Charitable Nonprofits Research Articles

How Competition and Specialization Shape Nonprofit Engagement in Policy Advocacy

AbstractThis paper extends research on nonprofit advocacy by exploring the relationship between competition, nonprofit mission, and policy advocacy. Previous research indicates that charitable nonprofits serving specialized populations, such as immigrants or veterans, often engage in policy advocacy. This could benefit marginalized populations whose interests are articulated by nonprofit organizations. However, population ecology theory in organizational sociology predicts that generalist organizations will outperform specialists in uncertain environments. At the very times when nonprofits serving specialized constituencies should focus on advocacy the most – for example to protect funding in competitive policy environments – they may be least able to do so. Drawing on survey data from charitable nonprofits in Boston, Massachusetts, we find that competition and specialization have direct positive effects on nonprofit engagement in advocacy and the use of formal and grassroots tactics. However, the effect of competition is weakened by nonprofit specialization. Nonprofit specialists that report higher competition for resources are less likely to participate in policy advocacy and use fewer formal and grassroots tactics. Specialists that report higher service delivery competition use fewer formal advocacy tactics. These findings suggest that we should be cautious in looking to the nonprofit sector, particularly organizations serving specialized populations, to provide constituent representation through policy advocacy in competitive environments.

Understanding Nonprofit Advocacy in Non-Western Settings: A Framework and Empirical Evidence from Singapore

Research on nonprofit advocacy in non-Western settings is still rather limited. In this article, we address this limitation by examining the advocacy practices of nonprofit charitable organizations in Singapore, a non-liberal democratic city-state in Southeast Asia with a history of colonial rule. We ask the following questions: What are the key environmental and organizational factors that influence the scope and intensity of advocacy activities of nonprofit organizations? In particular, what is the effect of the political context on the advocacy strategies and tactics among these organizations? To answer these questions, we present a three-factor explanatory model of nonprofit advocacy incorporating cause, capacity, and context. The research methodology entails a survey of nonprofit executives from a random sample of Singapore human and social service organizations. Our findings shed light on how the various aspects of the political context—perceived opportunities and threats from government intervention and dependence on government funding—shape nonprofit advocacy in a non-Western setting.

The Implications of Income-Based Repayment and Public Service Loan Forgiveness on Student Loan Debt

The Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan decreases the burden of student loan debt for borrowers with high levels of debt or relatively low incomes. For borrowers with high debt or low income, student loan debt payments are based on income instead of the amount of debt and the interest rate. The unpaid balance is forgiven after 20 years. The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program allows unpaid student loan debt to be forgiven after 10 years for those that work for the government, non-profit, and other charitable organizations. There are numerous benefits and drawbacks to these programs.

Charitable Nonprofits in the West and Their Implications for Public Policy

DOI 10.1515/cjpp-2014-0004 Calif. J. Politics Policy 2014; 6(1): 187–206 Nancy Winemiller Basinger* Charitable Nonprofits in the West and Their Implications for Public Policy Abstract: In the West, several distinctive features of the region’s development and culture affect the size, scope, and evolution of the nonprofit sector. In this article, I provide information about our understanding of the existence, the current size and scope of charitable nonprofits in the West, and their importance in the public policy arena. I begin by discussing the theoretical foundations of the sector and its role in the policy process. I then describe the regional dimen- sions of the nonprofit sector in the Mountain West and Pacific West including the density of the sector, the types of organizations in the sector, and revenue distributions. Finally, I discuss the implications of the nonprofits in the West for public policies. Keywords: advocacy; nonprofit; public charities. *Corresponding author: Nancy Winemiller Basinger, Bennion Center, University of Utah, 260 S. Central Campus Dr. Union 101, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA, Tel.: +801-585-9100, e-mail: nancy.basinger@utah.edu Rarely would one include an environmental scan of the charitable nonprofit organizations in the region when considering the important elements of public policy. 1 It is time to reconsider this stance. In all regions of the country, charities are increasingly involved in public policy as advocates and providers. The growth in the sector over the past two decades is unprecedented (Roeger et al. 2012) and the level of professionalization in charities is also at its highest historical level (Hwang and Powell 2009). Charitable nonprofits serve democracy by advocating on behalf of under-rep- resented portions of the population (Berry 2003). Increased education and pro- fessional development in the sector have made charity leaders more aware of the many ways the organization may access the policy process. Approximately 20% 1 For the purposes of this analysis, only those nonprofit corporations that have been granted public charity tax exempt status will be considered and the terms “nonprofit” and “charity” will be used interchangeably.

