THE MYTH OF NONPROFIT UNIQUENESS

Abstract The author, Founder and CEO of Altruist Partners, a global social impact advisory firm, describes how the thinking and communication of nonprofit executives and others is often flawed. He is a self‐described advocate and supporter of the sector, and describes the myths surrounding nonprofits in order to foster better understanding of the sector. He notes areas where nonprofits are indeed different, such as in ownership structure and taxation, but also writes that “… organizational best practices around planning, execution, finance, culture, team building, compensation, governance, data, technology, marketing, branding, continuous improvement, etc., are as essential to nonprofits as they are to any other type of organization that brings together teams of people to earn and spend money to accomplish a goal.” He relates his teaching experience regarding nonprofits, and believes that more sophisticated networks of students and alumni are necessary to strengthen this sector. He concludes that “in this era of historic growth of inequality and rapid dismantling of the social safety net, the burden on nonprofits to provide services and solutions will only grow. It becomes an ever more urgent matter to also dismantle the cultural and practice barriers preventing nonprofit leaders from fulfilling their organization’s full promise.”