Introduction
A well thought-out, discussed, written, and shared mission can accomplish the role of guidance in an organization. Often quoted in textbooks on the issues of mission and mission statements, Yogi Berra, a famous American baseball player, is said to have stated: “If you do not know where you’re heading, you’re likely to end up somewhere else.” The mission can and should be the departure point of management and leadership in a nonprofit organization, especially because nonprofits do not have profit as a main aim. As Drucker suggested, “nonprofits need management even more than business does, precisely because they lack the discipline of the bottom line. The nonprofits are, of course, still dedicated to ‘doing good.’ But they also realize that good intentions are no substitute for organization and leadership, for accountability, performance, and results. Those require management and that, in turn, begins with the organization’s mission” (Drucker, 1989: 89).
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References/Further Readings
Anheier, H. K. (2005). Nonprofit organizations – Theory, management, policy. New York: Routledge.
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Drucker, P. (1973). Management: Tasks, responsibilities, practices. New York: Harper & Row.
Drucker, P. F. (1989). What business can learn from nonprofits. Harvard Business Review, July–August, 88–93.
Hudson, M. (1995). Managing without profit: The art of managing third-sector organisations. London: Penguin.
Kearns, K. P. (1996). Managing for accountability: Preserving the public trust in public and nonprofit organizations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
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Franco, R.C. (2010). Mission. In: Anheier, H.K., Toepler, S. (eds) International Encyclopedia of Civil Society. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-93996-4_124
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