Exploring the Performativity of Stakeholder Interactions in Nonprofit Organizations

Mainstream literature argues that organizations need to interact with stakeholders in order to secure support for their respective missions, projects, and services. The question of how stakeholder interactions lead to unplanned transformations of nonprofit organizations through their major strategic initiatives or projects, however, has not been sufficiently explored. Nonprofit charitable organizations are particularly exposed to the performative aspects of community stakeholder influences, particularly as boundaries between organizations and their stakeholders can be permeable. Empirically we address the performativity of community-level stakeholder exchanges in a comparative case study of five nonprofit arts and culture organizations and their cultural facility projects. Our findings show that both new and existing organizations face similar stakeholder interaction challenges and revelations in moving from concept stage to grand opening with unanticipated impacts on the institutions, their projects, and the core group of people who guided them. Private and public dialogs among and between internal and external stakeholders prompt iterative learning and flexible adaptation as performative aspects of the projects evolve even in the context of environmental shocks.

Charitable Nonprofits in the West and Their Implications for Public Policy

Charitable Nonprofits in the West and Their Implications for Public Policy

Economic Consequences of Going Concern Audit Opinions in Nonprofit Charitable Organizations

ABSTRACT This study examines the economic consequences of going concern audit reports (GCARs) in nonprofit charitable organizations (NPOs) using a sample of public charities that received initial GCARs between 1998 and 2003. I find that GCARs are negatively correlated with subsequent government grants. This evidence suggests either that the government utilizes GCARs as a screening criterion in its funding decisions or that affected NPOs voluntarily withdraw their grant applications. GCARs and subsequent contributions are also negatively correlated. There is no evidence of a significant correlation between a GCAR and the NPO's subsequent public support. The findings indicate detectable adverse economic consequences of GCARs in the nonprofit sector. Data Availability: Data used in this study are from public sources.

In Memoriam: Kris R. Nielsen

As chairman and president of Pegasus Global Holdings, Inc., Dr. Nielsen was a global leader in helping contractors and owners to define what makes a successful project. He helped them examine their operations and determine how to address subjects like risk management, execution, project controls, value engineering, corporate strategy, construction law, dispute resolution, and project sustainability. While on assignments, he worked with his clients to help select younger members of their organization to mentor in how to achieve project success. Dr. Nielsen derived great satisfaction in knowing there was a growing cadre of people who were learning and then practicing their newfound skills while striving for project success. In pursuit of increasing the number of successful construction projects, Dr. Nielsen coedited and authored a book entitled Managing Gigaprojects: Advice from Those Who’ve Been There, Done That published by ASCE Press in October 2012. He was retained as a keynote speaker and lectured and presented on topics including arbitration, alternative dispute resolution, risk management, governance, project and program management, and trends in the energy and infrastructure industries. He also, either in presentations or technical papers seen or read, had produced over 175 industrywide documents since 1971. Just before that time, our industry worked with just a handshake and a cost estimate written on the back on an envelope. In summary, he helped lead the change and was one of our industry’s leaders for two decades, helping to achieve best industry practices. Dr. Nielsen has made significant contributions to the construction industry in the area of risk management and best practices. He was an active member of ASCE and the Japan Society of Civil Engineers and spent his entire career working toward bettering the construction industry. He served on the Advisory Board of the Construction Industry Institute and on the ASCE Board of Directors of the Construction Institute, both organizations specifically concentrating on best practices in the construction industry. Dr. Nielsen was also a member of the RT260 CII research team for best practices on reimbursable contracting. He was also an advisor to the Asian Society for Social Management Systems and contributed significantly to the improvement of construction contracting, especially throughout Asia. His book entitled Endangered Species, the Japanese Construction Industry specially addresses the need to improve construction efficiency and instill the need for change management. Dr. Nielsen was elected to the Pan American Academy of Engineering in 2008 in recognition of his contributions in Latin America for risk management, both in engineering and construction practices. He spent the last 40 years raising the bar on risk management in megaproject construction. In 2011, he served as the chair of the Construction Review Board of the Vogtle 3 and 4 nuclear power plants. He performed numerous engagements on engineering and construction projects in more than 60 countries, including some of the world’s largest megaprojects: the Edwardsport integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plant, the largest coal gasification power plant in the world, the Panama Canal, the London Crossrail Project, Guri Dam in Venezuela, Melbourne City Link Project, Xialoangdi Dam in China, PEMEX-Combisa Project in Mexico, numerous nuclear power plants, Sound Transit Program in Seattle, and the Venice Lagoon Project, to name a few. Dr. Nielsen had extensive global executive, operations, and project management audit, evaluation, and consulting experience. This experience covered the owners and financiers (public and private) of power, oil and gas, infrastructure, transportation, resource, and defense, and engineers, contractors, and manufacturers who service these industries. Dr. Nielsen’s career included a variety of project and corporate management positions, including president and chairman of Pegasus Global Holdings, Inc.; arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association (AAA); managing partner of Unionville Ranch; and chairman of the Patricia Galloway and Kris Nielsen Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit charitable organization. Dr. Nielsen previously served as partner in Unionville Vineyards; chairman of Unionville Aviation; chairman and principal of the NielsenWurster Group (now part of Marsh USA); chairman of NielsenWurster ESB, Inc., an international power and process plant management consulting and software company; and chairman of Nielsen-Wurster Asia-Pacific Pty. Ltd., an Asia-Pacific firm located in Melbourne, Australia, specializing in management consulting, risk management, and dispute resolution. Prior to founding Nielsen-Wurster in 1976, he served as the vice president of MBM, an international construction management firm, where he led the development of the U.S. government’s Construction Management and Control System (CMCS) and managed its global consulting division. Kris R. Nielsen

