Annotated Bibliography
Anderson, M. & Ramos-Reid, R. (2011) Core competence-definition and dynamics in the not-for-profit sector. School of Management Blekinge Institute of Technology Sweden.
The study is among the few that treats the subject of core-competences (core capabilities) within the nonprofit sector, explaining how it applies to the not-for-profit operations. The core competences concept is related to the added value notion, and the authors of this study aim to identify how nonprofit organizations can generate added value by optimizing their internal resources. Developing a multi-case study analysis, the book identifies that nonprofit operations follow the same patterns as for profit organizations for identifying and enhancing their core capabilities. The research also contains a questionnaire, serving as a practical tool for assessing the nonprofit organization members’ core competencies.
Breyfogle, F., W., Cupello, J., M. & Meadows, B. (2001) Managing Six Sigma: A practical guide to understanding, assessing, and implementing the strategy that yields bottom-line success. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The book is considered a complete and complex combination between practical knowledge, cultural transformation and revolutionary strategy, presenting the Six Sigma as a process intended to improve organizations’ performances by increasing the quality and reducing the costs. The authors of this book compare Six Sigma with other quality improvement initiatives, detail about its background and fundamentals and develop a needs assessment, initiating the readers into the benefits of applying this strategy for attaining improved results. The study also discusses about metrics, providing guidance for how to optimize specific operational aspects. Useful for the business strategy, the book recommends support activities, such as choosing the deployment alternatives, creating a successful Six Sigma infrastructure, providing training, sizing and working with team for its implementation.
Hartnett, B. & Matan, R. (2011) The Balanced Scorecard: A strategic tool for nonprofit sector. Sobel & Co., LLC Certified Public Accountants.
Hartnett and Matan focus specifically on the connection between organizational objectives and daily operations through the use of Balanced Scorecard. Moreover, the authors of this study customize this connection on the particularities of the nonprofit organizations. This study offers both theoretical background on Balanced Scorecard, as well as practical approach on this methodology, by exploring case studies that implemented this business strategy. Very important for the nonprofit sector, Hartnett and Matan’s study also incorporates relevant planning for integrating the Balanced Scorecard within the nonprofit organizations’ activities. The study informs that the nonprofit can benefit from the implementation of this methodology by improving their training services for the volunteers and their fundraising efforts, based on the information generated by the Balanced Scorecard methodology.
Jones, P. (2011) Strategy mapping for learning organizations: building agility into your Balanced Scorecard. Surrey: Gower Publishing Limited.
This book is about strategy mapping, teaching the organizations how to develop their strategies by raising the quality of their thinking. As Phil Jones, the author of this lecture states, the book includes real life exercises, extracted from Jones’ own personal experience while implementing strategies within organizations for achieving increased responsiveness in complex environments. This book is relevant for the study of strategic mapping, because it clearly defines the concepts and the methodologies involved in this process, detailing on the design and implementation of strategy mapping within organizational context. This book differentiates from other studies because it details on various perspectives regarding the organizational strategic mapping.
Kaplan, R., Eisenhardts, K, Gull, D., Tufano, P. & Gadiesh, O. (2002) Harvard Business Review on advances in strategy. Boston: Harvard Business Review.
The study includes a chapter written by Robert Kaplan and David Norton, the designers of the Balanced Scorecard and strategy mapping. The scholars explain the need for strategy map in any type of organization (including nonprofit), explaining its benefits in the fact that it allows organizations to clearly visualize the objectives, target markets, actions and performance measures, linking them on different organizational levels for strategically increasing the organizations’ performances. Kaplan and Norton, the authors of the chapter entitled “Having Trouble with Your Strategy? Then Map It”, propose a practical implementation of strategic mapping, focusing on four organizational branches (financial, customer, internal process, learning and growth), which define the four perspectives of Balanced Scorecard. Hence, the connection between strategy mapping and Balanced Scorecard.
