Built to Change: Catalytic Capacity-Building in Nonprofit Organizations

Summarizes the results of a broad survey of programs, and business and nonprofit experts, in the field of organizational effectiveness

Strategic Planning at Five World-Class Companies

Most successful executives know that strategic planning offers the best way to deal with their changing world. Information is central to successful strategic planning. A field study of 5 world-class companies revealed details regarding information used for strategic planning and the role of management accountants in this process. Key executives were interviewed at: 1. Johnson Controls, 2. Coors Brewing Co., 3. Schering-Plough, 4. Xerox, and 5. 3M Company. The executives were interviewed to find out how their companies did strategic planning. Issues addressed included the distinction between strategic and long-range planning, the strategic planning process, information used for strategic planning, and the role of accounting in strategic planning. Results of the field study are discussed

A Project Portfolio Management model adapted to non-profit organizations

As they strive towards greater professionalism in carrying out their activities, non-profit organizations (NPOs) have begun paying attention to project management. The non-profit sector (NPS) has also begun to adopt strategic planning techniques, thus making the acceptance of project portfolio management (PPM) methodology a natural consequence. This article aims to propose a project portfolio management model adapted to the context of NPOs

Performance evaluation in research departments: from the Balanced Scorecard to the Strategy Map

Notwithstanding a growing interest towards performance management systems for universities, little is known on their application to academic departments. Being an institution dedicated to research, a department presents specific characteristics: creativity, professional autonomy, low degree of repetitiveness, uncertainty on results, unclear relation between input and output. Such peculiarities make the evaluation and measurement of its performance particularly difficult. The purpose of the paper is the exploration and development of a performance evaluation approach which is suitable for the particular features of an academic department. As this paper is explorative in nature, we use a qualitative methodology, to identify dimensions of performance evaluation suitable for application to an academic department. Data are collected for the case study of a department of the University of Padua, Italy. After identifying the relations between the four perspective of the balanced scorecard and identifying the strategic maps, the case study proposes a set of goals and measures which are suitable to satisfy the managerial needs of the analyzed department. The paper contributes to the performance evaluation literature in three main ways. It extends the concept of customer by considering a wider systems of stakeholders; it emphasize the strategic role of the financial dimension as a driver for achieving the mission and it highlights the need to coordinate the different stakeholders involved in the enhancement of strategy, from academic and administrative staff, to different types of customers and the community in general.performance measurement, strategy map, balanced scorecard, university, departments

The Relationship Between Risk, Performance-Based Pay, and Organizational Performance

In this study, we argue that much of the recent agency-based research on performance based pay virtually omits the role of risk. This compensation research has predominantly taken the positive perspective and focused on the incentive properties of performance-based pay, thereby overlooking the important role that risk plays in normative formulations of agency theory (Holmstrom, 1979; Eisenhardt, 1989; Jensen & Meckling; 1976). Building on previous research, such as Beatty and Zajac (1994), we re-introduce risk by investigating its effects on the formation and outcomes of performance-based pay contracts. Specifically, our study examines both the main effects of risk on the structure of compensation contracts and the joint effects of risk and performance-based pay on firm performance. This study is based on data of incumbent managers from 356 companies over the period 1981 to 1988. Financial performance and market data were drawn from the CRSP and COMPUSTAT

Exploration of the relationship between information systems (IS) activity and marketing activity in the case of 'X' Airlines in developing country

Connecting IS/IT strategy with business strategy has become a crucial issue. The level of integration between business strategies requires explanation of interrelationships, in order to achieve business goals with the available resources and markets conditions. This research is a holistic examination of the relationship between IS, business strategy and marketing in 'X' Airlines. Marketing is considered as core activity. The research design involves qualitative method. It covers the literature on IS integration, a case study approach to understand 'how' and 'why' in using IS in 'X'. The research discusses existing frameworks, both theoretical and practical, of IS strategic integration. The results show that there are relationships of traditional kind as back office support of IS for business strategy and marketing within 'X'

Connecting up strategy: are senior strategy directors a missing link?

With companies being exhorted to become more strategically agile and internally connected, this article examines the role of the Senior Strategy Director, the executive tasked specifically with internal strategy. In particular, it explores what they do, what specific capabilities they deploy to enable effective contribution to the company, and in what ways they facilitate the connectedness of strategy. An analysis of multiple interviews over time with Senior Strategy Directors of large companies shows the vital and challenging role these executives play in both shaping, connecting up, and executing strategy. This article identifies the particular capabilities necessary for Senior Strategy Directors to perform their role and shows how it all depends upon their skilful deployment. These findings have significant implications for understanding unfolding micro-processes of strategy in large organizations, for assumptions about the skills and capabilities necessary to be an effective Senior Strategy Director, and for business schools in terms of the content and style of strategy courses they provide

Operational and Organizational Issues Facing Corporate Real Estate Executives and Managers

This article examines three major categories of issues facing corporate real estate executives in the future, as determined by a Delphi process survey conducted by the authors. We present areas of agreement and disagreement among the corporate executives surveyed, and distill the results of the Delphi survey and other major studies on the future of corporate real estate into a research agenda for further inquiry.