams are carrying and take active steps to support them will retain the talent they need to navigate what comes next.
The Wider Picture
There is something in this panel’s message that stretches well beyond the charity sector.
Every organisation, regardless of size, sector, or structure, will eventually face its own version of a triple whammy. The combination of pressures will differ. The timescales will vary. But the dynamic of rising costs, falling resources, and increasing demand is a universal feature of organisational life during periods of macro disruption.
What separates the organisations that come through from those that don’t is rarely luck. It’s almost always the quality of leadership decisions made in the months before the crisis became undeniable. The willingness to look clearly at what is real. The courage to say it out loud. And the discipline to act before the options run out.
There have been situations where it has felt difficult to make an executive decision. But a decision is made nonetheless. Ultimately, you need to do what is right for the organisation and manage the personal elements as a distraction. As humans, we want to be liked, but being liked for being liked sake can create a burning building.
Final Thought
The headwinds facing the charity sector right now are real. But so is the capacity of good leadership to navigate them.
The panel at Trustee Exchange reminded me that organisations don’t fail because of difficult circumstances. They fail because of delayed decisions, avoided conversations, and structures that outlive their purpose.
The antidote is simpler than it sounds, and harder than it looks. Tell the truth. Act on it. And keep the mission at the centre of every decision you make when leading charities through financial pressure.
What’s the conversation your organisation needs to have right now, and what’s stopping you from having it?