Nonprofit Administration and Management Commons^™

People Orientation And Thing Orientation In Business Majors: Implications For Assessing The Impacts Of Cross-Functional Business Program Curricula, Todd J. Hostager, David A. Christopher, Kristy J. Lauver, Christopher Knowles

International Journal for Business Education

Background/Introduction/Purpose:  Prior research documented significant differences in people orientation and thing orientation (PTO) based on type of major and sex.  This study examines a set of measures for helping business programs to assess whether they are producing graduates equipped to consider both people and things when making decisions, regardless of their major or sex.

Methods/Design:  Students in a strategic management capstone course spent a single 75-minute session responding to a brief new venture pitch by identifying what types of additional information they would need to decide whether to invest in the business.  Three Likert-scaled options gauged the extent to participant …

Growth, Governance, And Organizational Crisis In Nonprofit Rowing Club: Failures In Leadership In A Growing Organization, Noah Legendre, Ehren R. Green

The COSMA Journal

This case explores governance and leadership challenges within a growing nonprofit sport organization governed by a volunteer board of directors. Within this case, the Litchberg Valley Rowing Club (LVRC), a rowing organization in a small community, experienced rapid growth in membership, financial resources, and competitive success. Despite this growth, the organization maintained informal governance structures and policies to guide its decision-making. In this case, the board of directors elected to terminate the head coach because of difficult contract negotiations and other issues at hand. This decision was met with public backlash, raising concerns about club leadership and the future of …

From The Editor's Desk, Heather S. Mcmillan

Journal of the North American Management Society

No abstract provided.

Charismatic Leaders Role And Challenges During Crises, Tamer Hassan Abutahoun Phd

Journal of the North American Management Society

Since the first article about charismatic leadership by Weber was issued in 1946, numerous pieces of research have been published discussing several aspects of charismatic leadership. One of these aspects is the role of the charismatic leader during crisis and whether it is being impacted by crises or emerged during crises. Several articles have been published to investigate the role of charismatic leadership during crises along with how individuals perceived charismatic leadership during crises. Most of these articles utilized case studies to investigate the former mentioned relationship. However, each of these studies investigated the relationship between crises and charismatic leadership …

Balancing Our Capacity To Serve: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Black Women Navigating Personal, Professional, And Community Leadership Roles, Shemeka K. Brathwaite

Student Theses

This phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of Black women community leaders as they navigate a balance between their professional, personal, and community leadership roles. The research design uses the theoretical frameworks of Black Feminist Intersectionality and Role Theory, specifically addressing the cultural burdens imposed by the Strong Black Woman archetype, which adds additional role strain. The study began with a questionnaire completed by 54 Black women community leaders, followed by 20 in-depth, semi-structured interviews selected from this pool. The study’s key findings are illustrated in a Black Women’s Sustainable Community Leadership Framework. Black women community leaders exude high self-efficacy, …

The Role Of Project Managers And Pmp Principles In Improving Operational Efficiency In Healthcare Organizations, Karan Thakkar

Harrisburg University Dissertations and Theses

Healthcare organizations operate in increasingly complex, regulated, and resource-constrained environments while managing a growing volume of projects tied to digital transformation, process improvement, regulatory compliance, and infrastructure development. Despite the project-intensive nature of healthcare operations, many organizations do not formally employ trained project managers or consistently apply Project Management Professional (PMP) principles; project responsibilities are frequently absorbed by clinical or administrative leaders whose primary expertise lies outside formal project management. This qualitative study examined how the project manager role and PMP principles contribute to operational efficiency in healthcare organizations. The study was conducted as a qualitative document analysis and thematic …

Burning Out: A Narrative Exploration Of The Adaptive Challenge And Scaffolds Built Toward Sustenance Among Immigrant Rights Activists In San Diego County, Anna C. Runion

Dissertations

Activist burnout has been identified as one of the greatest threats to social movement sustainability, and the lived experience of paid immigrant rights activists remains undertheorized. This narrative inquiry explored activist burnout among 10 San Diego County immigrant rights activists, revealing how this community understands burnout, what factors contribute to its production, and how activists sustain themselves within it. Using Clandinin and Connelly’s (2000) narrative inquiry methodology, the researcher conducted in-depth individual interviews with ten activists representing a range of intersectional identities and roles. Narrative profiles were analyzed through holistic narrative reading, narrative reporting, structural and emergent coding, and cross-narrative …

Generations At Work: Examining Differences In The Nonprofit Sector, Cory J. Bergeron

Dissertations

This non-experimental quantitative dissertation examined generational differences among non-management employees in the United States nonprofit sector, where multiple generational cohorts work side by side. The problem addressed is that nonprofit leaders’ limited understanding of how distinct generational experiences shape employees’ work-related attitudes and preferences can contribute to conflict, reduced engagement, and costly turnover in already resource-constrained organizations. Grounded in Mannheim’s generational theory and Becker’s human capital theory, the study conceptualized generational cohorts as groups whose shared formative experiences influence what they value in their work context and how those values translate into human capital that affects organizational outcomes.

