Table 7 - uploaded by Laurie E. Paarlberg
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In response to ongoing changes in local economic and philanthropic structures, the United Way of America has encouraged local affiliates to adopt a new philanthropic model-Community Impact. Despite efforts to rebrand the system, significant variation exists in local implementation of the new initiative. Drawing on case studies in 6 communities, we...
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... at performance over time, United Way campaigns in our six sample communi- ties, as measured by per capita contributions, have remained flat or declined since 1990 ( Table 7). While all six campaigns experienced an absolute increase in contributions during this time period, when adjusting per capita contributions for inflation, all but one community had actual decreases in per capita giving levels ranging in size from a modest 3% decrease to a 56% decrease. ...
Citations
... In 1996, the UWA announced it would begin prioritizing program ''outcomes,'' measurable effects on the lives of program clients, above program ''outputs,'' services performed by program operators, in the evaluation of programs (Hendricks et al., 2008). Later, in 2001, the UWA shifted again, adopting the ''community impact'' model which compelled affiliates to evaluate programs by their measurable impact on community-scale populations rather than direct program users (Hendricks et al., 2008;Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012). ...
... This has led to significant variation among affiliates' implementation of outputs measurement with partner agencies (Hendricks et al., 2008). Due to this variation, efforts by United Way affiliates to implement community impact generally resulted in little change to existing funding allocation patterns because of local institutional pressures (Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012). The following case study attempts to provide support and practical guidance for CSFs to analyze their economic outputs. ...
Nonprofit community service federations (CSFs) leverage collaborative relationships with community stakeholders and their own direct economic activity to impact local community outcomes. Under the Collective Impact Framework, CSFs influence community outcomes mainly by acting as backbone organizations, which provide central program support and fiscal management services for a nonprofit network of stakeholders and serve as a grantmaking fiscal intermediaries. There remains no standard approach to evaluate impact on community outcomes. Economic impact analysis has been underexamined in academic literature as an approach to community outcomes evaluation. This paper presents a case study of the United Way of Southwest Alabama (UWSWA) to demonstrate the use of economic impact as an outcomes measurement for use in collective impact program evaluation. Economic impact assessment using conventional input–output methodology provides a broad measure of the economic influence of the UWSWA on indicators of regional economic activity such as output, value-added, earnings, and employment. This study uses a 3-year (FY2017-FY2020) sample of financial data supplied by UWSWA to estimate its scope and scale of economic activity. The case of UWSWA demonstrates how economic impact analysis may complement other impact evaluation methods. The paper finds UWSWA generates substantial positive economic effects on its service region through both its grantmaking and business operations.
... Ecosystems and their network governance mechanisms, rather than singled-out organizations, have increasingly gained attention in both scientific and practitioner literatures, with the aim to better understand how 'wicked' problems can and should be tackled (Appe, 2016;Babiak, 2009;Faulk et al., 2016;Provan and Kenis, 2007). As a result, the attention paid to responsibility, antecedents and effects of transparency and accountability has also increasingly shifted towards the network level of CSOs (AbouAssi and Bies, 2018;Babiak, 2009;Koliba et al., 2011;Meyer et al., 2013;Paarlberg and Meinhold, 2012;Paarlberg and Varda, 2009). For example, Appe (2016) documented how network partners set up collective communication channels in Latin America to increase shared legitimacy and accountability. ...
... Since many goals are shared across networks of complementary organizations, the governance responsibilities situated at this shared level also include elements of transparency and accountability (Eng et al., 2012;Koliba et al., 2011;Paarlberg and Meinhold, 2012;Paarlberg and Varda, 2009;Provan and Milward, 2001). On the one hand, this creates the need for lateral transparency and accountability between the network partners (partner accountability). ...
... Partner accountability involves, among other obligations, being transparent to other organizations in the field that have potentially complementary or even identical goals (Murtaza, 2011). Such partner accountability can lead organizations to adjust their efforts in sync with those of other organizations in order to reach better overall outcomes Paarlberg and Meinhold, 2012;Provan and Milward, 2001). ...
