Introduction
Wounded Warrior Project is a non-profit 501 (c) (3), veterans and charity service establishment which provides various events, services, and programs for military action’s wounded veterans following the 11th September 2001 attack in the U.S soil (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018). Wounded Warrior Project was established in Roanoke, Virginia, in the year 2003, by John Melia. Initially, Wounded Warrior Project operated or functioned as a United Spinal Association's division in New York. The United Spinal Association adopted Wounded Warrior Project as a program or project in November 2003. As a project Wounded Warrior Project's role was to support injured military members through activities such as providing injured warriors with WWP backpacks packed with comfort products. On 23rd February 2005, the organization registered for incorporation. Wounded Warrior Project‘s accreditation as a VSO (Veterans Service Organization) was granted by the Veterans Affairs Secretary in 10th September 2008. The Secretary ratified the organization for prosecution, preparation, and presentation of claims under regulations governed by the Veterans Affairs Department. The headquarters of Wounded Warrior Project relocated to Jacksonville, Florida. According to the John Melia, the founder of WWP, the move was due to the strong veteran community in the region, support from the region’s business community, particularly the PGA Tour, and the accessibility to the international airport located in Jacksonville. The mission statement of Wounded Warrior Project is to Honor and Empower Wounded Warriors. The organization’s vision statement is To Foster the Most Successful, Well-Adjusted Generation of Wounded Service Members in Our Nation’s History (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018). According to Wounded Warrior Project (2018), the project is found on various core values which include innovation, loyalty, integrity, and service to provide a positive environment for growth and a culture of teamwork. I believe that the Wounded Warrior Project is fulfilling its mission. The organization has implemented strategies aimed at raising awareness and enlisting the aid of the public to address the injured service members’ needs, helping injured servicewomen and their counterparts aid each other, and offer quality direct services and programs to address their requirements. The organization impacts the injured service members’ lives through a holistic approach aimed at reaching out to warriors at an individual level by involving them in various programs throughout their recovery continuum. The organization emphasizes its core programs which subsequently fosters their capacity to confront different impediments faced by veterans during the reintegration process. Additionally, the institution provides a broad scope of services and programs to veterans at each phase of their transition and recovery. This paper seeks to discuss in detail the history of Wounded Warrior Project, financial sources, community collaboration and partnerships, and the areas of WWP that need improvement and strategies to improve these areas.
Non-Profit History
Wounded Warrior Project offers free services and programs to meet the respective needs of every wounded warrior, and it attempts to fill the gaps in government care provisions. Wounded Warriors Project serves the injured veterans, their respective families, and caregivers by providing a variety of services, for instance, free wellness and mental health, benefits and career counseling, wellness and physical health, and financial aid for the acutely injured veterans. The demand for the organization’s services and programs has grown significantly from attending to a handful of injured warriors to currently serving over ten thousand veterans. The organization continues to receive multiple registrations from wounded veterans, their caregivers, and families on a monthly basis. The Wounded Warrior Project has implemented various engagement and outreach programs, for instance, warrior/veteran and family services which include Benefits Services, Peer and Family Support, WWP backpacks/packs, WWP Resource Center (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018). The organization’s engagement and outreach programs also offer veterans a range of opportunities to take part in outdoor activities such as professional and collegiate sporting events, recreational outings, and education sessions. The organization has also implemented mental health support programs which focus on addressing the cognitive and mental health requirements of warriors returning from battle and providing unique rehabilitation services at significant phases in the readjustment process of a warrior.
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The mental health support projects or program offered by Wounded Warrior Project include natural-based retreats, Project Odyssey – an effective rehabilitative approach, and combat stress recovery approaches. The wellness and physical health program provided by Wounded Warrior Project is usually designed to combat depression, minimize stress, and encourage an overall active and healthy lifestyle by promoting the veteran’s participation in educational activities which include aspects such as nutrition and wellness, fitness, and inclusive sports, and fun. Wellness and physical health programs offered by WWP include Soldier Ride; this is a unique four-day cycling activity for veterans and wounded members of the service. These individuals utilize the bonds of service and cycling to overcome emotional, mental, or physical wounds. The education, employment, and financial aid programs implemented by the establishment include Warriors to Work, Transition Training Academy, and TRACK. TRACK is the first center of education designed for wounded or injured service members in the U.S (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018).
WWP defines warriors as service members and veterans who sustained a mental or physical wound, injury, or illness while serving in the military during and after 11th September 2001. In 2017, the Wounded Warrior Project attained a significant achievement by registering over 100,000 injured veterans of both genders; this symbolizes a growing need for the organization’s services amid wounded veterans. In the 2017 demographic profile, men represented approximately 84.4 percent of WWP’s registered members and alumni with their counterparts representing 15.4 percent. The mean age of the organization’s registered members and alumni in 2017 was 38.8 years (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018). Warriors younger than 31 years represented 15.9 percent of the veterans and injured service members. Veterans and service members who were currently married represented 66.1 percent of the total tally. With regards to ethnicity/race, African-Americans represented 14.1 percent, Hispanics represented 17.7 percent, Whites represented 66.4 percent, Alaska Natives represented 5.1 percent, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific islanders represented 1.6 percent, and the Asians represented 3.5 percent of the registered service members and Alumni. With regards to geographic locations, the South represented 52.4 percent, Northeast represented 10.4 percent, Midwest represented 12.9 percent, and the West represented 24.3 percent. The percentage of service members and warriors receiving VA benefits in 2017 was reported at eighty-eight percent, and this percentage continues to rise significantly. Over half of WWP’s warriors (approximately 57.9 percent) had an eighty percent disability rating. The rate of warriors with reported claims on appeal declined by 3.1 percent (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018).
