This work focuses on the comparison of the managerial systems of Ukrainian and Czech branches of international human rights organization Amnesty International. In theoretical part it describes types of government of nonprofit organizations, principles of their management, introduces analytic-normative model of the management of organization and external factors that can influence organization. Practical part if focused on the analysis of Amnesty International as a whole, its respective branches, application of the analytic-normative model for those branches, analysis of similarities and differences and identification of the causes of those differences. Results show the influence of organization's external environment on its management.

Unrelated business enterprises have been an appropriate way for nonprofit organizations to generate income since the first income tax was enacted into law. The Internal Revenue Act of 1950 clarified this opportunity and enacted the Unrelated Business Income Tax to ensure that fair competition existed between nonprofits and for profit organizations. Nonprofit organizations conducting unrelated business enterprises are faced with a dilemma: it is legal for them to conduct such enterprises but if they do so they face potential litigation from for profit business for unfair competition and/or potential loss of tax-exempt status for operating outside of their exempt function. This dissertation traces the history and theory of tax-exempt status, the history of unrelated business enterprises, and how several states, including Oregon, have addressed the issue. It then explains two major pieces of litigation in Oregon in the 1980's, Southern Oregon State College and YMCA of Columbia-Willamette, then discusses the history of the media attention and legislative/bureaucratic action in the same period. Current litigation and media attention is then discussed. The paper then discusses two theoretical frameworks, Agenda Building and Advocacy Coalition, as a means to analyze the data. Following is a discussion of how the issues of unrelated business enterprises and unfair business competition can be handled by nonprofits and the changing criteria for tax-exempt status in Oregon. The dissertation concludes with the changing criteria for tax-exempt status in Oregon and fundamental philosophical and political issues yet to be decided. Included are recommendations such as a periodic review of tax-exempt status of nonprofits, the need for nonprofits to continually review their mission and exempt purpose, the need for nonprofits to maintain their relationships with the community they serve, and how nonprofits need to develop a self-governing program before government develops one for them.

Financial accountability is a pressing issue in United States NPOs because there is a demand, by donors and the public they serve, to implement clear accountability practices. The purpose of this study was to explore and document the financial oversight and accountability policies and procedures that successful NPOs employ to maintain clear financial accountability practices. The theoretical framework underlining this qualitative phenomenological study was a combination of social construction theory and institutional rational choice theory. The research question was focused on understanding essential financial oversight and accountability policies and procedures that should be designed for NPOs to create and maintain financial accountability. Interview data were collected from 6 participants from 4 successful emerging organizations, less than 5 years in business, and 8 participants from organizations that have a longer history, more than 5 years in business. Data were coded using the basic NVivo software package and analyzed thematically. Findings regarding the tools needed to create and maintain vital accountability policies and procedures in NPOs were as follows; need for accountability, importance of appropriate disclosure, impact of dashboard tool, expense projection, financial manager, financial misappropriation reporting, oversight policies, revenue forecasts, board members and supportive culture. The potential impact of this qualitative study for social change is that the policies, practices, and procedures of successful NPOs were identified and documented for those old, new and emerging NPOs not using them. The critical finding of this study shows the need for continued research to bring positive social change through nonprofit financial accountability policy improvement.

Stakeholders are important to the financial sustainability of a nonprofit organization; however, heavy reliance on 1 stakeholder over another can place a nonprofit organization at financial risk. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies used by 3 senior leaders of a nonprofit organization in New York who have experience with stakeholder engagements efforts. The conceptual framework used for this study comprised general systems theory and transformational leadership theory. Data were collected using semistructured interviews, and review of organizational documents and online databases. Using thematic analysis, the 4 key themes that emerged from process and results strengths were leadership involvement in engaging stakeholders, persistent promotion of the organization's mission and vision, connection with the community, and workforce engagement activities. The implications of this study for positive social change include the potential to increase nonprofit leaders' understanding of practical approaches that may facilitate stakeholder engagement for improving financial sustainability, improve nonprofit leader–stakeholder relationships, and bolster philanthropic efforts to improve the economic stability of the nonprofit organization and the community.

