Measuring quality for human service improvement: How nonprofits meet the quality requirements of public authorities

The growing pressure for service quality has led to an increase in the dissemination of quality models in nonprofit human service organizations. In spite of this, little is known about their implementation. The present study therefore examines how quality management directives imposed by public authorities affect the adoption and use of quality measurement systems under different sets of conditions. Key findings, based on survey data from 536 human service nonprofits in Switzerland, suggest that external quality requirements foster the adoption of measurement systems to the greatest degree, but simultaneously reduce their actual utilization for service improvement. The strength of these effects is contingent on the organizations' resources and the quality of indicators. Managers' commitment to quality measurement shows the strongest effect on the use of quality measurement systems. These findings and the implications for future research and practice will be discussed.     

Building buy-in: The need for internal relationships and informal coalitions

Significant research has focused on influencing senior leadership, and this study offers new insights into building internal relationships and informal coalitions to provide strategic counsel. These strategies involve internal communications, a neglected area of research and practice. The findings are based on in-depth interviews with 30 executives representing multiple departments in four U.S. companies. A new role justifying public relations’ membership in executive decision teams is internal boundary spanning or gathering intelligence internally across business units, and requires public relations to have a seat at multiple decision tables.     

Exploratory Study of Public Relations Roles in Zimbabwe

This exploratory study examined the practice of public relations in Zimbabwe by surveying and understanding public relations roles typically practiced by Zimbabwean PR practitioners. Through the lens of systems theory, the research investigated whether the practiced public relations roles allow organizations to perform all three boundary spanning functions such as output, throughput, and input. The results confirmed prior theoretically and empirically derived typology of roles (technician, manager, strategist) from the African continent. However, the observed structures of public relations roles deviate from previous findings, indicating that Zimbabwean PR practitioners' professional roles may differ from those in neighboring countries.     

Motivations for Involvement in Nonmetropolitan LGBTQ Organizations: A Multimethod Qualitative Exploration

Organizations serving lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities provide services aimed at improving the health and well-being of LGBTQ people, yet may face limited resources and community support in nonmetropolitan communities. This study seeks to understand LGBTQ individuals’ motivations for becoming and staying involved in nonmetropolitan LGBTQ organizations. Data collection methods included interviews, participant observation, and focus groups. Six categories of motivations emerged: (1) to access support and resources; (2) to establish an LGBTQ community; (3) to be generative; (4) to affirm identity; (5) to support an LGBTQ organization; and (6) to combine one’s personal and professional lives.     

An Inside‐Out Marketing Strategy for Innovation among Human Service Nonprofits in South Korea

In the increasingly competitive nonprofit market, innovation may be the only choice for survival among human service nonprofits. Considering the importance of service encounters and high dependence on human resources, internal marketing has potential as a management strategy to improve innovative activities in human service nonprofits. To examine the effect of internal marketing strategy focusing on employees, this study investigates the mediating effect of customer orientation in the pathway from internal marketing to innovation. The findings from 258 community‐based social service centers in South Korea support the positive impact of internal marketing on customer orientation and innovation, although the significant evidence for the mediating effect of customer orientation is not found. The current study suggests implications for practice and future research.     

Advocacy by Nonprofit Human Service Agencies

Abstract

This article reports and analyzes findings of a mixed-methods study which examined correlations between select organizational factorsbudget size, staff size, age, local government funding, and leadership-and the advocacy behavior of human service agencies in Washington, DC. Surveys were sent to 100 agency executive directors, and 43 were returned. Follow-up interviews with staff from the five highest scoring and five lowest scoring agencies are reported. Findings show that budget size, staff size, leadership, and local government funding are positively correlated to agency advocacy behavior. Barriers and enhancements to agency advocacy behavior are also discussed.     

Sustainability of Nonprofit Human Service Organizations in a Neighborhood Context

Nonprofit human service organizations (NHSOs) carry both practical and symbolic implications for serving local needs. Whether neighborhood characteristics influence the existence of NHSOs is a critical inquiry, albeit with mixed results. This study examines the relationship between neighborhood characteristics and organizational sustainability based on the data of the capital district of New York State. Spatial analysis showed that the largest concentration of NHSOs remains in the inner‐city neighborhoods. Regression analysis identified small revenues of organizations and density of African American residents as significant factors that are negatively associated with the longevity of NHSOs, controlling for neighborhood income level. These findings imply that small‐budget organizations in African American neighborhoods may experience a quick turnover, which prompts a deeper understanding of how NHSOs attempt to sustain in such neighborhoods.     

Public nudity on cell phones: Managing conflict in crisis situations

Analyzing news coverage to recount a fast-moving, dramatic marketing PR incident that occurred in South Korea, the contingency theory of conflict management and crisis management strategies are integrated to examine how crisis is communicated and managed in a very short period of time. Several types of strategies were utilized by contending parties through the various stages of the crisis life cycle. We found evidence for a new contingent variable that should be added in the matrix of contingent factors--the importance of Internet community and Netizens as organized and influential public. Netizens played an important role throughout the crisis period in changing the organization's stance from advocacy to accommodation.     