Despite the vast repertoire of practitioner and scientific literature since the early 1990s on how civil society organizations (CSOs) should be governed, we continue to regularly hear stories of severe organizational crises. Even well-respected, internationally active CSOs sometimes find themselves in the middle of a media storm (Archambeault and Webber, 2018; Cordery and Baskerville, 2011; Harris et al., 2018; Willems, 2016; Willems and Faulk 2019). It is naïve to assume that such events will cease in the future or at least stop endangering the sustainability and continuity of CSOs. Nevertheless, an explicit evaluation of how crisis situations can be avoided and how their devastatingly negative effects can be mitigated through CSO governance processes makes it necessary to focus on CSO accountability and transparency. As a result, the clarification and elaboration of the concepts of accountability and transparency can strengthen theoretical and practical insights as to how CSOs can become more crisis-resistant and resilient (Brown, 2005; Helmig et al., 2014). In addition, insight into the inherent trade-offs that CSO leadership teams need to consider in their governance decisions can help both practitioners and researchers to (1) avoid more CSO crisis situations in the future, (2) more effectively overcome such crises when they occur and (3) identify the contextual and organizational factors affecting leaders' governance decisions. Against this background, the aim of this chapter is threefold: 1. Provide an elaborated definition of CSO transparency and accountability that takes into account the nature and role of CSOs in contemporary societies. After highlighting the uniquely defining characteristics of CSOs, the chapter identifies from the inter-disciplinary literature a set of circumstances that underpin the need for a multidimensional elaboration of transparency and accountability specific to CSOs. 2. Document governance responsibilities that CSOs have with respect to transparency and accountability. The chapter explains why transparency and accountability are necessary elements of the CSO governance function. 3. Develop propositions for further scientific elaboration and validation of how CSO governance practices encompass but also support and lead to CSO transparency and accountability. The output of the first two research aims is juxtaposed with five dimensions of a governance quality index, highlighting how governance quality dimensions include and relate to various aspects of CSO transparency and accountability.
... This leads to a stronger dependence on the non-profit market and, as a further consequence, to an increase in donor control (Eikenberry 2009;Ostrander 2007). To tackle these challenges, these non-profits are compelled to establish long-term partnerships and networks in order to achieve stability in their revenue structures (Harrow and Jung 2011;Knott and McCarthy 2007;Paarlberg and Meinhold 2012). ...
Content or text analysis is one of the most common evaluation methods employed in qualitative research. Despite its wide application, however, a clear structure of how such evaluation should be conducted is often lacking due to the complexity of qualitative data. As a consequence, highly differentiated category systems with small-step subdivisions of categories and sub-categories are often used, leading to a loss of context both among categories and for the content as a whole. The aim of this paper is to describe the Phenomena-centered Text Analysis (PTA) as a novel form of qualitative text analysis, which takes these shortcomings into account by focusing on text-inherent phenomena. These phenomena are identified in two preceding quantitative analysis steps that identifying overlapping coding for subsequently qualitative analysis. We explain the structured code- and context-based approach of this new method and demonstrate its application with an empirical example. The PTA contributes to an increasing demand of qualitative methods especially for small-scale projects that need a structured kind of qualitative data analysis.
... Existing research on local UW roles primarily uses archival and interview data (Barman, 2002(Barman, , 2006Brilliant & Young, 2004;Paarlberg & Ghosh Moulick, 2017;Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012;Pfeffer & Leong, 1977;Provan, 1982;Young, 2001). Here, we illustrate the potential of ML to classify a large set of mission descriptions by three identity-based roles attributed to federated funds, including local UWs (Brilliant & Young, 2004). ...
... While it is beyond the scope of this research note to develop and test hypotheses related to espoused roles across the UW system, our final methodological research question asks: Does geographic and/or temporal variation in roles suggest that using mission description for classification may be a fruitful approach in future research? Previous work suggests that the UW is undergoing important changes (Barman, 2002(Barman, , 2006Brilliant & Young, 2004;Paarlberg & Ghosh Moulick, 2017;Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012;Young, 2001), which could lead to variation in roles espoused by local UWs. Our exploratory analysis suggests that roles espoused by local UWs may vary geographically but not temporally. ...
