Case Study: Strengthening Operational Governance for a National Nonprofit that Conducts Events for Children

Problem:

With recent national events, a national nonprofit that holds activities for disadvantaged young teens contacted Kingswood Security to review their security operational governance. For many years, they had been operating informally, relying on experience and little documented standards. The nonprofit had several laws on aspects of their work from children to adult ratio, child safety, food hygiene and many other areas of their work to stay in legal compliance with the state. 

Solution:

At Kingswood, we looked at their unique problems and helped them understand their risk and compliance universe. We first reviewed all the items of law and compliance that were needed and then created a set of standards that included their mitigation strategy on topics such as sexual misconduct, threat assessment protocols, use of force policies, and emergency preparedness. Our approach followed the principles of security risk assessment, including identifying assets, threats, vulnerabilities, and potential consequences. 

Taking a holistic approach, the nonprofit was able to see that there was so much law that they needed to stay in compliance with and that their posture was not as strong as it could be. As a result of the operational governance review, we were able to recommend that they needed a risk and compliance manager to oversee all their mandatory reporting and safety requirements for running large-scale kids' events. By partnering with Kingswood, the nonprofit was able to make a real difference in increasing their posture and limiting their liability by putting emergency operation plans in place.

Results:

Our tailored solutions helped the nonprofit identify and address vulnerabilities that could lead to potential security incidents. They now had a comprehensive set of standards to follow, including emergency preparedness plans, which helped increase their overall security posture. The nonprofit was able to understand their risk and compliance universe better and was now better equipped to stay in compliance with the laws and regulations related to their work.

Conclusion:

Working with Kingswood, helped the national nonprofit strengthen their operational governance and improve their overall security posture. Our tailored solutions helped them identify and address vulnerabilities that could lead to potential security incidents.