Social Enterprise Case Studies

Conflicting agendas for the future of a youth agency

Having avoided self-scrutiny for most of its sixty year history, a youth agency is forced to take a hard look at its future when finances begin to decline. The executive director and the board president hold differing views on the appropriate course of action, and the reader is asked to decide which position is in the best interests of the organization.

Consulting to a nonprofit board: Peeling the onion

Outside consultants to governing boards are commonly asked to clarify the appropriate roles for the board, executive director, and staff--who does what and who should. The "problem," however, is rarely what it seems to be to participants. Understanding the complex environments in which boards do their work is key to effective consulting and to achieving successful outcomes for a board. In this case the reader is challenged to "see" the agency in its context with a variety of interpretive lenses. 

Board development and congregational sponsorship

The governing board of a shelter for homeless women and children is dominated by representatives of the founding congregations. As the condition for receiving a substantial grant, the board has been asked to curtail its involvement in operations and focus instead on planning, policy development, evaluation, and fundraising. The reader analyzes the influence of faith on member behavior and the board's developmental stage and assesses the impact of changing from sectarian to non-sectarian sponsorship.

Neighborhood agencies, businesses, and the city: Boston Against Drugs

Boston Against Drugs was a partnership among the city, business corporations, and neighborhood groups united in opposition to drug and alcohol abuse. In this case, the reader is asked to analyze BAD as a collaboration, paying particular attention to assessing the role of the corporate partners. Readers must make recommendations regarding future funding options necessary to keep BAD alive as well as administrative and governance changes necessary to strengthen BAD's operating effectiveness. 

Governing board oversight of donor dollars: Foundation for new era philanthropy

The exposure of the Foundation for New Era Philanthropy as a Ponzi scheme attracted wide press coverage in 1995. New Era promised nonprofit organizations that funds deposited with it would be matched in six months. In this case the reader is asked to evaluate the oversight of donor funds exercised by the governing board of Menno Haven, Inc., an operator of retirement communities that numbered among the Foundation's major beneficiaries. 

Hospital joint ventures and conflicts of interest

Although Mapletown's community hospital is operating in the black, it carries a substantial debt load and its future in the changing health care environment is uncertain. A physician's proposal to add an expensive high tech service brings to the surface conflicting perspectives about governing board strategies and actions that will best promote the community's welfare. 

A governing board considers closure: A dramatic narrative in three acts

In this case the reader must decide how the governing board of a floundering arts organization should respond to a motion for closure. The case illustrates the unique traits that founding executive directors often possess, the limitations of un-involved boards, the dangers of inert programs and policies, the need for transformational leadership in floundering organizations, and the factors that may influence a board to consider closure. The case is presented through a play-like narrative of three acts. 

To be or not to be? Or, is it nobler to care than to be a part of managed care?

Associated Youth Services (AYS) provides a variety of services to at-risk youth and their families. In recent years its management and board have responded to rapid cuts in state funding and to the introduction of "managed care" in the administration of state social service programs. Readers of this case critique a decision process of core strategic importance: whether to redesign the organization's mission and vision to reflect a basic paradigm change in the external environment. 

Authority dilemmas on a board in a multi-tiered governance structure

Nonprofit organizations often struggle with the never--ending discussion of board roles and responsibilities. Who does what, when, and who should? In the case of St. Aloysius Care Center, the problem of role responsibility was exacerbated by an organizational structure embracing three levels of authority. The distinctions and responsibility were never clear, not just structurally but politically. When the local board, consistent with its understanding of its authority, initiated actions to replace its president/CEO, it opened a Pandora's box. All three levels acted as if they were in charge. 

Hope Network: Where do we go from here?

A faith-based nonprofit organization is at a crossroads after learning that its founding CEO plans to retire. The board of directors must now determine what kind of leader to seek and what implications this process might have for the future of the organization. 

ABC Childcare "My hands are tied"

Elizabeth Green is the Executive Director of ABC Childcare, a financially burdened nonprofit childcare center loosely affiliated with a local YMCB in Central Massachusetts. The YMCB's efforts to centralize operations had been costlier than expected, resulting in a newly imposed salary freeze for all educators and administrators. Dissatisfaction among YMCB employees was smoldering, and teachers were increasingly tense. Elizabeth felt that without the ability to offer even the most modest of raises, she could not overcome her teachers' waning motivation. Furthermore, she became concerned about the longer-term implications. Could she and her associates develop a strategy to re-energize teachers?