Scholars have used both quantitative and qualitative approaches to empirically study nonprofit roles. Mission statements and program descriptions often reflect such roles, however, until recently collecting and classifying a large sample has been labor-intensive. This research note uses data on United Ways that e-filed their 990 forms and supervised machine learning to illustrate an approach for classifying a large set of mission descriptions by roles. Temporal and geographic variation in roles detected in mission statements suggests that such an approach may be fruitful in future research.
... Among a myriad of theoretical approaches used in nonprofit research, some scholars employ institutional theory to explain institutional pressures facilitating organizational homogeneity, including self-regulation and managerial practices (AbouAssi & Bies, 2018;Bromley & Orchard, 2016;Hersberger-Langloh et al., 2021), accountability and reporting standards (Benjamin, 2008;Verbruggen et al., 2011), and local funding practices (Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012). From institutional theory perspective, the adoption of certain practices, such as board governance policy, can be considered as one example of institutional isomorphism. ...
Previous research lags behind in illuminating theoretical mechanisms that shape governance decision-making on board practices. Using an integrated theoretical approach, I examine how board interlock network and institutional factors are associated with board governance policy adoption in nonprofit organizations. A linear regression model is employed to investigate policies adopted by a panel of public charities in three cities in Upstate New York during 2008 and 2014. Results show that not only the presence of board interlock networks but also central network positions relate to extensive policy adoption. Results also reveal that the use of paid professionals in management relates to institutional isomorphism reflected by more extensive governance policy adoption. These results provide insights for nonprofit leaders seeking to facilitate good governance practices by paying attention to board members’ affiliations and institutional environment considerations.
... The sectoral analysis presented in Table 1 confirms that the UK CF field is highly variegated, populated by large and small foundations whose differing financial performance can only partially be explained by variables such as age, income per capita, and size of population served. This finding is consistent with established literature demonstrating the importance of local structures and cultures in inducing variety in substance and performance within the nonprofit sector (Grønbjerg & Paarlberg, 2001;Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012). What we add that is novel, is the idea that future performance depends in large part on the degree of success achieved by mediators in establishing favorable conditions for future growth, that is, in embedding the CFM such that is fit-for-context. ...
We examine the role of mediators in locally embedding the community foundation model of philanthropy to enable its global diffusion. We hold that mediators, as trusted agents within elite networks, promote and legitimate institutional innovation by tailoring the model to satisfy local requirements. They thereby limit resistance while creating future potentialities. Our novel addition to the community foundation literature stems from research on the transatlantic diffusion of the community foundation template from the United States to the United Kingdom focused on an in-depth case study of one of Europe's largest community foundation, that serving Tyne & Wear and Northumberland in North East England. Our findings suggest that success in embedding the community foundation model depends on rendering it fit-for-context and fit-for-purpose. Mediators operating at both the macro and micro level matter because they have the cultural, social, and symbolic capital needed to win acceptance for initially alien philanthropic principles, practices, and structures.
... This explains, for example, the popularity of youth causes like the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and the provision of scholarships at elite universities for students from poorer backgrounds (Tobin et al., 2003). The same impulse underpins donor support for well-being within particular communities, such as those funded by community foundations , branches of the United Way (Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012) and Jewish charitable federations (Berman, 2017). ...
Elite philanthropy—voluntary giving at scale by wealthy individuals, couples and families—is intimately bound up with the exercise of power by elites. This theoretically oriented review examines how big philanthropy in the United States and United Kingdom serves to extend elite control from the domain of the economic to the domains of the social and political, and with what results. Elite philanthropy, we argue, is not simply a benign force for good, born of altruism, but is heavily implicated in what we call the new age of inequalities, certainly as consequence and potentially as cause. Philanthropy at scale pays dividends to donors as much as it brings sustenance to beneficiaries. The research contribution we make is fourfold. First, we demonstrate that the true nature and effects of elite philanthropy can only be understood in the context of what Bourdieu calls the field of power, which maintains the economic, social and political hegemony of the super‐rich, nationally and globally. Second, we demonstrate how elite philanthropy systemically concentrates power in the hands of mega foundations and the most prestigious endowed charitable organizations. Third, we explicate the similarities and differences between the four main types of elite philanthropy—institutionally supportive, market‐oriented, developmental and transformational—revealing how and why different sections within the elite express themselves through philanthropy. Fourth, we show how elite philanthropy functions to lock in and perpetuate inequalities rather than remedying them. We conclude by outlining proposals for future research, recognizing that under‐specification of constructs has hitherto limited the integration of philanthropy within the mainstream of management and organizational research.