Using a …

A Human-Technology Centered Sustainability Framework For Digital Transformational Leadership And Ai In Indonesian Islamic Non-Profit Organizations, Ardi Ardi, Yohana Fcp Meilani, Margaretha Pink Berlianto, Sylvia Samuel Dr., Maureen Arthajaya Ms.

International Conference on Business and Management Research (ICBMR)

This study promotes a Human-Technology Centered Sustainability paradigm by examining how artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformational leadership intersect within Indonesian Islamic non-profit organizations. It moves beyond viewing AI as a mere tool, instead assessing organizational readiness for adoption and identifying areas for strategic development. The research emphasizes aligning AI with human values, social equity, and individual dignity, advocating for ethical integration that respects humanistic principles. Using an exploratory methodology literature review, organizational report analysis, and publication trend mapping the study highlights the need for collaborative policy-making, ethical frameworks, and innovation to ensure sustainable human-technology interaction. Key ethical concerns include …

Supersuit Up Or Get Left Behind: Why A Personal Agentic Os Is Required For Commercial Viability In The New Economy, Gary Sheng, Ron Roberts

Digital Laboratory: Publisher of Internet Journal

In my first article, The Writing on the Wall, we laid out the case: self-improving AI has arrived, the economy is splitting, and every organization faces an existential choice. This paper answers the question we heard most after that piece: “Okay, I believe you. What do I do on Monday morning?” The answer is your Personal Agentic OS. It is the minimum viable infrastructure that turns you from a passive consumer of AI into a sovereign operator of it. And in April 2026, three events converged to make this the most urgent professional skill in the world: Andrej Karpathy’s LLM …

Conservation Communication In Web 2.0: A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Alveus Sanctuary's Strategies On Twitch.Tv, Hope Denison

Senior Theses

This thesis examines how environmental creators can effectively transmit conservation messages in the evolving Web 2.0 media environment. The case of Alveus Sanctuary, a virtual sanctuary and education center on Twitch.TV, is used to explore the strategies currently used to engage audiences and raise ecological awareness online. Thematic analysis of interviews with the sanctuary’s founder revealed that Alveus combines traditional environmental education with an influencer business model to engage online audiences, leveraging parasocial behavior, interactivity, and collaboration to garner support. A quantitative content analysis of social media posts revealed that these strategies effectively induce parasocial engagement in online spaces. These …

Key Elements Of Mission-Based Urban Agriculture In The United States Aimed At Addressing The Social Determinants Of Health, Jordan Losavio

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Urban agriculture (UA) in the United States (U.S.) is increasingly positioned as a multi-domain strategy for addressing social determinants of health (SDOH), yet evidence is fragmented and often focused on participant outcomes rather than the organizational and environmental conditions that determine whether those benefits can be sustained, expanded, or maintained over time. This dissertation uses an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design to clarify (1) what SDOH outcomes are associated with UA in the peer-reviewed literature, (2) which internal and external factors leaders perceive as driving UA organizational success or failure, and (3) which factors predict comparative organizational functioning across a national …

Peace Innovation And Healing: A Design Justice Framework To Support Change Processes, Strengthen Relationships, Foster Trust, And Build Community, Michelle Helman

Peace and Conflict Studies Journal Conference

Many organizations aiming to achieve peace and health equity outcomes often focus their design processes and innovation efforts externally without addressing how their organizational culture can unintentionally reproduce the very harms they are trying to address. The purpose of this qualitative design research study is to explore the role of a design justice framework in piloting a Peace Innovation Project aimed at facilitating an organizational culture change process. Specifically, the study focuses on better understanding how integrating a design justice approach could support research collaborators to center equity and justice as core components in building a culture of peace and …

Embodying Design Justice: A Peace Education Framework To Strengthen Relationships, Foster Trust And Build Community, Michelle Helman

Peace and Conflict Studies Journal Conference

BACKGROUND

Groups working toward creating peace and equity often focus on external innovation without addressing internal culture shifts necessary to navigate change and achieve their goals. Michelle’s doctoral research and practice address this challenge through a design research study and peace innovation project focused on organizational culture transformation through a design justice framework. Findings suggest that interweaving the framework with storytelling, arts, and embodiment practices are key to support people in navigating change processes to strengthen relationships, foster trust, and build community.