Sustaining and Strengthening a Macro Identity: The Association of Macro Practice Social Work

Macro practice focuses on community-level interventions, such as management, organizing, research, and policy advocacy. Despite social work's deep roots in this type of work, macro practice and macro practitioners often practice without support or connections with other macro practitioners, and are underrepresented in the profession. In 2006, a group of social workers, including academics and practitioners, formed the Association of Macro Practice Social Work (AMPSW). AMPSW works to strengthen the professional identity of macro practitioners, elevate the status of macro social workers, and address common concerns within the social work profession.     

Organizational Change: A Conceptual Framework to Advance the Evidence Base

There is a vast literature on organizational change, but much of it has a weak evidence base, often using only case studies or axioms based on authors' experiences. Quantitative studies are less common and typically address a limited number of variables. Implementation science research is more advanced but typically addresses only program-level change. This paper presents a comprehensive framework of relevant variables and perspectives from which to view organizational change and offers a research agenda, with particular attention to preconditions for change (e.g., change capacity) and organizational change tactics, and their relationships with change outcomes—promising areas for research.     

Moving Ahead,Falling Apart,Losing Power: Three Narratives to the Development of Human Services

Scholars agree that we live in a society in which the lion’s share of human needs is supplied by formal organizations. This article deals with how society reached this situation and the challenges embedded in it. We will postulate that there are three basic narratives of human services, which we have named the progress, the social disintegration, and the power narrative. The narratives will be demonstrated through examples from the field of juvenile and adolescent mental health services. We claim that meaningful professional training in human services must expose students to the interpretations, insights, and possible directions for practice in light of each of the narratives.     

Culture,boundary, and identity: a comparison of practices between two online punk communities in China

This article analyzes how digital technology can shape cultural practice in Chinese online communities. By using the concepts of boundary and identity, it explores the formation of two online punk communities in China, created by those who are interested in punk music originating from Anglo-American countries. Drawing on data from participant observation and 10 in-depth interviews, this article first reviews literature on Internet culture in China, online communities, boundaries, and identity. It then focuses on the differing practices of the two online punk communities. A discussion is subsequently provided concerning how boundaries are constructed in online communities through the exclusion that is enabled by the technological platform. An analysis of how the members identify themselves with online communities and form punk subcultures encouraged by the boundaries of their respective communities is then presented towards the end of the article. It is through this process that the members empower themselves in their relationships with the surrounding society.     

Organizational change tactics in a homeless services agency

There is a vast literature on organizational change, but research on a key aspect of organizational change, the tactics used by change leaders, is limited. To address this gap, a questionnaire assessing the use of organizational change tactics has been used to allow an organization's staff to describe an organizational change initiative they had experienced. This study also included an interview with the agency's director of programs, an interview with two other staff, document analysis, and pre–post client outcome data. Findings showed the extent to which these tactics were observed and were seen as useful in achieving the change goal, offering guidance for change leaders considering organizational change tactics, and for researchers by advancing methods for studying organizational change. Results were also contrasted with those of an earlier study to identify common themes.     

Non-profit organizations bridging the communication divide in a complex South Africa

Purpose

South Africa's post-apartheid governments have made remarkable progress in consolidating the nation's peaceful transition to democracy, but many South Africans still view themselves and each other according to stigmatizing categories. As the country's remarkable and peaceful transition to democracy unfolds, millions, both urban and rural, are still confronted with having to survive unemployment, homelessness, lack of basic services, HIV/Aids, food insecurity and unacceptable levels of crime and violence. Confronted by the complexity of our development challenges, one of our biggest failures is a lack of communication, trust, common purpose, collaborative leadership and sustainable relationships between the various sectors and stakeholders in development. Transforming South Africa's society to remove the legacy of marginalization will be a long-term process requiring the sustained commitment of the leaders and people of the nation's diverse groups. So the question remains: how can non-profit organizations (NPOs) establish themselves as development providers within the uncertain political arena, of which South Africa is characteristic, in order to represent all the masses who cannot speak for themselves and more than often find themselves in a marginalized and stigmatized position?

Principle results

Some Non-profit organizations recognize that their relationships with stakeholders is of great importance for their survival, various forms of communication take place without the necessary planning and without clear objectives for the development of these relationships. NPOs need a positive image and reputation due to financial implications where they do not have sufficient funds to support or market themselves effectively. In this climate of polarization NPOs play a pivotal role in providing a voice to the poor, mobilizing a motion of change and creating a platform for relationships, credibility and trust. Within the theoretical framework of relationship management theory, the interests of all stakeholders are balanced through the management of the stakeholder relationships.

