Nonprofit Governance Cornforth, Chris; Brown, William A
2014, 20130704, 2013, 2013-07-04
eBook
The current fashion for rolling back the state has seen the nonprofit or third sector playing an increasing role in what were previously the heartlands of the public sphere. The growing significance ...of the sector and its increasing reliance on public funds mean it has also attracted increased scrutiny. From outside the sector concerns have been raised about the accountability and performance of nonprofit organizations. From within the sector there has been considerable debate about whether the increased reliance on government contracts is in danger of undermining the sector's independence. As a result the spotlight has fallen on governance arrangements and whether they are adequate to ensure that nonprofit organizations are effective and accountable for their actions, and able to retain their independence.
This collection offers a comprehensive assessment of research on the governance of nonprofit organizations. Nonprofit governance research has been dominated by the study of boards of unitary organizations and has paid insufficient attention to the multi-level nature of governance, governance relationships and dynamics, and the contribution of actors other than board members, to governance processes.
Drawing on the research of leading scholars in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, this book presents new perspectives on non-profit governance, which help to overcome these weaknesses. Written in an accessible manner the book will be of value to scholars, researchers, students, reflective practitioners and governance consultants and advisers.
Nonprofit Governance Research Cornforth, Chris
Nonprofit and voluntary sector quarterly,
12/2012, Letnik:
41, Številka:
6
Journal Article
Recenzirano
This article examines some of the main limitations of research on the governance of nonprofit organizations. It argues that there are limitations in both the way governance has been conceptualized ...and the ways in which it has been researched. It suggests that research has focused too narrowly on the boards of unitary organizations, and ignored both the wider governance system and the more complex multilevel and multifaceted governance structures that many organizations have evolved. It also argues that the dominant research designs employed have been cross-sectional and positivist in orientation. As a result, too little attention has been paid to board processes and change and how they are influenced by contextual and historical factors. Based on this analysis, some new directions for nonprofit governance research are briefly mapped out.
This article addresses the governance of cross-sector, inter-organizational collaboration in the context of public administration and management. It conceptualizes the governance of collaborations in ...terms of structures and processes that enable actors to direct, coordinate and allocate resources for the collaboration as a whole and to account for its activities. It argues that the need to pay attention to considerations of 'collaborative governance' and 'governing collaboration' in cross-sector collaborations gives rise to a number of challenges and tensions that need to be addressed if the governance form is to be sustained and the collaboration is to yield advantage.
Governing boards play a crucial role in ensuring that public and non-profit organizations are publicly accountable and perform well. Until now, there have been relatively few detailed empirical ...studies of what boards do in practice, but this book fills that gap by bringing together analyses based upon some of the best recent empirical studies.
Using a new theoretical framework that highlights the paradoxical nature of governance, the book throws light on the questions at the heart of recent debates about non-profit boards:
are boards publicly accountable or is there a democratic deficit?
are boards able to exercise real power, or does management run the show?
are boards effective stewards of an organization's resources?
what effects are regulatory and other changes designed to improve board effectiveness having?
This book will be essential reading for academics and students with an interest in the governance and management of public and non-profit organizations, and will also be of value to policy makers and practitioners who wish to gain a deeper understanding of how boards work and what can be done to improve their performance.