... The sectoral analysis presented in Table 1 confirms that the UK CF field is highly variegated, populated by large and small foundations whose differing financial performance can only partially be explained by variables such as age, income per capita, and size of population served. This finding is consistent with established literature demonstrating the importance of local structures and cultures in inducing variety in substance and performance within the nonprofit sector (Grønbjerg & Paarlberg, 2001;Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2012). What we add that is novel, is the idea that future performance depends in large part on the degree of success achieved by mediators in establishing favorable conditions for future growth, that is, in embedding the CFM such that is fit-for-context. ...
We examine the role of mediators in locally embedding the community foundation model of philanthropy to enable its global diffusion. We hold that mediators, as trusted agents within elite networks, promote and legitimate institutional innovation by tailoring the model to satisfy local requirements. They thereby limit resistance while creating future potentialities. Our novel addition to the community foundation literature stems from research on the transatlantic diffusion of the community foundation template from the United States to the United Kingdom focused on an in-depth case study of one of Europe’s largest community foundation, that serving Tyne & Wear and Northumberland in North East England. Our findings suggest that success in embedding the community foundation model depends on rendering it fit-for-context and fit-for-purpose. Mediators operating at both the macro and micro level matter because they have the cultural, social, and symbolic capital needed to win acceptance for initially alien philanthropic principles, practices, and structures.
... Institutional theory could be used to a greater degree to examine my puzzle. Existing research has fruitfully used institutional theory to examine NGOs with respect to themes such as state-NGO relations (Hasmath & Hsu, 2015;Hsu, 2010); market-NGO relations with respect to entrepreneurialism and corporate social responsibility (Rahman et al., 2019;Doh & Guay, 2006); community/society-NGO relations (Maclure, 2003;Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2011;Mussari & Monfardini, 2010); NGO behaviour and practices (Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2011;Wellens & Jegers, 2011;Maclure, 2003;Abzug & Galaskiewicz, 2001;Miller-Millesen, 2003); and NGO emergence and survival (Zhang & Fulton, 2019;Tam & Hasmath, 2015;Hager et al., 2004). ...
... Institutional theory could be used to a greater degree to examine my puzzle. Existing research has fruitfully used institutional theory to examine NGOs with respect to themes such as state-NGO relations (Hasmath & Hsu, 2015;Hsu, 2010); market-NGO relations with respect to entrepreneurialism and corporate social responsibility (Rahman et al., 2019;Doh & Guay, 2006); community/society-NGO relations (Maclure, 2003;Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2011;Mussari & Monfardini, 2010); NGO behaviour and practices (Paarlberg & Meinhold, 2011;Wellens & Jegers, 2011;Maclure, 2003;Abzug & Galaskiewicz, 2001;Miller-Millesen, 2003); and NGO emergence and survival (Zhang & Fulton, 2019;Tam & Hasmath, 2015;Hager et al., 2004). ...