Landskroner, R., A. (2002) The nonprofit resource directory. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
In this study, Landskroner comprises discussions about the operational focus of nonprofit organizations, which include nonprofit system development, fundraising, facilitating change, developing networks and workforce, increasing innovation and productivity. The relevance of this areas of focus relate with the nonprofit objectives of serving the targeted groups, while efficiently managing the available resources, as the book reveals. The book dedicates distinct chapters to all areas identified as composing the focus of nonprofit organizations: financial, management, governance support and advocacy, human resource management, information technology, legal, resource development, strategic planning, and volunteerism. For each identified area, there are presented existing nonprofit organizations, elaborating on their distinct operational focus.
Martin, B., R. & Nightingale, P. () The political economy of science, technology and Innovation.
A chapter within this book is entitled “Core Capabilities and Core Rigidities: A Paradox in Managing New Product Development”, written by Dorothy Leonard-Barton, who explores the nature of core capabilities within new organizational situations. The author identifies that while core capabilities are related to resources, values, skills and other assets, they also include core rigidities, which are inhibitors of innovation. Significant for the core capabilities concept, Leonard-Barton’s chapter illustrates 20 case studies on new product and process development for evaluating the application of core capabilities in new situations. Overall, the book includes separated chapters, each treating a different subject related to innovation, technology, science, and political economy.
McKeon, K., Roccisano, J. & Calisto, G. (2010) “A Helping Hand” Six Sigma Forum Magazine. Pp. 21-26.
This study explores the results of the application of Six Sigma practice within nonprofit organizations. Indicating the fact that the implementation of this practice in nonprofit sector received little theoretical attention, the authors of this research examine how the Six Sigma training for nonprofit organizations contributed to improving their metrics. Improving capacity of serving an increased number of people, reducing time in assisting individuals, increasing the quality of nonprofit training services and reducing costs are some of the positive results achieved after the Six Sigma training. Focused on the touchstones of the Six Sigma training, the study assesses that the success of this training consisted in leadership capacity, strategy, ongoing control and follow-up of the activities, involvement, and hierarchical communication.
Niven, P., R. (2006) Balanced Scorecard step-by-step: Maximizing performance and maintaining results. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Niven implements the concept of Balanced Scorecard in the heart of organizational operation management system, meant to deliver a functional and performing business system. The book covers the need for, the preparation, core organizational values and objectives, strategy maps and targets intended to be achieved for the organizations’ benefit by implementing the balance scorecard. The book is destined to those intending to implement this methodology within their companies, serving as guidance for successfully integrating the tool within the firms’ operations. The study offers an integrated approach on Balanced Scorecard practice, meant to enhance the management processes by effectively linking operation activities with updated annual objectives.
Osborne, S. P. (1998) Voluntary organizations and innovation in public service. London: Routledge.
Written from the perspective of a nonprofit activity practitioner, this book describes the nature of the operations of NGOs exposed to increased demands and competition, pressured to enhance their innovations. The book examines the nature of innovation within nonprofit organizations as they interact with public services. It also details how the for-profit models of innovation can be applied to the non-profit environment, with the purpose of obtaining increased recognition and efficiency, while reducing costs. Very important for the nonprofit domain, Osborne presents the nature of innovation in this sector, underlying the attributes of innovative voluntary organizations. With a practical touch, the book recommends the nonprofit organizations’ management several lessons to be learned from the innovative capacity of voluntary organizations.
Ross, B. & Segal, C. (2002) Breakthrough thinking for nonprofit organizations: creative strategies for extraordinary results. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
For answering the increasing demands coming from their stakeholders (founders, donors, sponsors, targeted groups, partners and public opinion) and to adjust to the permanently changing NGO context, the nonprofit organizations need to address take on a three-steps approach: (1) to accelerate their rate of change, following the current imposed by the NGO sector; (2) to improve their ability of answering the demand for new services that appear as a result of changing needs; (3) to improve their competitive energy for the limited resources available within the nonprofit sector. The book suggests that breakthrough thinking, creativity and innovation make the difference between a successful and a failing nonprofit organizations.
Saul, J. (2006) Benchmarking for nonprofits: How to measure, manage, and improve performance. Minnesota: Fieldstone Alliance Publishing Center.
