Strategic management in nonprofit art organizations: An analysis of current practice

This thesis investigates whether it is possible to directly apply a generic private strategic management process to nonprofit art organizations. It explores differences between nonprofit art and private organizations which might need to be considered part of the strategic management process. Five Washington D.C. based nonprofit art organizations, that differed in size and mission, were selected for a survey. From the survey, it was determined that strategic management in these organizations was a fairly new managerial technique, and that implementation seemed to be independent of mission and size. The surveyed organizations did not utilize the generic private sector strategic management process, but seemed to adapt a process to suit their needs. The organizations used both qualitative and quantitative performance measures. It is recommended that both external and internal constituents' views be included in the strategic management process.