Nonprofit Boards

Nährlich, Stefan (2006): Vorstands-Management. Frühstücksdirektoren oder Mädchen für alles? in: Ruckh, Mario/Noll, Christian/Bornholdt, Martin (Hrsg.): Sozialmarketing als Stakeholder-Management. Grundlagen und Perspektiven für ein beziehungsorientiertes Management von Nonprofit-Organisationen, Bern, Haupt Verlag, S. 71-85.

British professional football clubs mostly began as mutual, membership clubs, then converted to limited companies, with shares to buy and sell, in the late 19th century. In January 2000, Supporters Direct was launched to promote democratic representation of supporters in clubs, backed by the Government, with cross-party support.  Supporters' Trusts, some of them newly formed, became the saviours of last resort for several stricken clubs following the 2002 collapse of ITV Digital.  However, the battle to compete financially, against clubs subsidised by wealthy backers, has seen several cede ownership back to single businessmen.  These recent events have led academics to suggest that the trust movement is at a crisis. 
This paper addresses the very different business and financial management issues faced by Brentford F.C. In 2009, Brentford F.C. adopted a supporter owned business model in League One. The case of Brentford F.C. provides a thorough insight of the operational and governance structures required to succeed as a mutual football club.  The paper examines the range of potential and actual management responses of Brentford F.C. to financial pressures supplemented by empirical case study analysis.  The club struggled to increase ‘much needed’ alternative revenue streams and consequently, in 2013, the Trust reduced their majority share to 51% in order for the club to operate under a hybrid business model.  This paper discusses some of the barriers Brentford F.C. experienced whilst adopting sustainable financial management strategies, and evaluates the future role that the Supporters Trust movement can play in ensuring financial prudence.

British professional football clubs mostly began as mutual, membership clubs, then converted to limited companies, with shares to buy and sell, in the late 19th century. Supporters Direct was launched to promote democratic representation of supporters in clubs in January 2000, backed by the government, with cross-party support. Supporters' trusts, some of them newly formed, became the saviours of last resort for several stricken clubs following the 2002 collapse of ITV Digital, but the battle to compete financially, against clubs subsidised by wealthy backers, has seen several cede ownership back to single businessmen. With recent events at certain trust-owned clubs, some commentators have suggested that the trust movement is at a crossroads, or even worse, a crisis. This research addresses the very different business and financial management issues faced by those professional clubs adopting an alternative business model outside of the ‘top flight’ in England. It does this by examining the range of potential and actual management responses of clubs to financial pressures supplemented by case studies. In conclusion, the research will discuss some of the barriers facing clubs in adopting sustainable financial management strategies, and evaluates the future role that the Supporters Trust movement can play in ensuring financial prudence.

German football has been hailed as the ‘holy grail’ of sustainable governance structures by their European counterparts. With laws favouring members’ associations, efficient nonprofit governance structures and sustainable financial regulations resulting in profitable leagues it seemed to warrant further investigation. Focusing on the purest form of the members’ association model, an eingetragener Verein (e.V), this article provides unique case study insights into Hamburger SV (HSV) football club. The main findings reveal supporter ownership is democratic, involving different actors, membership and advisory groups, who contribute to carrying out different governance functions. However, HSV have experienced challenges to their business model, primarily due to financial constraints influencing the club’s competitive advantage. Moreover, the ever-growing number of members has resulted in the dilution of the Supporters’ Club core philosophy. The qualitative findings have been able to provide practical implications to the nonprofit governance literature in relation to multilevel governance structures and subsidiary Boards.

