Myths Motivations and the Future of Non-Profit Organizations
Myths, Motivations & the Future of Non-Profits
Recent trends appear to be supportive of a greater role for nonprofit organizations. Indeed, we see the continuing increase, expansion and strengthening of nonprofits in the decade ahead. However, their long-term financial viability will remain in question unless they undergo radical transformation in how they operate in today's new public and private economies. Eight trends in particular lead us to this conclusion:
1. Nonprofits are taking on more "public" responsibilities as governments continue to downsize and divest themselves of certain social welfare and community development functions. The watershed congressional elections of November 1994 signaled a significant shift in how government would do business in the future. Numerous programs which used to receive generous federal, state and local government support -- from education and social welfare to museums, libraries and public radio and television -- have experienced major cuts in their annual government-supported budgets. Nonprofits that depended on government grants for a large portion of their funding have had to find alternative private funding sources due to government cutbacks on grants. As a result, more and more of these organizations have had to both "reinvent" and "realign" themselves in order to survive and prosper. Much of this reinvention and realignment will take the form of new "partnerships" with corporations, citizen groups and other nonprofits. Successful nonprofits must conduct very aggressive public relations, fundraising and sponsorship campaigns, which will require the hiring of more talented personnel skilled in these organizational development and marketing functions. As governments continue to downsize and divest themselves of traditional social welfare functions, more and more nonprofit organizations, especially charities, will play an increasingly important role in providing welfare assistance. Functioning as new and expanded service delivery organizations, they will increase their professional staffs to provide such services as well as secure increased funding through government contracts and grants. In the international arena, NGOs (non-governmental organizations) will play a more important role in international development and relief efforts as the U.S. Agency for International Development and the UN undergo further budget cuts.
2. Funding activities continue to increase despite occasional recessions and scandals. Americans continue to support and use nonprofits at unprecedented levels, especially during boom economic times. They view nonprofits as more responsive and accountable than government bureaucracies. Since many nonprofits are community-based, they also seem to be more democratic and participatory than government. As the federal government continues to divest...