Jason Saul focused on nonprofit organizations’ activities for indicating why they should apply benchmarking and how should they do it. The book offers both theoretical and practical information regarding the application of benchmarking in NGOs as a way to identify for improved quality and efficiency. Gradually, Saul develops a plan on how nonprofit organization should get into benchmarking, arguing that informally, they are already doing it, but that its formal application is intended to bring visible results. From evaluating the nonprofit organizations’ situation that needs to be improved to writing a benchmark plan by taking into consideration the best practices (from the NGO domain or from for profit environment), the book is perfectly designed particularly for small NGOs.
Stapenhurst, T. (2009) The Benchmarking Book. Oxford: Elsevier Ltd.
“The Benchmarking Book” is written as a practical guide for the organizations that aim to become involved in benchmarking, filling the gap of the existent literature by providing a complete and comprehensive benchmarking process. Rather than stating dry theoretical concepts, the book presents practical situations detailing “how to” effectively and successfully apply benchmarking for the ultimate goal – the improvement of organizations’ performances. Not similarly with other studies conducted on this topic, this research presents unusual methods, providing also a road map for successfully implementing benchmarking projects. A detailed benchmarking process and four benchmarking case studies are described within this book.
Steiss, A., W. (2003) Strategic management for public and nonprofit organizations. New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc.
Steiss develops the concept of brainstorming as a component of the strategic management, aligning it to the strategies meant to formulate policies for achieving organizational goals. The author sees brainstorming as a process destined for improving nonprofit organizations’ performances, which is why it is considered a transformational tool, guiding organizations towards change. Unlike other tools applied for improving the organizations’ performances, the brainstorming uses the competences of the teams, which means that more individuals can contribute with creative ideas for increasing companies’ efficiency. The brainstorming session is described from planning until the results phase, serving as a handbook for organizations that intend to apply this process.
Wilson, C. (2013) Brainstorming and beyond: A user-centered design method. Mason, Elsevier, Inc.
In three chapters, the book presents three corresponding strategies for generating effective ideas through brainstorming methods: speaking, writing and drawing. Besides the theoretical background that makes the readers more familiar with this process, the lecture also introduces two new concepts, derived from the traditional brainstorming, which are brainwriting and braindrawing. The author of this book, Wilson explains all the brainstorming methods in a clear and comprehensive manner, providing accurate description for implementing them in a real world situation for achieving organizational results. The book also indicates relevant situations when the brainstorming should be used, for effectively optimizing the organizations’ resources.
Sourses:
Anderson, M. & Ramos-Reid, R. (2011) Core competence-definition and dynamics in the not-for-profit sector. School of Management Blekinge Institute of Technology Sweden.
Breyfogle, F., W., Cupello, J., M. & Meadows, B. (2001) Managing Six Sigma: A practical guide to understanding, assessing, and implementing the strategy that yields bottom-line success. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Hartnett, B. & Matan, R. (2011) The Balanced Scorecard: A strategic tool for nonprofit sector. Sobel & Co., LLC Certified Public Accountants.
Jones, P. (2011) Strategy mapping for learning organizations: building agility into your Balanced Scorecard. Surrey: Gower Publishing Limited.
Kaplan, R., Eisenhardts, K, Gull, D., Tufano, P. & Gadiesh, O. (2002) Harvard Business Review on advances in strategy. Boston: Harvard Business Review.
Landskroner, R., A. (2002) The nonprofit resource directory. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Martin, B., R. & Nightingale, P. () The political economy of science, technology and Innovation.
McKeon, K., Roccisano, J. & Calisto, G. (2010) “A Helping Hand” Six Sigma Forum Magazine. Pp. 21-26.
Niven, P., R. (2006) Balanced Scorecard step-by-step: Maximizing performance and maintaining results. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Osborne, S. P. (1998) Voluntary organizations and innovation in public service. London: Routledge.
Ross, B. & Segal, C. (2002) Breakthrough thinking for nonprofit organizations: creative strategies for extraordinary results. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Saul, J. (2006) Benchmarking for nonprofits: How to measure, manage, and improve performance. Minnesota: Fieldstone Alliance Publishing Center.
Stapenhurst, T. (2009) The Benchmarking Book. Oxford: Elsevier Ltd.
Steiss, A., W. (2003) Strategic management for public and nonprofit organizations. New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc.
Wilson, C. (2013) Brainstorming and beyond: A user-centered design method. Mason, Elsevier, Inc.