Major conclusions

Non-profit organizations need to ensure that they protect their stakeholders (especially those who are in desperate need of the services rendered by these organizations), deliver better services and although not operating for the purpose of making a profit, manage themselves so that they do generate profit which will enable them to support themselves especially when funding is something that is becoming a rare phenomenon. Although NPOs find themselves in difficult financial times they need to renovate and almost reinvent themselves, in order to be fully capable to address many social problems in SA and to indicate to those who support them (especially financially) that they are to be trusted, committed to make a difference, that they deliver on their promises and to ensure open communication channels with all their stakeholders. NPOs need to manage their reputations which are built on their corporate identities because it is the organization's reputation that often creates a lifeline in uncertain times. If the NPOs succeed in managing their identities effectively, it may serve as the foundation for developing and maintaining relationships with their respective stakeholders which in turn could change the face of South Africa's society. These organizations might go about creating a platform for dialog in an attempt to build sustainable productive relationships that can go about uplifting and empowering those who would otherwise not have such an opportunity.     

Political Advocacy in the Context of “Show Me Your Papers”: How Do Human Service Administrators Respond to Policy Upheaval?

This study focuses on the political advocacy of human service administrators following implementation of a highly restrictive state immigration law. It tests hypotheses to assess whether factors associated with the political advocacy of human service administrators generally are also associated with advocacy at a time of policy crisis. Findings suggest that few human service administrators engaged in immigration-related advocacy, and that those who did advocate were those most likely to perceive organizational benefit for doing so. The findings raise questions about the conditions under which human service administrators will advocate for social benefit in an organizational or individual role.     

Managing national reputation and international relations in the global era: Public diplomacy revisited

The purpose of this paper is to review and re-examine the concept and practice of public diplomacy in light of the incredible pace of change in global politics and communication, and to discuss implications for future research. It first explains the significance of national reputation and its linkage to public diplomacy. It then surveys and assesses a broad range of literature on public diplomacy, characterized by three basic discourses: public diplomacy as policy-driven rather than relationship-based, the primacy of nation-state governments in the structure and process of public diplomacy, and an emphasis on mass media communication. The paper finally suggests and outlines further research efforts based on the existing literature and the evolving contexts.     

The Voluntary–Community Sector and Political Development in Northern Ireland,Since 1972

This paper traces the development of the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland from the early 1970s onwards. Particular attention is given to the expansion of the voluntary and community sector in the 1970s, community action in conflict with government in the 1980s, and new funding--from the European Union and other international sources--for development work since the mid-1990s. More recent trends discussed include the rapprochement of the voluntary and community sector with government, which has seen a growth in formal partnerships and networking, as well as the impact of the 1998 Belfast Agreement.     

Nonprofit Management Principles and Practice,by M. J. Worth

A qualitative case study of two urban neighborhood-planning processes contributes to knowledge regarding citizen participation in the context of public housing redevelopment. The data were collected and triangulated from multiple sources including participant observation, field notes, artifacts, and 24 hours of semistructured interview data (n = 26). Data provided context for understanding engaged residents’ and professionals’ experience of participation in a Resident Advisory Council (RAC) and influence during neighborhood redevelopment planning. Study participants reported the benefits of inclusion in the RAC community planning process including: (a) being engaged by attending meetings and dialoging, (b) maintaining and building relationships, and (c) maintaining organizing pressure and fighting back.     

Religion and community philanthropic organizations: The case of the United Jewish Appeal‐Federation of New York

This article explores the processes that occur when community philanthropic organizations develop religious expressions and practices by examining the shifts that took place within the United Jewish Appeal‐Federation of New York between 1990 and 2014. As the findings indicate, the gradual integration of ethnoreligious practices, norms, and expressions into the Federation's missions, routine, activities, and distribution of resources, as well as among staff and volunteers, reshaped the Federation's identity and faith‐based orientation. This process led the Federation to move beyond being a faith‐background organization toward becoming a faith‐affiliated organization, expressing Jewish beliefs through its charitable work and philanthropic activities. The article highlights the resulting dilemmas and obstacles faced by the Federation and concludes with a discussion of the implications for understanding the process of increased religion among community philanthropic organizations.     

Managing intractability: Wrestling with wicked problems and seeing beyond consensus in public relations

Managing perceived intractable problems—seemingly irrevocable, difficult-to-solve, often values-driven conflicts—is a regular occurrence for public relations practitioners. Yet, understanding and managing such problems is often outside of the bounds of public relations theories aimed primarily at building consensus. This paper builds on existing conflict-centered literature by carving out a place for dissensus-oriented or agonistic public relations theories and practices. Through interviews with 41 public relations practitioners facing perceived intractable scenarios and the integration of dissensual and agonistic perspectives of Lyotard (1984), Rancière (2010), and others, the paper provides evidence of these approaches in everyday practice. Finally, it offers a framework for social issue engagement that orients agonistic and dissensus-minded professional practices alongside consensus approaches.