When Worlds Collide: Bringing the Native/Indigenous Transnational Nonprofit Leader to the Conversation

PurposeMany empirical studies have focused on whether public funding leverages (crowds in) or discourages (crowds out) private giving behavior, finding mixed results. Recent studies suggest the need to examine how nonprofits adjust their fundraising efforts after experiencing cuts or increases in government funding, which can then influence donor behavior.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, the authors conduct an online survey experiment with nonprofit managers to test how nonprofits respond to changes in government funding.FindingsThe authors find some evidence that nonprofit organizations would change their fundraising expenses when facing cuts in government funding, yet the authors also find that the change could be either to increase or decrease fundraising spending. Since decisions are made by executive directors, the study also considered how executive personality type as maximizers or satisficers may interact with institutional and environmental constraints in decision-making. When funding goals are met, executives tend to behave as “satisficers” and are unlikely to make significant changes, even when their individual personality is more consistent with being a “maximizer.”Research limitations/implicationsThe authors find these results to be the reflection of the current environment in which many nonprofits operate, characterized by pressures to keep operating costs low. The results of the experiment have implications for both funding agencies and nonprofits that strive to enhance the capacity of nonprofit services.Originality/valueThis study is the first attempt to untangle the multilayered relationships between government funding, fundraising, leader preferences and personalities, and donations using an experimental approach with current nonprofit leaders.

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Nonprofit Leader Perceptions of Operating Reserves and Their Substitutes

Nonprofit Management and Leadership ◽

10.1002/nml.21207 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 26 (4) ◽

pp. 417-433 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Margaret F. Sloan ◽

Cleopatra Charles ◽

Mirae Kim

Keyword(s):

Leader Perceptions ◽

Nonprofit Leader

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From Nonprofit Leader to Elected Official: Examining Political Ambition in the Nonprofit Sector

Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly ◽

10.1177/0899764018807757 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 48 (1) ◽

pp. 208-226 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Kelly LeRoux ◽

Julie Langer

Keyword(s):

Nonprofit Organizations ◽

Professional Socialization ◽

Nonprofit Sector ◽

The United States ◽

Service Organizations ◽

Political Ambition ◽

Theoretical Contribution ◽

Individual Level ◽

Nonprofit Leader ◽

Nonprofit Human Service Organizations

To what extent do leaders of nonprofit organizations run for elected office? We address this question through an exploratory study using survey data from a random sample of 184 leaders of nonprofit human service organizations in the United States. Drawing upon theories of political ambition, we explore the factors that may shape nascent political ambition (propensity to run) as well as expressive political ambition (running for office). We find that nonprofit leaders are no more likely to run for office than the average citizen, but interest in running is much more common. We identify several individual-level and professional socialization factors associated with political ambition. Our study makes an important theoretical contribution by outlining a model of political ambition for the nonprofit sector that can be tested in future studies, and makes an important practical contribution by highlighting ways that associations and nonprofit industry groups might convert nascent ambition into expressive ambition.

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