Strategisches Management zweckbasierter Organisationen: Strategie und Umsetzung in öffentlichen und Nonprofit-Organisationen neu fokussiert

The current management literature assumes that nonprofit and public organizations can freely choose their fields of action in the strategy process. However, the practical reality looks different. In this thesis, the difference between scientific literature and practical experience was explored. In addition, it was investigated what the scientifically founded models and instruments of strategic management for nonprofits and public organizations in Switzerland must incorporate in order to yield a high benefit to practice.

A literature analysis showed that the legal framework for the strategic management of nonprofit and public organizations in countries with the common law legal system differs from those countries with a civil law legal system. In civil law countries, nonprofit and public organizations are based on a purpose that can hardly - if at all - be changed in the strategy process. Based on this insight, the new name Purpose-Based Organizations was developed for these organizations.

In order to be able to develop an optimal strategic management model with associated instruments for purpose-based organizations, qualitative interviews were conducted. On the one hand, the importance and application of strategic management was to be explored; on the other hand, the needs with regard to strategic management were to be assessed, as well. Furthermore, this qualitative survey was used to test a new methodological approach: In addition to the face-to-face interviews for data collection, qualitative data on the same topics were collected in writing via the Internet. No difference in the quality of the results between written and oral data collection could be established.

This empirical study showed that the theories and instruments of the scientific literature hardly play a role in practice. They are perceived as too complex and time-consuming. A model for the strategic management of purpose-based organizations must therefore be simple and easy to apply. Such a model of strategic management with associated instruments was subsequently developed. This work could not answer all open questions: There continues to be a great need for a simple instrument to a review both the impact and the success of the work of purpose-based organizations.