Foundations and innovation in the nonprofit sector

Using a sample of 17 foundations that are at the forefront of encouraging innovation this study explored foundations' motivations behind funding innovation, their perceived ability to impact the levels of innovation in nonprofit organizations, and strategies that foundations are using or can use to encourage innovation in nonprofit organizations. The results showed that among the major motives behind funding innovation were leveraging the capital, honoring the foundations' core identity (mission and values), and desiring to encourage innovation in nonprofit organizations. Five strategies/mechanisms that foundations are using/can use to encourage innovation in nonprofit organizations were identified: (a) offering innovation awards/grants as catalysts for innovation, (b) providing risk capital and supporting early stage idea development, (c) educating other foundations on the value of innovation and serving in a convener role, (d) serving as thought leaders, and (e) increasing nonprofit organizations' capacity for innovation. Implications for practice are discussed along with recommendations for future research.     

Managers as knowledge generators: The nature of practitioner‐scholar research in the nonprofit sector

As nonprofit management education develops, it has the opportunity to consider new premises concerning managers' roles. In the design and practice of traditional management education, managers are assumed to be the ultimate users of knowledge. Less attention is given to educating managers to be knowledge generators who combine intimate understanding of issues, problems, and settings with established theory and methods. Based on a discussion of three research projects undertaken in nonprofit settings by participants in a doctoral program for advanced practitioners at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University, we describe seven dimensions of practitioner‐scholar inquiry. The pattern of practitioner‐scholar research that emerges from these research projects is contrasted with two other modes of knowledge production. Implications for practitioner‐scholar inquiry and for the education of practitioner‐scholars in the nonprofit sector are discussed.     

Building and valuing global brands in the nonprofit sector

Global nonprofit brands are the world's new “super brands” (Wootliff and Deri, 2001). Nonprofit organizations command unprecedented levels of trust, and nonprofit brand valuations are on par with major international corporations. Leaders and managers of nonprofits face new challenges in the stewardship of their brands. Based on current thinking in nonprofit management and detailed interviews with close to one hundred executives of ten international nonprofit organizations, this article draws strategic lessons on brand building and brand valuation activities of international nonprofits. The multiple roles and stakeholders that global nonprofit brands must address make nonprofit brand building complex and challenging. In particular, differences between advocacy and relief organizations must be explained. Despite the complexity, international nonprofit organizations may have an advantage over for‐profits in leveraging public trust and brand communication. Advocacy organizations in particular successfully link brand and cause to good effect. The valuation of nonprofit brands is a new strategic challenge with significant appeal, but also significant concerns for international nonprofits. In addition to providing nonprofit leaders and managers with a better understanding of brandbuilding activities, imperatives, and best practices in the field, this article outlines the opportunities and threats associated with the valuation of nonprofit brands.     

Adapting surveys for nonprofit research

Many useful survey instruments have been developed in the for‐profit management arena, but they often require varying levels of adaptation for relevant application in the nonprofit context. This research note first explains key steps in the process for adapting and testing a survey instrument. It then illustrates how each step should be applied and reported using a case study adaptation of Hodgkinson's (1992) strategic locus of control instrument for nonprofit use.     

The growth of the nonprofit sector in the 1980s: Facts and interpretation

The nonprofit sector was the growth sector of the 1980s. This is the conclusion reached from detailed examination of the growth trends of major industry groups in New York State in the years 1981 through 1987. The analysis in this article suggests that the growth of the nonprofit sector was due primarily to the strong orientation of the economy toward services, where the nonprofit sector has traditionally had an important presence. Within service industries as a whole, the nonprofit and for-profit sectors grew at comparable rates; however, nonprofit growth was concentrated in semipublic services and in services where information is often difficult for consumers to acquire and understand, while the for-profit sector grew in simpler and more privately oriented services. The analysis shows that the nonprofit sector filled much of the gap left by reduced or stagnating government services. However, the growth of the nonprofit sector may be difficult to sustain in the future if sufficient entrepreneurial talent and other resources are not forthcoming.     

The British are not coming!: UK higher education and the nonprofit sector

The rationale for the growth of nonprofit management education in the United States has recently been charted by O'Neill (2005). Ten years previously, the United States and the United Kingdom were at similar levels of development. By 2006 the parallel lines had been broken. Why has nonprofit management education expanded in the United States while provision of graduate education for the voluntary sector in the United Kingdom has stood still? This article explores the factors that have prevented parallel growth in education provision. It argues that the university as an institution, both in terms of its nature and its power structures, is one of those factors. It presents the story of the closing of the world's first voluntary sector course at the London School of Economics and concludes with reflection on the likely future of voluntary sector management education provision in the United Kingdom.     

