When nonprofit organizations become business-like

The aims of non-profit organizations are very different from those of conventional businesses. The purpose of non-profit organizations is not to make a financial profit. They instead pursue social, cultural, sportive, or ecological goals, for example. In doing so, they fulfill important societal roles as service providers, advocates, community builders, and schools of democracy. Well-known examples of non-profit organizations are the Red Cross, Caritas, or Greenpeace. There are also many thousands of less well-known non-profit organizations in Austria, especially many associations, which carry out important work in various fields. For non-profit organizations, profits can be a means of accomplishing their mission, but not the ultimate aim. Nowadays, many non-profit organizations are professionally managed and use similar management methods as for-profit businesses. For example, they draw up budget plans, sell products, or conduct marketing research. However, these methods are controversial within the non-profit organizations themselves and also in research: Some hope that they will lead to greater efficiency and better fulfillment of social roles. If, for example, Caritas conducts marketing research into the wishes of older people with regard to care and nursing, this can help them to develop better services in these areas. Others warn that by using business-like management methods, non-profit organizations could become increasingly similar to for- profit businesses and would no longer adequately fulfill their unique societal roles. For example, some earlier research suggests that members and volunteers in business-like non- profits have fewer opportunities to participate in decision-making. This may weaken those organizations function as schools of democracy. In this research project, we conduct a representative survey of non-profit organizations to investigate the extent to which such hopes or fears are justified.