La place tenue par les universités dans les économies contemporaines reste au centre de nombreuses polémiques et fait partie des enjeux stratégiques du XXIème siècle, notamment au niveau européen. Au niveau national, l’offre de formation des universités devient éminemment stratégique, notamment par rapport à la concurrence des Grandes Écoles. Dès lors, la construction de l’offre de formation des établissements peut être assimilée à une démarche d’investissement.
Les universités constituent un système de droits de propriété à part, pouvant ainsi être assimilées à des organisations publiques ou à des organisation à but non lucratif, représentant des formes organisationnelles optimales lorsque les préférences sociales intègrent des éléments liés à l’efficacité, et lorsque l’aléa moral est fort. L’étude de la structure des droits de propriété des universités nous permet de comprendre en quoi leur analyse peut se rapprocher de l’analyse des organisations privées, et de mieux appréhender le comportement des acteurs qui les composent.
Nous nous sommes attachés à analyser le processus décisionnel au sein des universités, conduisant à l’émergence de l’offre de formation, en privilégiant une approche partenariale de l’organisation. L’intérêt principal des approches contractuelles réside dans la remise en question de l’hypothèse de séparabilité de l’investissement et du financement. En ce sens, la structure de répartition de la valeur a un effet sur la production des flux. Et la dimension organisationnelle revêt alors une importance toute particulière. La théorie financière permet alors d’expliquer les mécanismes organisationnels qui cherchent à résoudre les dysfonctionnements dans l’atteinte de l’efficience. Dans un tel cadre, l’intégration des différentes parties prenantes permet de mesurer la contribution de chacun au processus de création de valeur, via le processus décisionnel.
Nous avons cherché à justifier l’existence des mécanismes de contrôle au sein des universités à partir de l’étude des droits décisionnels et de leur caractère aliénable, qui permettent de définir l’architecture organisationnelle d’une organisation à travers trois dimensions, recouvrant les variables centrales de la théorie de l’architecture organisationnelle : la répartition des droits décisionnels, le système d’évaluation de la performance, et le système.
Cette problématique trouve des éléments de réponse à travers quatre études de cas, de quatre universités françaises, et nous a permis de tendre vers une généralisation analytique.
La théorie de l’architecture organisationnelle offre ainsi un cadre très riche, permettant d’expliquer les processus décisionnels au sein d’un grand nombre d’organisations, et semble particulièrement adapté management public. Réciproquement, l’étude des organisations publiques permet d’enrichir considérablement le cadre d’analyse organisationnelle dans son ensemble, notamment en intégrant des facteurs d’utilité (principalement d’ordre non pécuniaire) plus nombreux que ceux traditionnellement mobilisés à travers la littérature, et participe à la mise à l’épreuve du cadre théorique de l’architecture organisationnelle.

Mots clés : Architecture organisationnelle, efficience, étude de cas, gouvernance partenariale, universités françaises, management public, LOLF, LMD.

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The Society's artistic justification and value will grow and develop over time in synchrony with the scientific content, becoming an important illustration of the possibility of unifying science and art in the life of Man. This indeed may reveal itself to be the highest value generated by the study of the human visage in all its mysterious dimensions through the worldwide activities of the Society for Faces.

Readers are advised that this paper forms the foundation for three newer writings that should be read together with it for an integrated and particularized approach to the context, the form (or plan), the neurophysiological underpinnings, and the exhibition of the Trifurcated Face of Man (see 'Plan of Face Derived and Explained,' The Soul of Life and the Spirit of War,' and 'Desiderata for Primary Exhibition of the Face' on this page).

A fifth paper ('Convergences of Human Face in Life and Death') will, in due course, clarify and strengthen the contributions to the theory of the face by the present author and form the basis for substantial new research on the idealist theory of the Visage of Man by theorizing the integration of the individual facial conformation at first maturity with the totalized face in death (the Totenmask), all as envisioned by the 'Prospectus of the Society for Faces,' but now at last rooted in true psychology and demonstrable neurophysical reality.

Readers of this foundational paper originally dated 2000 will benefit from our recently uploaded analytical conspectus ('Analysis of Max Picard's "Human Face" With Implications for Portraiture and Its Exhibition') (which is essentially paper #6).

Coming soon in addition is a further paper ('Thematic Apperceptions of Max Picard's "Human Face" With Implications for Portraiture and Its Exhibition') (which will be #7) based on a close re-reading of Picard's masterwork in the astoundingly faithful poetical dress given to it by the late screenwriter S. Goldstein (1930), originally published in New York.