Variation in part‐time job quality within the nonprofit human service sector

This article extends the growing literature on the quality of part‐time employment to the domain of nonprofit human services, specifically grassroots organizations in which paid work is itself a relatively new reality. It addresses three central questions: How do part‐time and full‐time workers differ in their personal and household characteristics? How do part‐time jobs differ in access to employment benefits from their full‐time counterparts; and finally, How does benefits access vary among part‐time job titles? These lines of inquiry are examined using data from the populations of nonprofit domestic violence programs and their employees in a large midwestern metropolitan area. Analyses of worker‐level data reveal that part‐time workers in these settings disproportionately live with children, are in committed relationships, and report a strong preference for employment that facilitates work‐life balance; they are also less likely to be primary household wage earners. Analyses at the level of jobs suggest that employment benefits extended to part‐time jobs are minimal compared to their full‐time equivalents, but there are also striking variations among different part‐time titles. The results offer insights into the nature of part‐time work in these nonprofit human service settings and potential challenges for effective management.     

Resources for scholars,practitioners, and policymakers two introductions to the nonprofit sector

The Charitable Nonprofits: An Analysis of Institutional Dynamics and Characteristics, by William G. Bowen, Thomas I. Nygren, Sarah E. Turner, and Elizabeth A. Duffy. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994. 326 pp., $39.95 cloth. America's Nonprofit Sector: A Primer, by Lester M. Salamon. New York: Foundation Center, 1992. 110 pp., $14–95. paper.     

Innovation by nonprofit organizations: Policy and research issues

It is often claimed that a main reason public authorities and others use nonprofit organizations is that nonprofit organizations are innovative. But very little research has been conducted into innovative behavior by nonprofit organizations. How, then, does a funder formulate a policy with which to select innovative organizations? This article develops a classification matrix for types of innovations, sets out the elements of an innovation policy for a funder, and uses a review of the main theories of the spurs and inhibitions to innovation to consider how this ordering can be used in the construction of an innovation policy and as a framework for research.     

Advancing nonprofit organizational effectiveness research and theory: Nine theses

Drawing on the general literature on organizational effectiveness, the specialized literature on nonprofit organizational effectiveness, and recent research in the field, this article advances nine theses, or conclusions, about the effectiveness of public benefit charitable, nonprofit organizations (NPOs). NPO effectiveness is (1) always comparative, (2) multidimensional, (3) related to board effectiveness (but how is not clear), (4) related to the use of correct management practices but not in any simple “best practices” way, and (5) a social construction. Furthermore, (6) it is unlikely that there are any universally applicable best practices that can be prescribed for all NPO boards and management, (7) organizational responsiveness is a useful organizational‐level effectiveness measure, (8) distinguishing among types of NPOs is important and useful, and (9) level of analysis makes a difference in researching and understanding effectiveness. The article concludes by considering implications for organizational practice, boards and governance practices, program evaluation, including program outcomes assessment, and capacity building and capacity builders.     

The DIRECTIONS nonprofit resource assessment model: A tool for small nonprofit organizations

Rapid growth in the number of nonprofits has created a shortage of trained staff and experienced volunteer leadership for nonprofit organizations. The Nonprofit Education Initiative (NEI) in South Carolina developed the DIRECTIONS nonprofit resource assessment model to provide tools to help nonprofits better meet the challenges facing our communities—tools that will help nonprofits develop effective plans, integrate resources, diversify revenue, communicate effective messages, and motivate constituents. These tools are also inexpensive and available close to home. The research and development process was a cooperative effort between the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management and Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service, with funding from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. Cooperative Extension is a component of the land grant university system, the largest educational delivery system in the world. Cooperative Extension's role is to plan, execute, deliver, and evaluate learning programs consistent with locally identified needs. It helps people acquire the understanding, capabilities, attitudes, and skills essential to solving farm, home, and community problems. This article gives a background of the challenges facing nonprofit organizations in South Carolina, the steps taken to develop this new assessment model, and results of research conducted throughout the development process.     

The quality of employment in the nonprofit sector: An update on employee attitudes in nonprofits versus business and government

Results from a survey of a national sample of 1,190 working adults update findings collected in 1977 (Mirvis and Hackett, 1983) on the characteristics and attitudes of people working in nonprofits. As in the earlier survey, it shows that people employed in the private nonprofit sector gain more satisfaction from their jobs than their counterparts in business and government and have more trust in their management. still, people working in nonprofits are just as concerned that their employers will “take advantage” of them and, in contrast to the 1977 survey, are no more psychologically committed to their organizations than are people in the other sectors.     

The anticipated growth of nonprofit unionism

Although unions are not typically associated with nonprofit organizations, many nonprofit agencies have unionized work forces. The author predicts that there will be an increase in the number of unions representing nonprofit employees. Parallels are drawn between the evolution of unions in the public and nonprofit sectors.