ABOUT

The workshop offers an applied learning experience for participants to explore the concepts of design and innovation …

Enhancing Military Health System Organizational Efficiency And Quality Of Care Through A Social-Ecological Framework, Eric L. Peipelman

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Timely and fair adjudication of incivility-related actions within the Department of Defense (DoD) and Military Health System (MHS) is increasingly crucial for maintaining accountability, mission readiness, and quality of care. Ongoing delays in resolving workplace complaints and inefficiencies in resource-heavy adjudications highlight the need to shift from reactive complaint handling toward proactive civility promotion and transparent decision-making. This Integrated Learning Experience (ILE) introduces the Peipelman Civility Discussion and Assessment Toolkit (PCDAT)—a comprehensive, evidence-based framework designed to improve civility, optimize resources, and enhance communication, even in the MHS. Based on the Social-Ecological Model (SEM) and adapted from the Workplace Power and …

Project Learn Strategic Analysis Project, Isabel Ladaika, Kalpana Ghimire, Noah Johnson, Caleb Keiper

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This honors project involves working in a team to conduct a comprehensive strategic analysis of Project Learn of Summit County. We will evaluate the organization’s external environment (such as industry trends, competition, and community factors) and internal operations (including strengths, weaknesses, resources, and capabilities). Using strategic management frameworks, as a team we will develop actionable recommendations to strengthen the organizations marketing, financial sustainability, and community outreach efforts. Throughout the semester, we will engage directly with the client organization to gather data and insights that inform our analysis. Final deliverables include a formal written strategic analysis paper and a professional presentation …

Design Thinking For Corporate Social Responsibility Program Proposal Creation, Michelle "Mindy" D. Danovaro

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study used action research to explore how the use of design thinking engaged employees in the creation of a corporate social responsibility (CSR) program proposal in a small- to medium-enterprises (SME) in the Sacramento region of California. The purpose of the study was to assess whether employee participation in a design thinking exercise could improve employee perception of engagement, inclusion, and reciprocity during the CSR program proposal creation. The study was grounded in social exchange theory, stakeholder theory, and design thinking methodologies. The iterative research process followed action research cycles (i.e., plan, act, observe, and reflect) integrated with …

Case Study: The Economic And Legal Challenges Moving From A Township To A City, George F. Dierberger Dr., Ibrahim Keita Dr., Cory Erickson

Journal of the North American Management Society

The paper examines the economic and legal challenges moving from a township to a municipality in the state of Minnesota. One of the authors was a member of the township board as they went through the process of educating the citizens on the risks and rewards of changing from a township to a municipality.

Maximizing Online Intersession Enrollment Through Targeted Course Offerings, Heather S. Mcmillan, Charles D. Mcallister

Journal of the North American Management Society

Abstract

Online winter intersession courses have become an increasingly important strategy for universities seeking to support accelerated student progression while generating incremental tuition revenue. This study examines ten years of winter intersession enrollment data from a public, master’s-level comprehensive university in the Midwestern United States to identify course characteristics associated with higher student enrollment. Using 12,520 individual enrollment records, the analysis focuses on course type (general education versus major requirement), course classification (lower level, upper level, blended undergraduate/graduate, and graduate), and course discipline. A series of ANOVAs and Bonferroni post-hoc tests reveal significant differences in enrollment across these dimensions, with …

Organizational Pitfalls Of The Dual-Identity Leader, Yvonne Randolph, Asa Wilson

Journal of the North American Management Society

The dual-identity leader (D-IL) is an individual assigned to one job description yet is, in practice, fulfilling an additional position’s role. This secondary role is self-determined; has not been assigned yet is being allowed by those with governance and/or executive authority. Three case examples of the D-IL are presented and discussed as a problematic leadership configuration for an organization. The personal characteristics driving this approach are identified as a foundation for clarifying the organizational consequences of such an executive leader. Preventative and corrective tactics are discussed that eliminate or minimize the adverse impact of the D-IL’s organizational behavior.

Reflections At The Close Of My Freshman Year As Editor, Heather S. Mcmillan

Journal of the North American Management Society

No abstract provided.

Space For New History: Stony Island Arts Bank, Seb Taylor

Digital Laboratory: Publisher of Internet Journal

The Stony Island Arts Bank (SIAB) in Southside Chicago was designed and founded as a piece of art itself, with the organizational structure being a museum of Black cultural production. This article examines how the institution constructs an epistemology of Blackness through its archival practices, community programming, and spatial claims on the South Side. Founded by artist Theaster Gates through the Rebuild Foundation, the SIAB positions institutional design as an art medium, operating in productive tension with orthodox museum methods. The permanent collections—including the Johnson Publishing Company archives and Frankie Knuckles vinyl collection—function as epistemological records of Black self-documentation unmediated …

Cultural Dynamics And Reverse Culture Shock: A Strategy For Building Sustainable Human Resources In International Ngos, Haruka Minemura, Yuko Nishide

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

This study explores the dynamics of cultural conflict between expatriate and local staff in international NGOs (INGOs) and proposes a framework for sustainable human resource management. While existing INGO management literature emphasizes cultural factors in expatriate-local relations, limited empirical evidence explains the developmental process of these relationships and their implications. Through qualitative case study methodology, this research addresses the question: How do cultural conflicts between expatriates and local staff evolve within INGOs, and what management strategies emerge from these dynamics?