During the year 2016, over 144,000 warriors (male and female) participated in connection events in various communities in all states. The organization serves service members and veterans who have TBI, PTSD, were wounded during their military service during and after 9/11, or are disabled. In 2015, the establishment served approximately 11,495 registered members and around, 71,865 registered alumni (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018).
Non-Profit Financial Sources
The organization's funding is sourced primarily from private donations from the general public. The Wounded Warrior Project is registered under the state agency (Unified Registration Statement) liable for fundraising registration. The organization has a solicitation license or permit in every state where they plan to request for donations. The organization has disseminated its information about its non-profit status to the public on its website this is mainly because donors are often interested in knowing more about an institution's history, mission, and its subsequent role in the society prior to donating. On the website, the organization delineates its operations, provides an account of their past, future, and present projects. Additionally, WWP has profiled and provided its contact data for important people involved in the company's operation, and it has included a page demonstrating its financial details. WWP has established relationships with corporations and individuals that share a common belief with the organization. The organization further outlines its intended purpose for the donations received to its donors; it further informs its donors about the changes and impacts brought about by their donations. Moreover, the organization appreciates their donors for their contributions at all times. Wounded Warrior Project receives its donations from family foundations, corporations, and community through grant support, gift-in-kind donations, strategic partners' donations, community fundraising, honor and empower society donations, and employee giving. In 2017, the organization's annual operating budget was 166 million U.S dollars. The organization invested 166 million U.S dollars on programs that served approximately 107,000 warriors and 25,000 family members (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018). Since its founding in 2003, the organization has invested 1.1 million U.S dollars in WWP programs aimed at serving warriors and their respective family members in the U.S.
Non-Profit Community Collaborations and Partnerships
There are six community partners listed on the Wounded Warrior Project’s website. The community partners include America’s Warrior Partnership, Combined Arms, Got Your Six, Military Child Education Coalition, National Military Family Association, Team Red White, and Blue, Team Rubicon, The Mission Continues, and Vet’s Community Connection (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018). America’s Warrior Partnership often coordinates veteran services in the region through collaboration strategies, ensuring consistent data is acquired, and veterans are involved through proactive outreach; this partnership assists AWP to empower communities who subsequently empower veterans. Combined Arms approaches focus on uniting the community with the aim of accelerating veterans’ impact on the community in Houston, Texas; this partnership allows warriors to be involved and give back to society. Got Your Six attempts to shift the perceptions of the public to enhance the recognition and utilization of the leadership skills and abilities of the veterans. WWP works together with the organization to showcase the abilities of the veterans and to empower them to utilize their experience and training to give back to the community.
MCEC projects are aimed at ensuring all military-affiliated children impacted by a family transition, separation, and mobility gain access to quality educational experiences. MCEC and WWP’s partnership is aimed at serving warrior families by providing programs that address the requirements of military professionals, parents, and military-affiliated students. NMFA and WWP’s partnership is aimed at serving service members and veterans’ families through various projects, for instance, Operation Purple Camp. Team RWB improves the lives of U.S veterans by integrating them into the community through social and physical activities. Team Rubicon integrates the veterans’ experiences and skills with those of initial responders to increasingly employ free emergency response groups to societies impacted by disasters in the country. The VCC connects the military, veterans, and their families with community members in a particular region thereby, facilitating their integration into the community. WWP’s partnership with VCC allows the organization to connect warriors with an extensive network of support within the community (Wounded Warrior Project, 2018).
Summary of Areas that need Improvement and Strategies to improve these Areas
Some of the areas that need improvements include the organization’s financial management strategies and approaches to effectively achieving its established goals. According to Harley (2015), financial management is a critical activity in an institution, and it involves the planning, monitoring, controlling, and organization of financial resources with the aim of achieving the set objectives and goals by the organization. Financial management issues pose a significant challenge in attaining the organization’s established goals. Some of the problems associated with financial management include lack of proper planning, unrealistic-input-output ratio, budgeting problems, the poor delegation of authority, and misappropriation and embezzlement of an organization’s funds (Worth, 2014). On 9th March 2016, the Board of Directors at Wounded Warriors Project terminated Steve Nardizzi, the organization’s Chief Executive Officer, and AL Giordano, the organization’s Chief Operations Officer. The termination of Giordano and Nardizzi took place following the highlights by multiple reports concerning the lavish spending, for instance, extravagant events and parties by various staff members in the organization. The reports further delineated this incidence as a consequence of poor leadership culture. To effectively manage the organization's finances and avoid additional expenses, the organization should evaluate its internal controls, analyze its capital investment decisions, improve its processes, track key performance metrics, and implement effective budgeting and forecasting strategies (Bryce, 2017).
