Abstract

The task of managing a multiprogram non-profit organization can be arduous. Such organizations must manage their program portfolios in order to maximize effectiveness. Programs should not be considered in isolation from one another. The program classification model presented here allows nonprofit managers to view their programs with a holistic perspective. There is a growing demand for accountability in a sophisticated donor community, motivated in part by the generally poor economic environment. This provides the impetus for the adoption of well-known business concepts so that nonprofit organizations may use their dwindling funds more effectively. Programs, like products, must not be considered in isolation since they often interact with one another. Administrators and board directors of nonprofit organizations will be faced with increasingly severe competition for time, money, and management skills as the nonprofit sector becomes more cost conscious. Dedication must be accompanied by performance results, idealism tempered with pragmatism.