Abstract
This paper argues that a common response in voluntary organisations to managing organisational change has been the adoption of managerial practices and recipes from the commercial business sector. The disadvantages of this approach are discussed, and a potential alternative way forward suggested, focusing on the use of collaboration and alliances. A framework is introduced to indicate the utility of adopting specific strategies in particular operating contexts, the most important elements of which are public image and popularity and the level of competition. The paper concentrates on how factors external to the organisation impact upon internal practices, and concludes by speculating that organisational learning needs to take place in order to manage strategic change successfully and to facilitate organisational growth and survival.
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Adirondack, S. (1989) Just About Managing, London Voluntary Service Council, London.
Ball, C. (1988) Evaluation in the Voluntary Sector, The Forbes Trust, London.
Bielefeld, W. (1992) ‘Non-profit-funding environment relations: theory and application’, Voluntas, 3 (1): 48–70.
Billis, D., J. Ashby, A. Ewart and C. Rochester (1994) Taking Stock: Exploring the Shifting Foundations of Governance and Strategy in Housing Associations, Working Paper no. 16, Centre for Voluntary Organisation, London School of Economics, London.
Bryson, J.M. (1988) Strategic Planning for Public and Non-Profit Organizations: A Guide to Strengthening and Sustaining Organizational Achievement, Jossey-Bass, California.
Burnett, K. (1992) Relationship Fundraising, White Lion Press, London.
R.J. Butler and D.C. Wilson (1990) Managing Voluntary and Non-Profit Organizations: Strategy and Structure, Routledge, London.
Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) (1992) Charity Trends, 15th edn, Charities Aid Foundation, Tonbridge.
Dartington, T. (1986) The Limits of Altruism: Elderly Mentally Infirm People as a Test Case for Collaboration, King Edwards Hospital Fund for London, London.
Dartington, T. (1992) ‘Professional management in voluntary organisation: some cautionary notes’, in J. Batsleer, C. Cornforth and R. Paton (eds) Issues in Voluntary and Non-Profit Management, Addison-Wesley, London.
Davies, A. (1993) The Changing Face of Charity, Keynote Address to the SCVO Jubilee Forum, Edinburgh.
Deacon, D. and P. Golding (1991) ‘The voluntary sector in the information society’, Voluntas, 2 (2): 69–88.
Drucker, P. (1990) Managing the Non Profit Organization: Practices and Principles, Harper Collins, New York.
Edwards, K. (1992) Contracts in Practice: A Practical Guide for Voluntary Organizations, Directory of Social Change, London.
Gladstone, F. (1982) Charity Law and Social Justice, Bedford Square Press, London.
Guardian (1993), 6 October, London.
Harris, M. (1987) Management Committees: Roles and Tasks, Working Paper no. 4, Centre for Voluntary Organisation, London School of Economics, London.
Hedley, R. (1992) ‘Organising and managing volunteers’, in R. Hedley and J. Davis Smith (eds) Volunteering and Society: Principles and Practice, Bedford Square Press, London.
Holloway, C. and S. Otto (1989) Getting Organised: A Handbook for Non-Statutory Organisations, Bedford Square Press, London.
Huxham, C. (1991) ‘Facilitating collaboration: issues in multiorganizational groups’, Journal of the Operational Research Society, 42 (12) 1037–46.
Kanter, R.M. (1983) The Change Masters: Corporate Entrepreneurs at Work, Allen & Unwin, London.
Kanter, R.M. (1989) When Giants Learn To Dance: Mastering the Challenges of Strategic Management and Careers in the 1990s, Simon & Schuster, New York.
Knapp, M., E. Robertson and C. Thomason (1987) Public Money, Voluntary Action, Whose Welfare? PSSRU Discussion Paper 514, University of Kent, Canterbury.
Knight, B. (1993) Voluntary Action, Home Office, London.
Kramer, R.M. (1990) ‘Change and continuity in British voluntary organisations,’ Voluntas, 1 (2): 33–60.