What happens when organisations get what they want? How do external shifts which advance organisational goals affect survival? Existing literature on goal advancement tends to conceptualise it as a normatively ‘good’ thing and focuses on how to attain it. What remains undertheorised is how organisations can paradoxically create problems for themselves when they get what they want. This puzzle is particularly important to understand vis-à-vis the third sector and policy change, as states increasingly rely on nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) for social policy provision. Insofar as ‘getting what you want’ via policy change can have unintended consequences for organisational sustainability, it has direct implications for social policy, governance, and the communities these NGOs serve. Despite its growing policy relevance, however, this puzzle remains understudied. This doctoral thesis fills this gap by examining the case of LGBT NGOs in Calgary, Montreal, and Toronto in the context of long-term same-sex marriage legalisation, a policy change widely seen as socially and politically progressive for LGBT equality and one advancing LGBT NGO goals. Drawing upon organisational management, development management, resource dependence, and organisational ecology literatures, this policy-relevant thesis advances scholarly understandings of organisational continuity. Across city cases, I find that structural forces, organisational factors, and policy shift shape resource availability, resource mobilisation, and resource dependencies. But LGBT NGOs are not simply acted upon, instead exercising agency through adaptive behaviour—illustrating this, I introduce a new concept of organisational hibernation, an adaptation to resource scarcity or an evolving policy domain to maintain continuity. But not all adaptations are beneficial: in the post-marriage political economic context, adaptations made for immediate persistence may negatively impact the sustainability of the LGBT NGO sector. Goal advancement via policy change can be costly with broader impacts for continuity of policy provision and LGBT interest representation in policy processes. This thesis contributes to debates in social policy, NGO studies, LGBT politics, and Canadian politics.
... -Externe laterale Rechenschaftspflicht (Partner Accountability) besteht gegenüber Partnerinstitutionen und -organisationen: Die Organisation stellt Informationen für andere Organisationen vor Ort bereit, die komplementäre oder sogar dieselben Ziele verfolgen(Murtaza 2012). Eine solche partnerschaftliche Rechenschaftspflicht kann die Organisation dahingehend unterstützen, ihre Bemühungen an die anderer Organisationen anzupassen und so bessere Gesamtergebnisse zu erzielen(Faulk, Willems, Johnson und Stewart, 2016;Paarlberg und Meinhold, 2012;Provan und Milward, 2001). • Gemeinsame Rechenschaftspflicht (Shared Accountability) bedeutet, dass Organisationen zusammenarbeiten, um Informationen für über-oder untergeordnete Stakeholdergruppen bereitzustellen. ...
In den letzten Jahrzehnten hat das Streben nach Effizienz und Effektivität des Managements viele öffentliche und zivilgesellschaftliche Organisationen verändert. Viele öffentliche Organisationen – wie z.B. die deutschen öffentlichen Universitäten im oben beschriebenen Fall – haben sich im Zuge der New Public Management Reformen als eigenständige Einheiten neu organisiert. Eine solche Umstrukturierung hat die Chance erhöht, dass kontextspezifische Management- und Führungspraktiken eingeführt werden. So können die öffentlichen Universitäten nun beispielsweise freier über die Verwendung der Mittel entscheiden. Die Umstrukturierung hat jedoch auch die Notwendigkeit erhöht, dass die Organisationen ihre Leistungen managen und darüber berichten, um somit langfristig ihre Reputation gegenüber externen Stakeholdern aufzubauen. Dies können sie erreichen, indem sie das richtige Maß an Transparenz wahren und ihren Stakeholdern gegenüber Rechenschaft ablegen. Öffentliche Universitäten bemühen sich nun mehr um ihr Image, z.B. indem sie Hochglanzbroschüren drucken und ihre Jubiläen feiern. Gleichzeitig wird von ihnen mehr Transparenz bezüglich ihrer Prozesse und Wirkungsbereiche erwartet. Wenn zivilgesellschaftliche Organisationen für den Staat die Erbringung öffentlicher Leistungen übernehmen, dann geschieht dies zunehmend auf Basis von Leistungsverträgen mit komplexen Leistungs- und Zielvereinbarungen. Infolgedessen ist bei zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen die Notwendigkeit gestiegen, ihre Leistung, ihre Reputation, ihre Transparenz und ihre Rechenschaftspflicht gegenüber staatlichen Akteuren zu verwalten und zu steuern. Auch die Erwartungen privater Geldgeber/innen sind gestiegen, weil Skandale im Zusammenhang mit dem Missbrauch von Spendengeldern Spender/innen sensibilisiert haben (in Österreich z.B. der berüchtigteWorld Vision Skandal von 1998, der schließlich zur Einführung des österreichischen Spendengütesiegels führte). Aktuelle Trends in Richtung Venture Philanthropy und Impact Investment haben die Anforderungen privater Geldgeber/innen in Hinblick auf die Rechenschaftslegung von NPOs weiter erhöht.