Specialists, Generalists, and Policy Advocacy by Charitable Nonprofit Organizations

Previous research finds modest levels of engagement in policy advocacy by charitable nonprofits, despite legal regulations permitting nonprofit advocacy and the significance of public policy to nonprofit constituencies. This paper examines nonprofit involvement in policy advocacy using survey data from Boston, Massachusetts. Nonprofit participation in policy advocacy is associated with professionalization, resource dependence, features of the institutional environment, and organizational characteristics such as size and mission. Drawing from population ecology theory, we examine an additional aspect of organizational mission: whether a nonprofit serves a specialized or general population. We find that nonprofits serving specialized populations are more likely to participate in policy advocacy than nonprofits serving the general population.

Charitable Nonprofits’ Use of Noncompetition Agreements: Having the Best of Both Worlds

For years, individuals have been challenging the noncompetition agreements they entered into with their employers on the basis that the agreements violate public policy. However, in a competitive marketplace, courts and legislatures in many jurisdictions are reluctant to invalidate otherwise reasonable noncompetition agreements. Perhaps they are right, at least when it comes to the general class of nonprofits and to nonprofits that are protecting their interests against for-profit entities. As for charitable — or § 501(c)(3) — nonprofits that are attempting to protect their interests against other charitable nonprofits, however, the decision-making bodies should reconsider their position. Unlike traditional for-profit entities, whose main goal is profit maximization, charitable nonprofits are organized and operated to benefit some greater good. As a result, charitable nonprofits receive donations from individuals and corporations, as well as tax breaks from the government, which are unavailable to for-profit entities. At the same time, charitable nonprofits use many of the same tools that for-profit firms utilize to maximize profits, including noncompetition agreements. Thus, charitable nonprofits are able to benefit from an anti-competition, profit-maximizing tool while also reaping the rewards of their tax-exempt status. In short, charitable nonprofits (wrongly) enjoy the best of both the for-profit and nonprofit worlds. This article discusses the unique nature of the charitable nonprofit’s mission and the tax benefits conferred on charitable nonprofits by the federal and state governments. It then discusses noncompetition agreements and demonstrates that charitable nonprofits’ use of noncompetition agreements is contrary to their mission and tax-exempt status, as well as to the public interest. Finally, the article proposes an amendment to the federal tax code that would render unenforceable any language in a noncompetition agreement that prevents an individual from leaving the employment of one charitable nonprofit for employment at another.

The untapped potential of marketing for evaluating the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations: a framework proposal

Evaluation of the effectiveness of public benefit charitable nonprofit organizations (NPOs), both in terms of organizational performance and social impact, has been increasingly on demand. However, and due to different reasons, nonprofit effectiveness evaluation is still an unresolved issue in practice for many of those organizations. This paper reviews some of the most frequently used evaluation approaches with a double purpose in mind. First, to demonstrate that the application of marketing concepts, particularly those of market orientation and relationship marketing, has still a strong potential in the specific field of practitioner-oriented measurement and evaluation in NPOs. Many of the available frameworks are operations-, accounting and control-, or finance-driven; and therefore risk missing the market- and multi-stakeholder orientation that is crucial to improve the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations in pursuing social innovation, and also the centrality of mission and societal values for nonprofits. Second, the paper outlines and proposes a marketing-based and practitioner-oriented framework for approaching the evaluation of nonprofit organizational effectiveness. The main underlying thesis is that nonprofit effectiveness ultimately depends on the capacity of NPOs to become market oriented and to build and effectively manage relationships with relevant stakeholders over the long-term. The proposed framework combines two different aspects: the first measures the perceived value obtained by beneficiaries/customers, donors, partners and other relevant stakeholders; the second puts a value to the outcomes of those satisfactory relationships in terms of enhanced trust and commitment, ultimately leading to long-term impact.