1. Introduction - The Changing Context of Governance: Emerging issues and paradoxes Chris Cornforth 2. Who Governs North East England? A regional perspective on governance Fred Robinson and Keith Shaw 3. Are Quasi-governmental Organizations Effective and Accountable? Alan Greer, Paul Hoggett and Stella Maile 4. Service Users and Charity Governance Michael Locke, Nasa Begum and Paul Robson 5. What Influences the Strategic Contribution of Boards? Charles Edwards and Chris Cornforth 6. The Financial Role of Charity Boards Jenny Harrow and Paul Palmer 7. The Role of Boards in Small Voluntary Organizations Colin Rochester 8. Not So Very Different: A comparison of the roles of chairs of governing bodies and managers in different sectors Shirley Otto 9. What are the Chief Executives' Expectations and Experiences of their Board? Veronica Mole 10. Governing Independent Museums: How trustees and directors exercise their powers Mike Bieber 11. The Changing Face of Charity Governance: The impact of organizational size Chris Cornforth and Claire Simpson 12. The Impact of New Governance Structures in the NHS Lynn Ashburner 13. The Changing Face of Governance in Women's Organizations Jane W. Grant 14. Summary and Conclusions - Contextualizing and Managing the Paradoxes of Governance Chris Cornforth
'Anyone interested in understanding more about the problems facing boards should read this book' - Andrew Brown, deputy chair of Charity Trustee Networks. '...it is likely to make the reader re-examine some funadamental assumptions about corporate governance...' - Corporate Governance, Paddy FitzGerald 'In summary, this book is a gem that goes behind the scenes of board governance. As a result, it is a definite must for those serving on boards, and seeking insight into boards and how to improve them. It adds substantially to the literature on the governance of public and nonprofit organizations; both academics and practitioners would gain much by reading this well-edited text.' - Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, Vol. 14, No. 3, September 2003 - Dean F. Eitel, DePaul University, USA
This paper presents a new theoretical framework for understanding the governance of co‐operative and mutual organisations. The theoretical literature on the governance of co‐operatives is relatively ...undeveloped in comparison with that on corporate governance. The paper briefly reviews some of the main theoretical perspectives on corporate governance and discusses how they can be usefully extended to throw light on the governance of co‐operatives and mutuals. However, taken individually these different theories are rather one dimensional, only illuminating a particular aspect of the board's role. This has lead to calls for a new conceptual framework that can help integrate the insights of these different theories. The paper argues that a paradox perspective offers a promising way forward. Contrasting the different theoretical perspectives highlights some of the important paradoxes, ambiguities and tensions that boards face.
The relationship between chairs and chief executive officers (CEOs) has been largely neglected in research on nonprofit governance. Yet, a growing body of research on corporate governance in the ...private and public sectors suggests that this relationship is crucial both to the effective functioning of the board and the leadership of the organization. Much of the research on chair–CEO relationships has used cross-sectional research designs ignoring the fact that these relationships will evolve over time. This article responds to some of these challenges. It presents the results from longitudinal research examining the relationship between the chair and chief executive in a nonprofit organization. It shows how this relationship is “negotiated” and develops over time in response to contextual changes.
As many of the challenges facing society are too complex to be addressed by single organizations working alone, nonprofit organizations are increasingly working in collaboration with public ...authorities. The governance of nonprofit–public collaborations is important for their effectiveness, yet it remains poorly understood. Drawing on case study research, this article examines and develops an extant conceptual model developed by Takahashi and Smutny that seeks to explain the formation and demise of nonprofit collaborations in terms of “collaborative windows” and the inability to adapt initial governance structures. The research finds that while initial governance structures are an important constraint on development, they can be adapted and changed. It also suggests that the development of collaborations is not only influenced by changes in the collaborative window but also by how key actors in the collaboration respond to important internal tensions.
Accountability is a crucial element of governance. Nonprofit organizations are typically accountable to multiple stakeholders and often “do” accountability in multiple ways. But what happens when a ...nonprofit organization is highly dependent on a single source of funding? This article provides an empirical exploration of this issue. It draws on a longitudinal case study of one nonprofit organization in the United Kingdom that is highly dependent on a single funder to examine how accountability is constructed and enacted, with a focus on the board. It critically examines accountability processes through direct observation of board and committee meetings and in-depth interviews with board members. The analysis shows how board members work to construct broader forms of accountability beyond accountability to the funder, but then struggle to enact them. This article provides in-depth insight into the challenges that nonprofit board members face and offers a rare example of observational research on board behavior.
Decentralization policy in English education has resulted Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs)-groups of schools governed and led by trustees. Research illustrates that many of these organizations are failing ...to connect with the school communities they serve. This paper uses documentary analysis and interviews with 30 MAT Board Members to examine this key area. The paper reveals that although there are some strategies in place to overcome this issue, that failure to implement fundamental processes such as communication strategies are leading to fragmentation and feelings of disconnect, and this raises questions as to the extent to which MATs are in touch with and serving their school communities.
The relationship between chairs and chief executive officers (CEOs) has been largely neglected in research on nonprofit governance. Yet, a growing body of research on corporate governance in the ...private and public sectors suggests that this relationship is crucial both to the effective functioning of the board and the leadership of the organization. Much of the research on chair-CEO relationships has used cross-sectional research designs ignoring the fact that these relationships will evolve over time. This article responds to some of these challenges. It presents the results from longitudinal research examining the relationship between the chair and chief executive in a nonprofit organization. It shows how this relationship is "negotiated" and develops over time in response to contextual changes.
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