What are the potential pros and cons of the fact that there are so many forces shaping non profits?

The fact that there are so many forces influencing nonprofits has its pros and cons. It is advantageous for the nonprofit sector because these forces can often draw attention to important issues that have not been heeded before, thereby propelling the nonprofits toward worthy causes. Similarly, these influences shape the flow of funding and allow for money to be invested in the right places. Partner organizations, both nonprofit and for-profit, help provide support toward achieving the mission. Celebrities who publicly support certain nonprofits help solicit additional support from their peers as well as fans, whether intentionally or not.

On the other hand, forces that exert horizontal lines of influence, such as staff, volunteers, and partner nonprofits, can shape the ways in which a nonprofit’s mission is operationalized, which in fact can be both beneficial and detrimental. Positive feedback from staff and volunteers to the public can boost a nonprofit’s reputation and attract potential funders, while negative feedback does the opposite. Similarly, the media can do nonprofits either good or harm depending on the types of commentary being circulated. Another major way in which forces influencing nonprofits can have a negative impact concerns funding. Donors or funders can withhold their money from a nonprofit, which would then be a blow to its finances.

These pros and cons illustrate the need for nonprofits to know how to leverage these influences. As we discussed in class, there are several ways to maximize the positive influences and ways to mitigate the negative influences. The forces, or stakeholders, must be managed deliberately in a structured way, such as seeking feedback from constituents, building trust with stakeholders with horizontal lines of influences, establishing partnerships, and creating hybrid structures that help augment the ability of nonprofits to get around constraints from stakeholders.