Porter's Five Forces: Relevance and Applications of Nonprofit Strategy

ReferencesRobert D. H. & Associates (2005). THE JOSSEY-BASS HANDBOOK OF NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The diversity of nonprofit organizations, services provided and the problems faced shows that nonprofits require leadership with an in-depth understanding of the multifaceted nonprofit landscape. Understanding the culture of nonprofit work is also crucial and much easier to understand once you have been through a nonprofit management program. My career interests lead me towards an avocation of a deeper knowledge of strategic management/planning, legal structure and standards, increase my skills in quantitative analysis of policy, financial governance and developing fundraising strategies. These areas allow for macro management within the nonprofit

Most nonprofit agencies follow the same management structure. The structure normally consists of a vertical hierarchal structure with the chief executive manager at the helm, and divisional leaders rounding out the strategic leadership team. Since 9/11, then government shutdowns, multiple wars, natural disasters, and the government sequester, the challenge to most nonprofits is to compete for every available charitable dollar. Chief Executive Officers (CEO) of nonprofits must not only be skillful in maximizing the outcomes with fewer dollars, but also politically savvy in vying for monies for federal, state, local, foundation, and private funding sources.

At the center of any successful nonprofit organization there is an effective chief executive and board of directors. These leaders must work as a team with a vision and specific skills, to effectively produce resources in order to accomplish the organization's goals. The majority of the decision making authority and leadership is shared amongst board members; however, critical management skills and day-to-day operational decisions rest within the authority of the chief executive. However, members of the board must also be sufficiently skilled in management in order to assess the work of its director to assist in the implementation and evaluation of strategic decision making.

The nonprofit sector in America is a reflection some of the foundational values that brought our nation into existence. Fundamentals, such as the idea that people can govern themselves and the belief that people should have the opportunity to make a difference by joining a like-minded group, have made America and its nonprofit sector what it is today. The American "civil society" is one that has been produced through generations of experiments with government policy, nonprofit organizations, private partnerships, and individuals who have asserted ideas and values. The future of the nonprofit sector will continue to be experimental in many ways. However, the increase of professional studies in nonprofit management and the greater

When Zoot Velasco looks at American nonprofits, he sees a sector that is struggling, in spite of limitless potential for innovation and impact. Noting that 22.3% of the country’s GDP is in the nonprofit sector, yet only 20% of such organizations have a budget exceeding $1 million, Velasco hopes to lead a transformation in the industry.

The author explores the idea of nonprofit organizations expanding to more than one location. To nonprofit organization owners, expansion can pose a difficult challenge financially, but also a necessary step to improve their outreach. Defining financial variables necessary for nonprofit organizational growth, then using those variables to look directly at physical capital (facility) expansion, and finally examining case studies on nonprofit organization expansion, the information the author gathers will directly impact a critical analysis on the research reviewed and any questions left unanswered.

The Alliance for Better Nonprofits (ABN), located in the Regas building in Downtown Knoxville, exists to provide resources, training, consulting, networking, and standards of excellence for nonprofit organizations in the 25 counties of Upper East Tennessee (What We Do, 2017). The remainder of this paper will discuss the personal interaction I had with Alliance employees during a visit, as well as the services and opportunities the Alliance offers the nonprofits in the community.

When one talks about ‘Nonprofits’ many things come to mind; People often use phrases such as 501c3’s, charitable, ambassadors of the poor, and tax free organizations to umbrella the whole nonprofit sector. However, what large portions of our country fail to note is that there are differences within the nonprofit branch. There are two man categories of Nonprofits: Public, and Private; within those categories there are differing distinctions that allow for the separate identities of these organizations to in function and scope.

Nonprofit organizations broadly described operate to achieve missions that serve the common good. Graduate study in the field of nonprofit management focuses on the development of leadership skills for nonprofit managers and provides education in areas such as general operations, human resources, strategies, and fund development (Nachmias, 2008). Students of nonprofit management also develop proficiency in other matters such as nonprofit legal issues, organizational development, donor relations, financial management and fund-raising, volunteer, and human resource management, and pro-gram evaluation, to name a few competencies (Nachmias, 2008).Many nonprofit management programs have a theoretical component, and most programs rely on experiential learning as a vital element of a graduate student’s education. Future studies of community impact should include analysis components from the fields of nonprofit management education, service learning, capacity building, and nonprofit evaluation, and take into consideration specific factors that may affect study outcomes.

For this reason, nonprofits were chosen as the mode of production and management of new affordable units because they had a wholesome image with the American public (Bratt, 1998). This image, coupled with a track record for having the health, welfare, and safety of the public in mind made nonprofits very attractive to legislators and popular with the public.

The nonprofit sector faces many challenges that make it more difficult to measure its financial performance. Young (2007) states that the survival of nonprofit businesses depends upon receiving financial funding from outside donors such as donations from charities, government contracts, endowments et cetera, and the necessity for having several different revenue sources is a challenge for nonprofit management. In addition, he points out that securing capital for operating is also much different than in the traditional business world. Fortunately, scholars have provided tools and information that will help nonprofits manage and measure their unique financial performance so they may make informed decisions and guide their organizations to sustainability (Young, 2007).

One of the things that I have seen happen repeatedly is that some Executive Directors truly “fall in love” with their agency and fail to adjust to the needs of the stakeholders. One of the things that nonprofits need to do is to learn from the

What makes this type of leadership so ideal for nonprofit companies is the fact that most depend on a board for their growth. Board members or trustees have a few very important tasks when involving a non for profit organization; they are to determine a task and its purpose, select the chief executive

A non-profit organization cannot be effectively managed if it is not effectively planned. One of the challenges facing non-profit organizations has been long range, strategic planning. Long range, strategic planning in the non-profit sector is essential to the success of an organization. Long range, strategic planning encompasses broad policy and direction setting, internal and external assessments, attention to key stakeholders, the identification of key issues, development of strategies to deal with each issue, decision making, action and the continuous monitoring of results. (Herman, The Jossey-Bass Handbook of Nonprofit Leadership and Management, 154) While it is important to deal with the short term planning and activities of non-profits, managers or directors must consider the future of their organizations. Successful planning should be comprehensive, integrating all areas of responsibility of an organization.