Termination of NGO alliances in China : typology and determinants

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)In 2008, grassroots NGOs formed 13 alliances in response to the need for emergency relief and post-disaster recovery after the Sichuan Earthquake that occurred in West China and killed approximately 87,000 people. These alliances served to raise and deliver relief materials, train and supervise volunteers, promote information sharing, and assist victims with mental health and livelihood recovery. However, all alliances were terminated within less than four years. Although plenty of scholarship discusses how corporate alliances evolve or fail, few studies focus on interorganizational collaboration among nonprofits. To explore how NGOs developed collective actions in China’s adverse sociopolitical environment, the author performed three years of observation in four coalitions and interviewed 60 alliance leaders, employees, and volunteers. This paper identifies four types of termination these NGO alliances experienced: three of them failed at their very births, five self-disbanded shortly after the end of emergency aid, three dissolved due to failed institutionalization, and the remaining two evolved into independent organizations. Tracking their life cycles, this study finds four main factors accountable for their terminations: political pressure, funding shortage, short-term orientation, and leadership failure. In particular, the repressive NGO regulation regime and limited funding sources fundamentally restricted all alliances’ capacity and sustainability. Further, the transient nature of disaster relief efforts and the conflict between disaster management and planned work areas contributed to the short-term orientation among alliance members and, thus, led to the closure of some alliances shortly after they provided emergency relief. In addition, though generally exempt from internal rivalry that often undermines inter-firm partnerships, NGO alliances of all types were confronted with leadership challenges—partner misfits concerning resources, strategy, and mission; flawed governing structures, and undesired individual leadership. The four factors interplayed and led to alliance dissolution through different combinations. The paper points out that, in addition to environmental uncertainty, leadership failure has become a major challenge for nonprofit collaborations

The role of social capital in building organizational resilience.

Organizational resilience refers to a firm`s capability of coping successfully following disruptions. Resilient firms are also able to improve themselves after the disruptive events. However, implementing coping strategies requires a variety of resources, and firms can become more resource-dependent during and after disruptive events. Despite some studies claiming that social capital in the forms of structural capital, relational capital and cognitive capital can be regarded as resources that can support a firm`s resilience capability, the relationships between the three dimensions of social capital and organizational resilience have not been tested in a post-disaster context. Thus, this study empirically tests the relationships between the three dimensions of social capital and organizational resilience. To achieve this purpose, partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was applied to analyze the survey data collected from 88 large companies that were affected by the 2008 Sichuan (Wenchuan) earthquakes, in China. The results suggest that structural capital plays an important role in building proactive organizational resilience, while relational capital plays an important role in building reactive organizational resilience. In addition, neither proactive nor reactive organizational resilience capability significantly supports business performance. These findings enrich the pool of knowledge of the relationships between social capital and organizational resilience, and provide insights into how to build organizational resilience using social capital as a resource in a post-disaster context. Managerial implications of the study are also offered. However, these results may not be general to all firms affected by the earthquake, given that data was only collected from a small number of companies in the Sichuan province of China

Horizontal Coordination of I-LNGOs in the Humanitarian Supply Chain: An Evolutionary Game Approach

Disasters accompanied by heavy casualties and huge economic losses directly result in the disruption or delay of economic development. Considering the urgent need for reducing losses and accelerating the process of social recovery, international nongovernment organizations (INGOs) and local NGOs (LNGOs) with different resource endowments should achieve organizational coordination to improve the relief efficiency and sustainability of the humanitarian supply chain. Due to conflicting interests and expectations, this coordination is hard to achieve. In this study, we first establish an evolutionary game model between INGOs and LNGOs to determine the influencing factors and explore the interaction of NGOs in a dynamic way. Our results show that: (1) coordination by resource sharing can improve the sustainability of the humanitarian supply chain; (2) coordination willingness is affected by the behavior of other players, which can nevertheless achieve equilibrium under certain conditions; and (3) the important factors and optimal strategies of players are highlighted in the dynamic model. This study provides several insights into the theory of organizational coordination in the humanitarian supply chain regarding sustainability

Managing Collaborative Networks in Post-Disaster Recovery: A Case Study of 2015 Nepal Earthquake

Governing the network of public, private, and non-governmental organizations is increasingly becoming the standard practice to ensure effective post-disaster recovery and reconstruction processes and outcomes. While prior research has discussed different challenges in network settings, few studies have examined the challenges faced by public managers who lead post-disaster recovery networks. Similarly, there is a dearth of knowledge on how the management of these networks affects disaster-stricken populations are affected by the management of these networks. This dissertation addresses such lacunae using a case study of the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA), an organization established by the Nepali government to execute post-disaster recovery after the 2015 Nepal earthquake. The study’s data collection includes semi-structured interviews (n=81) with NRA public managers, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and leaders in Kathmandu Metropolitan City as well as the review of secondary policy documents and media sources. The dissertation follows a three-essay format. The first essay analyzes challenges of public managers stemming from the organizational design of the NRA, including centralized decision-making, fragmentation of specialized administrative and implementation bodies, inflexible institutions and practices, limited organizational capacity, and an organizational culture with low regard for collaboration. The second essay explores NRA public managers’ challenges from relational aspects of their work, that is, their interactions with other units or organizations. The findings highlight network stakeholders’ conflicting goals, priorities, and practices, the lack of trust in one another, and power asymmetries as challenges to public managers. Together, the first and second essays demonstrate how external and internal factors have shaped NRA managers’ roles, capacities, and strategies in securing and sustaining collaborative processes and practices. The third essay examines the effect of governance factors on private housing reconstruction outcomes in urban KMC. As a result of the centralized decision-making arrangements, powerful stakeholders avoided or ignored essential features of the housing reconstruction processes, such as identifying beneficiaries, cash assistance distribution, urban poverty, and land tenure. Based on these findings, the essay suggests that power asymmetry between multiple stakeholders in the recovery networks plays a central role in influencing urban private housing reconstruction processes, priorities, and outcomes

