Abstract
This article presents the main results of a longitudinal case study of a strategic change process in a cooperative bank. Pursuing both a “social” mission and an explicitly economic rationale, this particular nonprofit organization provides an exemplary research setting for inquiring into the delicate and contradictory interplay of mission focus and commercial imperatives. Departing from the practice perspective as a micro-view on everyday strategizing—an approach that seems to have not found its way into NPO-research yet—allows us to take an in-depth look at how people go about the process of making strategy despite the tensions between mission and profit. Our data yields three patterns of strategizing practices that aim at fostering economic growth without damaging the social mission, namely supporting diverse positions, protecting stabilized relationships, and relating to organizational experiences. Building upon our empirical results, we tentatively conceptualize “balancing practices” as potentially important acts of strategizing in NPOs.
Résumé
Cet article présente les principaux résultats d’une étude de cas longitudinale sur le processus de changement stratégique d’une banque coopérative. En poursuivant tant une mission «sociale» que des raisons explicitement économiques, cette organisation à but non-lucratif particulière fournit un cadre de recherche exemplaire pour examiner les interactions délicates et contradictoires entre l’attention portée à la mission et les impératifs commerciaux. S’écartant de la pratique comme une vision partielle sur la fabrique de la stratégie au quotidien, la méthode qui semble ne pas avoir encore trouvé sa voie dans la recherche sur les organisations à but non-lucratif, permet un regard en profondeur sur la façon dont les personnes entreprennent des décisions en termes de stratégie, malgré les tensions existant entre la mission et les profits. Nos données ont produit trois caractéristiques des pratiques de stratégie dont le but est d’encourager la croissance économique sans porter atteinte à la mission sociale, à savoir le soutien à des prises de décision diverses, la protection des relations stabilisées et le partage d’expériences d’organisation. Partant de résultats empiriques, nous modélisons approximativement les «pratiques d’équilibrage» en tant qu’actions potentiellement importantes pour les stratégies des organisations à but non-lucratif.
Zusammenfassung
Dieser Artikel legt die Hauptergebnisse einer Langzeitstudie über den Prozess des Strategiewechsels in einer Genossenschaftsbank dar. Eine “soziale” Mission und eine ausdrücklich ökonomische Rationale verfolgend ist diese Nonprofit-Organization ein ideales Feld, um das delikate und widersprüchliche Zusammenspiel von Missionsschwerpunkt und kommerziellen Geboten zu erforschen. Abweichend von der Praxis-Perspektive als Mikrosicht auf tagtägliche Strategieentwicklung—ein Ansatz, der noch nicht seinen Weg in die NPO-Forschung gefunden zu haben scheint—können wir einen tiefen Einblick nehmen, wie Leute trotz Spannungsverhältnis von Mission und Profit Strategien formen. Unsere Data zeigt drei Modellpraktiken von Strategieentwicklung, die auf ökonomisches Wachstum ohne Schädigung der sozialen Mission zielen, und zwar verschiedene Positionen unterstützen, stabilisierte Beziehungen schützen und sich organisatorische Erfahrungen beziehen. Aufbauend auf unseren empirischen Resultaten formen wir den vorläufigen Begriff “balancing practices” (ausgleichende Praktiken), potentiell wichtige Handlungen bei der Entwicklung von Strategien in NPOs.
Resumen
Este trabajo presenta los principales resultados del estudio de caso longitudinal realizado en el proceso de cambio estratégico de una cooperativa de crédito. Esta organización sin ánimo de lucro, que persigue tanto una misión social como un fin explícitamente económico, ofrece un entorno de investigación ejemplar para estudiar la delicada y contradictoria interacción entre el objetivo social y los imperativos comerciales. Partiendo de una perspectiva práctica y enfocándonos en las estrategias diarias (un enfoque que no parece haber encontrado su lugar en la investigación de las OSAL) nos adentramos para averiguar cómo abordan las personas el proceso de adopción de estrategias pese a la tensión entre la misión y los beneficios. Nuestros datos nos han proporcionado tres patrones de estrategias prácticas cuyo objetivo es fomentar el crecimiento económico sin dañar la misión social, es decir, apoyar las distintas posiciones, proteger las relaciones estabilizadas y compartir las experiencias organizativas. Basándonos en nuestros resultados empíricos, intentamos definir el concepto de “equilibrar las prácticas” como un acto potencialmente importante a la hora de elaborar estrategias en las OSAL.
摘要
本论文以一家合作银行为例,介绍了对策略变革过程所做的纵向个案研究的主要结果。根据”社会”使命和明确的经济理性,该特定的非盈利机构提供了一种用于调查使命焦点与商业规则之间微妙及矛盾关系的可效仿的研究模式。从作为日常策略制定的微观研究(一种似乎尚未融入到非营利机构研究中的方法)的实践观点出发,可使我们深入考虑人们如何制定策略而无需虑及使命与利益之间的矛盾关系。我们的数据得出了三种旨在促进经济增长而不损害社会使命的策略制定模式,即:支持不同立场、保护稳定关系和结合机构经验。根据我们的经验结果,我们将”平衡实践”的概念暂定为非营利机构策略制定中的潜在重要举措。
ملخص
هذا البحث يعرض النتائج الرئيسية لدراسة حالة طولية لحدوث عملية تغيير إستراتيجي في البنك التعاوني. يتابع كل من المهمة الإجتماعية وصراحة المنطق الاقتصادي، هذه المنظمة الغير ربحية على وجه الخصوص توفر إعداد بحوث مثالية للتحقيق في التفاعل الدقيق والمتناقض من تركيز المهمة والضرورات التجارية. المغادرين من منظور الممارسة باعتبارها عرض صغير على وضع الاستراتيجيات اليومية – النهج الذي لا يبدو أنه قد وجد طريقه إلى المنظمة الغير ربحية (NPO) للبحث حتى الآن - ويتيح لنا أن نأخذ في ذلك نظرة متعمقة في كيفية أن الناس ينفذوا عملية صنع الإستراتيجية على الرغم من التوترات بين المهمة والربح. بياناتنا أثمرت على ثلاثة أنماط من ممارسات سياسية التي تهدف إلى تعزيز النمو الإقتصادي دون إلحاق الضرر بالمهمة الإجتماعية ، خصوصاً المواقف الداعمة المتنوعة، حماية العلاقات المستقرة و المتصلة بالخبرات التنظيمية. بناءاً على نتائجنا التجريبية، نحن مبدئياً نتصور “تحقيق التوازن بين الممارسات” بوصفها أعمال محتمل أن تكون مهمة للتخطيط الإستراتيجي في المنظمة الغير ربحية (NPO).
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Notes
Relatedly, studies of so-called multiple identity organizations have forcefully described how the enactment of different organizational identities and thus of incompatible concerns and expectations breed organizational conflict. Not surprisingly, perhaps, much of the empirical work underlying these texts has been conducted in nonprofit organizations (e.g., Pratt and Foreman 2000; Glynn 2000; Pratt and Rafaeli 1997; Golden-Biddle and Rao 1997; Gamm 1996; Gioia and Thomas 1996; Rodwin 1995).
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Jäger, U., Beyes, T. Strategizing in NPOs: A Case Study on the Practice of Organizational Change Between Social Mission and Economic Rationale. Voluntas 21, 82–100 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-009-9108-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-009-9108-x