Katie Misener -The University of Western Ontario
Français
Strategic relationships and partnerships have emerged in sport policy as a key mechanism of service delivery (McDonald, 2005). The concept of “enhanced interaction”, as a pillar in the Canadian Sport Policy, can be theoretically tied to relationship and network capacity, which has been shown to be a critical dimension of overall organizational capacity, impacting the ability of the organization to produce the outcomes it desires (Hall et al., 2003). Relationship and network capacity represents the ability of a nonprofit organization to draw on relationships with clients, members, funding agencies, partners, government, media, and corporations. It may be of particular interest to small, community-based nonprofits as they are likely to be operating with inadequate resources, are particularly vulnerable to a lack of staff competencies, and often struggle to deliver their missions (Garvey, 2006, Gumulka, Hay, & Lasby, 2006; Light, 2004). As small nonprofit organizations, community sport organizations (CSOs) provide recreational and competitive sport opportunities for children and adults in the community, generating physical and mental health benefits, social capital benefits, and economic returns (Bloom, Grant & Watt, 2005; Bowen, 2004; Doherty & Misener, 2008). However, the importance and complexity of relationship and network capacity in this context has not been previously examined.
Following Alexander et al.’s (2008) call for research which integrates three phases of relationships (formation, process and outcomes), this study explored relationship and network capacity in nonprofit CSOs through semi-structured interviews with Presidents of these organizations (N=20). Research shows that larger, well-resourced, more professionalized nonprofit organizations have substantial competitive advantages over smaller, mostly volunteer-operated nonprofits (Hall et al., 2005). However, this study revealed that by strengthening relationship and network capacity, smaller nonprofit organizations can acquire needed resources, increase program quality, improve operations, and develop a stronger presence in the community. Through generating a picture of the multiple, cross-sector relationships for CSOs, the current study contributes a greater understanding of the role and nature of relationships as a dimension of overall organizational capacity, in these important community organizations.
As important providers of sport opportunities in our communities, it is imperative to understand
the factors that influence the ability of community-based sport organizations to achieve their
missions and effectively carry out the mandate of current sport policy. Organizational capacity
has emerged in the nonprofit literature as a multidimensional framework for understanding the
various dimensions that together enable an organization to achieve its mission. My research
program seeks to develop a deeper understanding of the dynamics and implications of
organizational capacity in community sport organizations.
Through an instrumental case study methodology (Stake, 2003), the first phase of my research
program explored the nature of five capacity dimensions (Hall et al., 2003) as well as how the
various dimensions influence goal achievement in one CSO. These dimensions included
human resources capacity, financial capacity, relationship and network capacity, infrastructure
and process capacity, and planning and development capacity. The second and third phases of
the research program build on this work but are focused specifically on relationship and network
capacity in CSOs as strategic relationships and partnerships have emerged in sport policy as
the key mechanism of service delivery (McDonald, 2005). Through interviews with CSO
Presidents in one community, Phase 2 will explore the antecedents, processes and outcomes of
multiple dyadic relationships. The findings will compliment existing knowledge on partnerships
in sport and recreation (e.g., Cousens et al., 2006; Babiak, 2007). Using survey methodology,
Phase 3 will further examine the nature of relationship and network capacity identified in Phase
2 and its impact on CSO performance with a broader sample.
Studying the nature and management of relationships will increase our understanding of the
capacity of nonprofit community sport organizations to impact the Canadian sport community.
The mechanisms for strengthening organizational capacity in community sport organizations,
which will be identified through this research, will also provide insight for sport policy
development and related initiatives in the nonprofit sector.
SCRI 2007 Presentation Slides
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