A Case Study of Joint Accountability Mechanism and Interorganizational Collaboration in Post-Earthquake Haiti

Abstract: The earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010, caused massive destruction of its capital city Port-au-Prince and its suburbs and killed over a quarter of million people. The recovery period that followed required effectiveness to plan and mobilize resources. The magnitude of the destruction, lack of local recovery plans or previous disaster experience, and scarcity of local resources inspired the creation of the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission (IHRC), a compilation of local and international stakeholders who agreed to collaboratively address the recovery challenges. Several studies have examined post-earthquake recovery initiatives under the leadership of local governments, but having a consortium of local and international donors exclusively managing recovery planning in a post disaster context has yet to be studied. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to enhance understanding of the IHRC’s public policy initiatives used to address recovery challenges. The social capital theory (SCT) was the theoretical framework to guide the study. Interviews were conducted with 31 participants with knowledge of the IHRC operations, performance, and realization. Five main themes emerged from which meanings and conclusions were extracted. Opinions were divided regarding effectiveness of the IHRC. Key findings revealed that some progress was made in terms of addressing recovery needs, but the framework of the IHRC failed to deliver on its key promises. Recommendations include a permanent body in charge of post disaster recovery in Haiti with a clear mandate and strategic paradigm. Disaster administrators may use the findings of this study as a catalyst to improve recovery plans for positive social change

A Case Study of Joint Accountability Mechanism and Interorganizational Collaboration in Post-Earthquake Haiti

Abstract: The earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010, caused massive destruction of its capital city Port-au-Prince and its suburbs and killed over a quarter of million people. The recovery period that followed required effectiveness to plan and mobilize resources. The magnitude of the destruction, lack of local recovery plans or previous disaster experience, and scarcity of local resources inspired the creation of the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission (IHRC), a compilation of local and international stakeholders who agreed to collaboratively address the recovery challenges. Several studies have examined post-earthquake recovery initiatives under the leadership of local governments, but having a consortium of local and international donors exclusively managing recovery planning in a post disaster context has yet to be studied. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to enhance understanding of the IHRC’s public policy initiatives used to address recovery challenges. The social capital theory (SCT) was the theoretical framework to guide the study. Interviews were conducted with 31 participants with knowledge of the IHRC operations, performance, and realization. Five main themes emerged from which meanings and conclusions were extracted. Opinions were divided regarding effectiveness of the IHRC. Key findings revealed that some progress was made in terms of addressing recovery needs, but the framework of the IHRC failed to deliver on its key promises. Recommendations include a permanent body in charge of post disaster recovery in Haiti with a clear mandate and strategic paradigm. Disaster administrators may use the findings of this study as a catalyst to improve recovery plans for positive social change

Collaboration between first responders : a look into the dynamics of small-scale emergency response operations

Doctoral thesis (PhD) – Nord University, 2021publishedVersio

Cross-Sectional Collaboration in Florida\u27s Emergency Management System

Florida faces a unique set of emergency management hazards prompted by the state’s geography, high volume of tourism, and position as a hub of international trade. The state has developed a highly adaptive emergency management system to deliver humanitarian assistance to Floridians affected by natural and other disasters. Despite the importance of collaboration in delivering humanitarian goods and services to Floridians in times of crisis, little is known as to how collaboration occurs, what impediments exist, and how organizations adapt to the dynamics of natural and other disasters. In this qualitative case study, the integrative framework for collaborative governance was applied to understand how voluntary organizations collaborated during hurricane response and relief efforts. Data were collected from the survey responses of nine voluntary organization emergency managers and after-action reports of county, state, and federal agencies. Data from survey responses and archival sources were analyzed and thematically coded. The findings showed that voluntary organizational collaboration resulted from teamwork, communication, and working towards the same purpose within a structured organizational framework. The key recommendations are that emergency management organizations should consistently provide all-hazards training and exercises to enhance voluntary organizations’ response to disasters and to study how collaboration occurs in other states with different emergency management constructs. This study may contribute to positive social change by providing emergency managers with the means to improve humanitarian responses to disasters through a deeper understanding of the collaborative processes involved

Cross-Sectional Collaboration in Florida\u27s Emergency Management System

Florida faces a unique set of emergency management hazards prompted by the state’s geography, high volume of tourism, and position as a hub of international trade. The state has developed a highly adaptive emergency management system to deliver humanitarian assistance to Floridians affected by natural and other disasters. Despite the importance of collaboration in delivering humanitarian goods and services to Floridians in times of crisis, little is known as to how collaboration occurs, what impediments exist, and how organizations adapt to the dynamics of natural and other disasters. In this qualitative case study, the integrative framework for collaborative governance was applied to understand how voluntary organizations collaborated during hurricane response and relief efforts. Data were collected from the survey responses of nine voluntary organization emergency managers and after-action reports of county, state, and federal agencies. Data from survey responses and archival sources were analyzed and thematically coded. The findings showed that voluntary organizational collaboration resulted from teamwork, communication, and working towards the same purpose within a structured organizational framework. The key recommendations are that emergency management organizations should consistently provide all-hazards training and exercises to enhance voluntary organizations’ response to disasters and to study how collaboration occurs in other states with different emergency management constructs. This study may contribute to positive social change by providing emergency managers with the means to improve humanitarian responses to disasters through a deeper understanding of the collaborative processes involved