I think the article was questioning if this is suitable for a Charity. A business should be able to estimate its growth and sales, and can re-invent itself if a path isn't going to be profitable. The growth in a business should also be growing revenue (or it should be creating the foundation for later revenue).
A charity is based on how much people are willing to donate, which can change VERY quickly. Imagine what would happen if the public perception of the people behind wikipedia was to dramatically change and next fundraising campaign only brought in 20% of last years?
Additionally If people start to believe that the finances are squandered or not spent as expected, there could be a movement to NOT donate. This happened with the Red Cross after 9/11 where people felt they were duped by the fact their donations went to a consolidated funds (often to fund overseas activities) rather exclusively to 9/11 victims.
Charities also tend to need to keep a few years of funding in the bank to deal with a change in markets, as a charity typically can't use debt to get through rough years (economic downturns / recessions). Exponential growth makes this nearly impossible unless your running extremely lean.
I think the article is a little sensationalist (and maybe it needed to be to reach certain people), it seems to have some sound concerns.
A charity is based on how much people are willing to donate, which can change VERY quickly. Imagine what would happen if the public perception of the people behind wikipedia was to dramatically change and next fundraising campaign only brought in 20% of last years?
Additionally If people start to believe that the finances are squandered or not spent as expected, there could be a movement to NOT donate. This happened with the Red Cross after 9/11 where people felt they were duped by the fact their donations went to a consolidated funds (often to fund overseas activities) rather exclusively to 9/11 victims.
Charities also tend to need to keep a few years of funding in the bank to deal with a change in markets, as a charity typically can't use debt to get through rough years (economic downturns / recessions). Exponential growth makes this nearly impossible unless your running extremely lean.
I think the article is a little sensationalist (and maybe it needed to be to reach certain people), it seems to have some sound concerns.