Service systems and the social enterprise

AbstractService science is an emerging multidisciplinary field concerned with the study of service systems and value cocreation. In recent years, the field has expanded considerably, growing to encompass a community of researchers and practitioners from a range of backgrounds and knowledge domains. However, very little research has focused on the study of service systems within the context of social‐purpose organizations (SPOs), such as a nonprofit charitable organization or an academic institution. We contend that SPOs represent a class of service systems that are understudied in service science. The goal of this study is to contribute to the ongoing development of the discipline's theoretical foundations through an empirical study of a special type of SPO, the social enterprise. Through case‐study research, we analyzed five social enterprise organizations. Our findings point to a number of areas that suggest a bias in service science concepts toward economically motivated and profit‐driven service systems. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cancer Patients Have Much to Gain From Psychiatric Treatment

Cancer Patients Have Much to Gain From Psychiatric Treatment

The Haiti Earthquake

Many months after the devastating earthquake in January 2010, wounds remain a major disease burden in Haiti. Since January 2010, through the efforts of corporations, nonprofit charitable organizations, and medical professionals, advanced wound care techniques, including negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT), have been introduced into the wound care regimens of various hospitals in Haiti. In June 2010, the authors completed their second volunteer trip at a Haitian hospital specializing in orthopedic wounds. The medical team was composed of a plastic surgeon, orthopedic surgeon, anesthesiologist, medical assistant, scrub technician, and registered nurse (specializing in plastic surgery and orthopedics). The authors' team supplied NPWT devices, reticulated open-cell foam dressings, and canisters donated by Kinetic Concepts, Inc, San Antonio, Texas, for use at the hospital. This report describes the medical challenges in postearthquake Haiti (including limb salvage and infection), benefits of adjunctive use of NPWT/reticulated open-cell foam, and current wound care status in a Haitian orthopedic hospital. The future role of NPWT in Haiti and during mass catastrophe in a least-developed country is also discussed.

Succession planning in nonprofit organizations

AbstractExecutive leadership is a critical component in the success of nonprofit organizations. An upcoming period of leadership transition is anticipated as substantial numbers of baby boomers, now at the peak of their careers, reach retirement age. With nonprofit organizations growing in both size and number, an impending leadership deficit is a concern. To help prepare for these important transition events, this study focuses on planning for executive succession. A survey exploring details of succession planning was undertaken of executive directors of 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofits and CEOs of 501(c)(4) cooperative organizations—the more business‐oriented user‐owned and controlled nonprofit organizations prominent in agricultural, utility, and finance sectors. We found that planning and preparation do not match the level of interest and concern for executive succession. Although the replacement of long‐serving leaders is acknowledged as difficult, few proactive steps are undertaken.