The organization ought to develop realistic forecasts and formulate a comprehensive budget which is aligned with the institution’s strategic goals. With regards to tracking its key performance metrics, the organization ought to identify monitor and improve primary performance metrics that represent its financial performance. The organization can also adjust its processes by evaluating its finance and accounting procedures and distinguishing ways to enhance efficiency and improve the usefulness and quality of its financial data. Moreover, the organization should carry out in-depth analyses of its investment opportunities, and ascertain the courses of actions that generate significant impacts to the community (Worth, 2014). Additionally, the organization should evaluate its financial, accounting, and bookkeeping reporting procedures and identify the weaknesses in their internal control approaches which subsequently expose the organization to employee fraud and other errors. Lastly, the organization should institute proper recruitment strategies to avoid issues in financial management.
There are claims involving the organization's inability to meet its set objectives effectively. For instance, in 2014, veterans and veteran advocates criticized the organization for failing to adequately serve its immediate audience (veterans, service members, and their families). Veterans and veteran advocates claimed that the Wounded Warrior Project is highly concerned about its public relations and image impacts as opposed to the well-being of the people they claim to serve in the long-term. A double-amputee warrior who initially served in Iraq articulated on the issue of anonymity and his disappointments with regards to the organization's operations (Sargeant & Shang, 2017). According to Worth (2014), to adequately address this issue, the organization should effectively train its employees and managers on the organization’s processes, manage its cash flows, employ KPIs to monitor the objectives of the organization, promote feedback mechanisms, and re-evaluating its objectives and strategies as an organization and implement change where possible. The organization should reassess its objectives to ensure that its objectives and goals are aligned with its mission.
Changes should be initiated to improve the areas of weaknesses for in Wounded Warrior Project. To implement the necessary organizational changes, the organization should integrate various organizational change theory concepts. Organizational development is a theoretical field of research and practice aimed at expanding the knowledge and efficacy of individuals to achieve a successful organizational performance and change. Organizational development is a procedure that involves the continuous diagnosis, evaluation, implementation, and action planning with the purpose of transferring skills and knowledge to institutions to enhance their capacity to solve problems and manage future changes. The primary concepts of the theory include organizational climate organizational strategies and corporate culture. Organizational climate characteristics include leadership, communication, participative management, conflict resolution, and leader control and support. The elements of organizational culture include artifacts, behavioral patterns and norms, assumptions, and values. The common organizational development strategy utilized by organizations to implement change incorporate the following steps: diagnosis, action planning, intervention, and evaluation. KPIs will help the organization to effectively monitor and manage the success of the organization’s objectives and goals and provide a status of the organization's goals and objectives (Worth, 2014). Training strategies will enable the organization’s employees to acquire new skills, enhance employee motivation, foster employee retention, increase the organization’s overall productivity, and allow the organization to address their immediate audiences’ issues adequately.
References
Bryce, H. J. (2017). Financial and Strategic Management for Nonprofit Organizations, Fourth Edition. Boston: De|G Press.
Harley, G. (2015). Creating and Managing a Non-profit Organization . New York: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Sargeant, A., & Shang, J. (2017). Fundraising principles and practice . Hoboken NJ: Wiley.
Worth, M. J. (2014). Nonprofit Management: Principles and practice (4 th . ed.), (pp. 40-54, pp. 100-122 and pp. 134-143) . Los Angeles: SAGE.
Wounded Warrior Project (2018). 15 years serving those who sacrificed . Retrieved from https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/
Appendix
List of Funders
Arthur J. and Lee R. Glatfelter Foundation
Blanchart Family Endowment Fund at the Community Foundation for Northeast Florida
Brady Foundation
Cotswold Foundation
Crete Family Foundation Freeman Family Fund
Gilbert Fund of the Tulsa Community Foundation
Hettinger Foundation J.C.
Kennedy Foundation Kate W.
Cassidy Foundation Lee S.
Kreindler Foundation
MAR Charitable Fund at Schwab Charitable Michael & Rebecca Cemo
Foundation Nabors to Neighbors Foundation
Pogosyan Care Foundation
RHS Foundation
Robert & Marion Schamann Brozowski Foundation
Sol Goldman Charitable Trust
SWS Charitable Foundation
Third Avenue Management Private Foundation
Harley-Davidson Foundation
Mark and Joanne Webb Philanthropic Fund at the Renaissance Charitable Foundation
Spadoricia Cavo Charitable Fund of the Ayco Charitable Foundation
Thrivent Financial William
Trout Charitable Trust
Charts
Source: Wounded Warrior Project
Fig.1: Pending VA claims, VA disability ratings and benefits
Fig.2: WWP contributions and grants
Fig.3: Charitable Donations by Recipient in the United States in 2010, Billions U.S Dollars