The translation of Picard is not mentioned in published accounts of Goldstein's career or in his 'New York Times' obituary (he died in 1970) but it undoubtedly constitutes Goldstein's most notable literary achievement. This is especially noteworthy since Goldstein, who studied languages at Columbia University, was by all accounts obstreperously leftist-materialist in outlook (actually a communist) but in Picard brilliantly and objectively handled the masterwork of an extraordinarily strong idealist at the height of his powers.

Deze masterthesis heeft onderzocht in hoeverre impulsiviteit, overmoed en narcisme van invloed zijn op destructief leiderschap en bestuursfalen in non-profitorganisaties en hoe zij met elkaar samenhangen. Hiertoe heb ik een theoretisch literatuuronderzoek uitgevoerd aan de hand waarvan een conceptueel model en hypothesen zijn geformuleerd. Deze zijn getoetst aan de casus Meavita, een grote fusieorganisatie in de zorg die ruim twee jaar na de fusie failliet is ge-gaan. Over deze casus is een documentenonderzoek uitgevoerd en een betrokken persoon geïnterviewd.

Als eerste hypothese werd getoetst of impulsiviteit, overmoed en narcisme een negatieve invloed hadden op ethisch handelen, besluitvorming, takenmix en taakuitvoering. Daar zijn duidelijk positieve aanwijzingen voor gevonden. De tweede hypothese stelde samenhang voor in de vorm dat impulsiviteit onderdeel is van overmoed en overmoed onderdeel is van narcisme. Daarvoor zijn onvoldoende aanwijzingen. De derde hypothese stelt dat de kenmerken samenhangen op getrapte wijze: impulsiviteit is onderdeel van overmoed. Overmoed is onderdeel van narcisme. Ook deze hypothese is verworpen wegens gebrek aan overtuigende aanwijzingen. De laatste hypothese stelt dat impulsiviteit, overmoed en narcisme een bestuurder doen trachten de regelkringen te beïnvloeden door stimulerende triggers te vermeerderen en begrenzingen te verzwakken. Deze hypothese is ten dele aangenomen. Er zijn duidelijke aanwijzingen dat narcisme bij een bestuurder aanzet tot het verminderen van begrenzingen. Voor de overige onderdelen van de hypothese zijn onvoldoende aanwijzingen.

De onderzoeksvraag is positief beantwoord: impulsiviteit, overmoed en narcisme hebben een negatieve uitwerking op de taakopvatting, takenmix en taakuitvoering van bestuurders. Begrenzingen verzwakken, de aantrekkelijke onderdelen van het werk krijgen overmatige aandacht ten koste van de corvee-taken. De eigenschappen halen ieder op een eigen wijze de focus van de kern van het werk af. Persoonlijke prikkels, wensen, behoeften en neigingen krijgen voorrang boven de collectieve doelstellingen en blokkeren effectief optreden. Bescheiden dienstbaarheid legt het af tegen activiteiten die het ego tegemoet komen. Dit verhoogt de kans op onethisch handelen en falend bestuur.

In several database applications, parameters like selectivities and load are known only with some associated uncertainty, which is specified, or modeled, as a distribution over values. The performance of query optimizers and monitoring schemes can be improved by spending resources like time or bandwidth in observing or resolving these parameters, so that better query plans can be generated. In a resourceconstrained situation, deciding which parameters to observe in order to best optimize the expected quality of the plan generated (or in general, optimize the expected value of a certain objective function) itself becomes an interesting optimization problem.

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 employed cross-sectional research designs ignoring the fact that these relationships will evolve over time. This paper 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.

Article published in the October 2015 issue of "Board Matters" (Australian boards newsletter). Focuses on different types of inquiry, grounded in Edgar Schein's book, "Humble Inquiry." I don't hold the copyright to this article, but I can share the blog post(s) that editors used as the basis for this adaptation. Check the link(s) posted in this listing