Abstract not available

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Also available online.

This study examines the extent to which volunteer-run local land trusts in Ontario are governed in a manner that will allow them to protect valued ecosystems effectively in perpetuity. It also identifies needs and opportunities for building the capacities of land trusts as long term stewardship organizations. The primary academic contribution of this research is the identification of criteria for evaluating land trust governance and their ability to meet their conservation aims. The criteria are applied in a case study of the Niagara Land Trust, a local land trust in the process of incorporating. Specific recommendations are made to assist this organization to improve its operations. The principal findings of this research are that some local land trusts have attained a level of governance which will allow them to protect land in perpetuity, but some land trusts have not. The failure of some land trusts could result in donors and government questioning the movement as a whole. Generally, the main gaps in capacity centre on weaknesses in financial sustainability, training/managing of volunteers, record-keeping, baseline inventories and continued monitoring, and the problem of requiring people to have specific professional skills in largely volunteer organizations. The thesis concludes by offering specific suggestions to the Niagara Land Trust, the Ontario Land Trust Alliance and the Canadian Land Trust Alliance. Local land trusts have provided many communities with an attractive option for conserving land; strengthening the movement will ensure that this grassroots work can continue.

Understanding the composition and distribution of the revenue of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) is key to understanding NPOs themselves. This research uses revenue data for 87,127 charitable NPOs to draw three main conclusions. First, revenue structures of NPOs vary widely by subsector and organizational size, with many NPOs demonstrating revenue structures that might be considered uncharacteristic of the nonprofit sector. Second, despite the concerns of many nonprofit scholars, heavy dependence on either government funding or charitable contributions is atypical of NPOs. And third, nonprofit revenue is highly concentrated in relatively few NPOs. The description of revenue expands to examine the relationship between two important sources of revenue, charitable contributions and government subsidies. Nonprofit scholars have long theorized that government funding diminishes charitable giving. This research finds that the effect of subsidy on charity varies substantially among the nonprofit subsectors, but, contrary to widely accepted theory, these effects are more often positive than negative: More than half of government funding of the nonprofit subsectors appears to spur an increase in charitable giving, whereas only 6 percent of government funding is associated with decreased giving. This research suggests that effects of subsidy on charity are less likely due to the decisions of donors than to the decisions of NPOs themselves. These findings assuage some concerns about the future of the nonprofit sector but substantiate others. As government increasingly relies on NPOs to deliver government-funded services, it appears unlikely that NPOs will suffer decreases in charitable giving, and government funding may even enable NPOs to increase revenue from charitable giving. But marginal changes in charitable giving will not mitigate what many see as a distressing move away from reliance on charity toward generating fees for services and generally becoming more business-like. Whether these findings represent a nonprofit sector betraying its charitable roots, diluting its power to effect social change by "corporatizing," emphasizing service delivery at the expense of advocacy, or becoming more efficient, financially stable, and responsive to market demands remains a matter of debate, but debate better informed by the understanding of nonprofit revenue provided by this research.

Previous research in organizational theory, labor market economics, and nonprofit studies are applied to churches and their clergy leadership in advancing a theory of clergy executive compensation. The data for this study come from the end of year reports from approximately 800 local churches of the North Georgia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church for the years 2007-2008 and a survey administered in order to glean the personal characteristics of the clergy. The investigation employs a clergy compensation framework and finds that clergy salaries are influenced in part by personal characteristics, human capital, organizational elements, labor market factors, and clergy performance. The results regarding the role of credentialing in stratified labor markets have implications for policy. The present research adds to the nonprofit executive compensation literature by suggesting that denominational churches are analogous to nonprofit franchises and by empirically testing for "dual agency", labor market stratification, and managerial scope.