MemoryCare: A community based dementia care model

MemoryCare was founded as a community based non-profit charitable organization in 2000 to offer families an alternative to the traditional medical approach to dementia care. In a holistic, multi-disciplinary team approach, we incorporate caregiver education, counseling, and support into the evaluation and medical management of the patient. MemoryCare is designed to address the most common concerns of caregivers who interface with the medical system as advocates for a memory impaired loved one: the lack of recognition that a memory disorder is present and the lack of communication between medical provider and caregiver on how to best assist their loved one. With seventeen percent of our region's population over 65 years of age, we are ahead of much of the nation in the prevalence of individuals with memory disorders. Nationwide, 70% of those with memory impairment are cared for in their homes; at MemoryCare 85% of patients are cared for in the home setting by family members who need support and education in order to continue this care. Our goal is to enhance basic community services with a program that helps older adults and their families have the best possible quality of life in the face of a progressive memory disorder. With our physician and care manager teams, we provide excellent medical care for the individual with memory impairment and support and education services to their caregivers. The teams coordinate diagnostic work-up, disease management planning, caregiver training, counseling and support for each enrolled family. They also provide guidance and medical assistance in managing difficult behaviors. Our staff help coordinate available community resources, assist low income elderly in applying for medical assistance, and counsel families regarding end of life decision making. After the initial evaluation families receive a carefully written care plan that is amended over time as their loved one's disease progresses. They have full access to our resource library, workshops, and staff for educational materials. MemoryCare staff is devoted to providing community education on dementia, care giving, and aging related health issues. We teach professional health care providers on these topics as well. This presentation is descriptive of our program and based on an observational gathering of data on client characteristics, outcomes and satisfaction surveys from our program in 2010. In 2010, MemoryCare provided comprehensive services to 915 patients and 2673 caregivers. Our rural satellite clinic extends our outreach and our home visitation program includes over 120 families. Eighty-five percent of our patients are cared for in the home setting; one third are dependent in two or more basic activities of daily living. Our minority low income community screening program offered screenings at several community-based sites to 68 individuals. We provided dementia related education through our “Caregiver College” and other workshops to over 2500 health care professionals and community members. We maintain a peer education network of caregivers who provide support and mentoring for each other both in person and through electronic means of communication. MemoryCare's model of care has received prestigious awards from the public sector and high praise from its clientele. In our 2010 caregiver outcome survey, 95% of caregivers said their knowledge of memory disorders improved, 93% said their ability to manage their loved ones behavior improved, 70% reported a reduction in stress, 89% said they had benefitted from assistance accessing community resources, and 83% of those still living in a home setting said that MemoryCare services helped them remain at home longer thus saving themselves and the government the cost of placement. MemoryCare's model successfully addresses the common complaints regarding dementia care in the U.S.: rushed practitioners not following established practice guidelines,

New sources of drugs for hematologic malignancies

AbstractAdvancing novel therapeutic agents for the treatment of malignancy into the marketplace is an increasingly costly and lengthy process. As such, new strategies for drug discovery are needed. Drug repurposing represents an opportunity to rapidly advance new therapeutic strategies into clinical trials at a relatively low cost. Known on-patent or off-patent drugs with unrecognized anticancer activity can be rapidly advanced into clinical testing for this new indication by leveraging their known pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and toxicology. Using this approach, academic groups can participate in the drug discovery field and smaller biotechnology companies can “de-risk” early-stage drug discovery projects. Here, several scientific approaches used to identify drug repurposing opportunities are highlighted, with a focus on hematologic malignancies. In addition, a discussion of the regulatory issues that are unique to drug repurposing and how they impact developing old drugs for new indications is included. Finally, the mechanisms to enhance drug repurposing through increased collaborations between academia, industry, and nonprofit charitable organizations are discussed.

Incorporating Real-Life Open-Ended Design Projects In A First Year Design Course

At Memorial University, for the last several years, instructors of the first-year engineering design course have worked closely with the local chapter of the Tetra Society of North America to provide meaningful open-ended doable design projects that are needed by actual clients. Founded in 1987, The Tetra Society of North America is an independent non-profit charitable organization that recruits skilled technical volunteers to design and fabricate custom assistive devices for people with disabilities. In this paper, several projects that have been assigned to students in the past will be described and example solutions provided by students will also be shown. From the feedback of students, instructors, and clients, this collaboration with the Tetra Society has been very successful in providing real, needed, doable projects, with real clients for first year engineering students.

Collections management at the Joggins Fossils Cliffs UNESCO World Heritage Site: a new model?

This paper outlines what we believe to be a unique collections management model wherein two institutions, one, a non-profit charitable organization (Joggins Fossil Institute) and the other, a governmental institution (Nova Scotia Museum), collaborate within the limits and framework of provincial legislation to curate a collection of geological and palaeontological specimens. We provide details of the collection management model which includes the development a data management system (Mini-MIMS) and an on-line searchable database that has been made available to the public.

Strategic Human Resources Management in Nonprofit Organizations

This study explores the prevalence of strategic human resources management (HRM) practices in nonprofit organizations as well as the organizational and contextual determinants. Based on survey data collected from 229 charitable nonprofit organizations, we find that organizations that are larger in size, technologically savvy, and dependent on the work of independent contractors all appear to be more likely to implement strategic HRM practices. Local affiliates of national organizations are more likely to implement strategic HRM practices. In addition, younger organizations, educational organizations, and organizations that do not have dedicated HR staff are also more likely to implement strategic HRM practices. Although dependence on volunteer labor has no significant effect on the outcome, further analysis indicates that volunteer-dependent organizations differ from others in several aspects of strategic HRM.