Many nonprofit organizations lack systematic approaches to succession planning. The absence of a strategic succession plan can limit leaders' abilities to maintain organizational sustainability and fulfill the organization's mission. The purpose of this single-case study was to explore strategies nonprofit leaders used to develop succession plans. The conceptual framework for the study was the knowledge transfer theory. Participants included 3 nonprofit leaders from an educational organization in the southeastern United States. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and analysis of internal organizational documents and publicly available data. Using an inductive content analysis, 3 themes emerged: boards of directors were critical to the process of developing a strategic plan for succession; leadership transition, whether planned or unplanned, necessitated preparation; and leadership development was a valued practice that contributed to a succession planning strategy. The results of this study might contribute to positive social change by providing nonprofit leaders with succession strategies to recruit, retain, and prepare leaders to ensure organizational sustainability and mission attainment. Nonprofit educational leaders who develop succession planning strategies can enhance organizational continuity and develop competent volunteers to provide much-needed programs for the communities they serve.

Although nonprofit organization (NPO) leaders play crucial roles in society, financial distress and vulnerability are common for many NPO leaders, with some NPOs closing as a result of these conditions. The purpose of this single-case study was to explore the diversification strategies used by 10 leaders and senior staff of an NPO in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States through the conceptual lens of Markowitz's modern portfolio theory. Data were collected through in-depth semistructured interviews and analysis of organizational documents, internal archival data, social media, literature, and online databases. Through thematic analysis, 7 revenue diversification themes emerged: adding revenue streams; establishing an operating reserve; establishing positive financial performance; achieving financial stability, sustainability, organizational capacity, and organizational resilience; using transparency; achieving efficiency and organizational effectiveness; and using a marketing strategy. Additionally, 7 key themes emerged: documenting and implementing systematic processes, developing an approach to process improvement, implementing cross-department action plans, increasing transparency, reversing the adverse trend in forum participation, building a data-management system, and increasing individual and organizational capacity. These findings have implications for positive social change, in that they may offer NPO executives new insights and strategies to support revenue diversification, thereby helping them to reduce volatility in funding, decrease financial risk, avoid dependence on sole-source revenue, and identify opportunities to increase flexibility in support of organizational goals and objectives to increase services.

In 2007 nonprofits became eligible to apply for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) and the state-level Baldrige-based Texas Award for Performance Excellence (TAPE). There exists minimal research on quality management frameworks to guide performance excellence in nonprofits and there is a lack of understanding regarding the applicability and utility of the MBNQA and TAPE Criteria as a framework for performance excellence for nonprofit organizations. This study looks at how one nonprofit organization deployed the TAPE Criteria framework across the organization and the extent to which organizational learning resulted and was integrated across the organization. The qualitative case study utilized naturalistic inquiry methodology to chronicle situational themes and relationships that emerged during the organization's year-long process of preparing an application for the TAPE. The study took place in a natural setting and the researcher was immersed in the organization's experience as a participant-observer assisting with developing the application. Data collection methods included direct observation, interviews, and document analysis. The case study approach provided a context and perspective for other nonprofit entities seeking to assess and improve performance. The TAPE Criteria framework is a systematic and structured approach to improving performance excellence and its methodologies are repeatable and based on facts and data. Leaders recognized the value of assessing the organization's current condition in a holistic manner, yet they distinguished and used only those parts of the Criteria that they found meaningful and effective. Leadership viewed the TAPE Criteria in light of how it could support its mission success, rather than supplanting management practices that had historically achieved organizational goals that met or exceeded customer needs and expectations. The results of the study are relevant and may assist nonprofit executives and administrators in applying and utilizing Baldrige-based improvement methodologies. The information gleaned from the study will help administrators of the TAPE to improve the usefulness and functionality of the framework across all business arenas. TAPE administrators should benefit from the research as it provides information on how individuals experienced and learned the taxonomy of the framework.

In recent years, companies have been focused on improving organizational performance and the loyalty of customers to improve sustainability in increasingly complex markets. The Baldrige Performance Excellence framework, generally referred to as the Baldrige criteria, was created to guide professionals in achieving these goals including defining a set of excellence criteria and offering an award program to recognize high-performing organizations. The principles of excellence focus on understanding and working for the stakeholders, improving performance and quality management, and strategically driving continuous improvement. The framework can be used for organizational self-assessments; however, many organizations find it challenging to interpret and apply the criteria without prior knowledge of the framework and guiding principles. This is particularly true for small businesses, which are less formal, have less exposure to key terminology and concepts, and have limited resources. Although there is some research that focuses on successful application of the Baldrige criteria, this research is still exploratory and there is a need for empirical studies in this area. This research investigates the factors that affected the successful implementation of the Baldrige criteria by conducting an action research study to guide a small business in conducting the Baldrige Self-Assessment. This research consisted of a series of three surveys and online working sessions to both complete the Baldrige Self-Assessment, interpret the results, and evaluate the experiences of participants regarding the relative success of the self-assessment process as well as the factors that affected this process. The results of this study provide insights into strategies for ensuring successful application of this self-assessment process in small businesses. The findings show that unfamiliarity with key terminology and complexity of the questions were significant barriers to success. Further, the participants indicated that working as a team to complete the assessment facilitated the process due to real-time discussion of points of confusion. These results support the assertion that a version of the Baldrige Criteria specifically designed for small businesses is needed. Improving the accessibility of this framework will improve the chances of successful implementation bringing the potential benefits to more organizations.