The findings reveal a dual-phase conflict management model where both expatriates and local staff experience sequential cultural tensions. The first …

Editorial Note, Heather S. Mcmillan

Journal of the North American Management Society

No abstract provided.

Fostering Innovation At Work: Leadership Strategies For Motivating Innovative Work Behavior Across Generations Within The Christian Higher Education Environment, Sarah Clark

Doctor of Strategic Leadership (DSL) Capstone Abstracts

Project Type

Organizational Consulting Project, Organizational Design or Change, Seminar or Workshop

Project Overview

This capstone project involved the design, facilitation, and evaluation of a strategic leadership workshop developed for mid to senior-level enrollment leaders at Southeastern University. Grounded in Self-Determination Theory (SDT), Innovative Work Behavior (IWB), and Transformational Leadership, the workshop offered a diagnostic and developmental experience designed to motivate innovation across generational teams within a Christian higher education setting. The workshop was structured to transition from research-based theory to data-informed strategy, helping leaders translate organizational insights into actionable plans.

Project Themes

Core themes included intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, …

Leading Nonprofit Success Through Collaboration And Partnerships, Lakell Archer, Erica Bassett

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Abstract

Nonprofit organizations play a crucial role in addressing societal challenges, yet they often operate in a competitive environment with limited resources. To maximize impact and long-term sustainability, strategic partnerships and cross-sector collaborations have emerged as essential approaches. This paper explores the benefits of nonprofit collaboration, emphasizing its role in creating strategic advantages, improving service delivery, fostering innovation, and ensuring long-term resilience. The discussion highlights how collaborative leadership is key to overcoming barriers such as competition for funding, misaligned objectives, and trust deficits among partners. By examining real-world examples, the paper illustrates how effective partnerships enhance resource sharing, streamline operations, …

Leadership Practices For High-Performing Teams: Insights From Senior Military General Officers And Flag Officers, Kimberly Mitchell

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods study was to identify and describe how senior military general officers and flag officers (GOFOs) used the three competencies of high-performance teams (HPTs; clarity, connection, and communication) to achieve objectives in their organizations. The second purpose of this study was to determine the degree of importance that senior military GOFOs perceived the three high-performance team effect (HPTE) core competencies impacted their leadership for creating HPTs.

Methodology: This mixed methods study identified and described nine senior military officers’ perceptions of strategies to lead HPTs while focusing on the three core competencies: clarity, connection, and …

A Mixed Methodology Study On Effective Products And Services For Consulting Firms, Doc S. Dillard

Doctor of Education Dissertations

This study evaluated organizational effectiveness within small- to medium-sized educational technology and technology-adjacent organizations for consulting firms to develop appropriate products and services for clients. This allowed consulting firms to develop innovation in their approaches. More specifically, this research supported consulting firms specializing in educational technology in developing products and services for industry leaders to improve organizational effectiveness. The research employed a mixed methodology consisting of 10 educational technology leaders. Data were collected from survey questions and through evaluating related literature. The literature compiled included organizations across education, technology, and technology-adjacent industries. The research evaluated organizations through McKinsey’s 7S framework. …

Confronting Indecision, Lane Allison Murray

ENGS 15.11: Design and Education

This course aims to increase students' understanding of indecision and how to confront it. The class provides insight into how the fear of the unknown holds people back from making decisions and about understanding one's values as a means to combat indecision. Students and teachers alike explore instances of indecision and evaluate their own impulses & thought processes by reflecting on the deeper reasons for their choices. Students will increase their comfort level of asking themselves and their peers questions about the values that guide them and, in doing so, strengthen their relationships with themselves and others.

Voices From Within: Employees' Sensemaking Of Corporate Volunteerism, Janet Laadi Anani

Theses and Dissertations

Corporate volunteerism is a key component of the philanthropic pillar of CSR, shaping employee engagement and organizational identity. This study employed the social exchange and sensemaking theories to explore how employees make meaning of their experiences in corporate volunteer initiatives and how their experiences influence their perceptions of their organizations. Data was gathered from in-depth interviews with employees with varied corporate volunteer experiences across multiple organizations. The findings show that despite employees’ strong motivations to engage in corporate volunteerism, they face challenges such as time and workload constraints and limited variety of volunteer opportunities. The study also found that employees’ …