Stakeholder communication in service implementation networks: expanding relationship management theory to the nonprofit sector through organizational network analysis

Abstract

Nonprofits increasingly participate in government‐funded service implementation networks (SINs). However, extant research does not explore how organizations might strategically tailor communication to different stakeholder groups or use different communication tools for management. Stakeholders are not a monolithic group, and communicating with stakeholders within SINs is hypothesized to involve different forms of communication than communicating with stakeholders outside of the network. In this paper, relationship management theory is used to examine strategic communication with stakeholder groups within and outside of SINs. Both traditional and emergent (e.g., social media) forms of communication are examined. Survey and interview data on communication within and outside communication networks are analyzed using organizational network analysis techniques. The findings indicate strategic communication in the network differs from strategic communication with stakeholders outside the network. Within the network, organizations place varying emphasis on the use of traditional and emergent forms of communication for management, implying nonprofit managers funded under government grants continue to rely on face‐to‐face and phone communication and have yet to adopt emerging communication strategies to assist in the management of their programs with their partner organizations.Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.