Leat, D., G. Smolka and J. Unell (1981) Voluntary and Statutory Collaboration: Rhetoric or Reality? Bedford Square Press, London.
Leavy, B. and D.C. Wilson (1994) Strategy and Leadership, Routledge, London.
Medley, G.J. (1988) ‘Strategic planning for the World Wildlife Fund,’ Long Range Planning, 21 (1): 46–54.
Medley, G.J. (1992) ‘WWF UK creates a new mission,’ Long Range Planning, 25 (2): 63–68.
Mordaunt, J. (1992) The Funding Game: A Case Study of Voluntary-Statutory Relationships, unpublished PhD thesis, University of Edinburgh.
NCVO (1990) Effectiveness and the Voluntary Sector, Report of a Working Party chaired by Lord Nathan, NCVO, London.
Nutt, P.C. (1984) ‘A strategic planning network for non-profit organizations’, Strategic Management Journal, 7: 251–65.
ODA (1992) Report of the Working Party on ODA/NGO Collaboration, ODA, London.
Paton, R. and C. Cornforth (1992) ‘What’s different about managing in voluntary and non-profit organisations?’ in J. Batsleer, C. Cornforth and R. Paton (eds) Issues in Voluntary and Non-Profit Management, Addison-Wesley, London.
Peters, T. and N. Austin (1985) A Passion for Excellence: The Leadership Difference, Guild, London.
Peters, T. and R. Waterman (1982) In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America’s Best Run Companies, Harper & Row, New York.
Pettigrew, A.M. (1985) The Awakening Giant: Continuity and Change in ICI, Blackwell, Oxford.
Saxon-Harrold, S.K.E. (1985) Strategy in the Voluntary Sector, unpublished PhD thesis, University of Bradford.
Shearman, C. and G. Burrell (1987) ‘The structures of industrial development,’ Journal of Management Studies, 24 (4): pp. 325–45.
Shirley, H. (1993) ‘Pick up of job market awaits charities that can measure up’, Charity Magazine, 10 (4): 30.
Slack, T. and C.R. Hinings (1992) ‘Understanding change in national sport organizations: an integration of theoretical perspectives’, Journal of Sport Management, 6: 114–32.
Streeck, W. and P.C. Schmitter (eds) (1984) Private Interest Government: Beyond Market and State, Sage, London.
Taylor, M. and J. Lansley (1992) ‘Ideology and welfare in the UK: implications for the voluntary sector’, Voluntas, 3 (2): 153–74.
Thibault, L. (1993) Strategy in Nonprofit Sport Organizations, unpublished PhD thesis, University of Alberta, Canada.
Thibault, L., T. Slack and C.R. Hinings (1993) ‘A framework for the analysis of strategy in nonprofit sport organizations’, Journal of Sport Management, 7: 25–43.
Ware, A. (ed.) (1989) Charities and Government, Manchester University Press, Manchester.
Webb, A. and G. Wistow (1982) Whither State Welfare? RIPA, London.
Wilson, D.C. (1989) ‘New trends in the funding of charities: the tripartite system of funding’, in A. Ware (ed.) Charities and Government, Manchester University Press, Manchester.
Wilson, D.C. (1992) ‘The strategic challenges of co-operation and competition in British voluntary organizations: toward the next century’, Non-Profit Management and Leadership, 3 (2): 239–54.
Wolfenden (1978) The Future of Voluntary Organisations: Report of the Wolfenden Committee, Croom-Helm, London.
Young, D. (1990) ‘Organizing principles for international advocacy associations’, Proceedings of the 1990 Conference of the Association of Voluntary Action Scholars, Centre for Voluntary Organisation, London School of Economics, London.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 1996 Macmillan Publishers Limited
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wilson, D.C. (1996). How do Voluntary Agencies Manage Organisational Change?. In: Billis, D., Harris, M. (eds) Voluntary Agencies. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24485-0_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24485-0_6
Publisher Name: Palgrave, London
Print ISBN: 978-0-333-62951-2
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-24485-0
eBook Packages: Palgrave Social & Cultural Studies CollectionSocial Sciences (R0)