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Research on Leadership and Effectiveness of Transnational NGOs

The Transnational NGO Initiative at The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs conducts a comprehensive research study analyzing the leadership and effectiveness of Transnational NGOs. The study covers various aspects such as motives, goals, accountability, and networking. Through in-depth interviews with TNGO leaders, the research aims to bridge the gap between academic literature and practitioners' perspectives. The findings shed light on how TNGOs conceptualize effectiveness and accountability, offering insights into their operational strategies and challenges.

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Research on Leadership and Effectiveness of Transnational NGOs

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  1. Leadership and Effectiveness of Transnational NGOs: Perspectives from cross-sectoral research Steven J. Lux Transnational NGO Initiative Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  2. Outline • Rationale for interview study • Design: sampling, protocol and interview process • Coding, data structure and data transformation • Preliminary findings TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  3. Rationale • A rapidly growing awareness of TNGOs is not matched by systematic and interdisciplinary research efforts; • In particular, we diagnose a dearth of large-N studies cutting across size, sectors, and financial capacity; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  4. Objectives • Create data in a cross-disciplinary context, using quantitative as well as qualitative tools; • Add the perspective of TNGO leadership on their role in global governance; • Develop a research program integrated with teaching and practitioner engagement; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  5. Design/sampling • In-depth interviews with leaders from 152 US-registered TNGOs; • Sample selection: 1. sector, 2. size, 3. financial health and capacity; • Selected from a population rated by Charity Navigator in 2005; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

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  9. Limitations of the sample • The claim of representativeness is limited to US-registered TNGOs, not global community of such orgs. • Charity Navigator provided a specific population, but was the only one containing financial ratings. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  10. Interview protocol • Changes in organizational goals and governance structures • Effectiveness and its assessment • Accountability • Funding as related to effectiveness and accountability • Communication, collaboration, networks and partnerships • Leadership characteristicsand preparation TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  11. Interview process • Response rate: 123 out of 177; in-sample replacements • Interviewees largely top leaders (81%); • Researcher visit headquarters; • Interviews lasted an average of 85 minutes; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  12. Limitations of the method/ coding • What measures did we take to increase the candor of TNGO leaders’ answers? • Confidentiality was guaranteed. • Interviewers assessed candor after the interview. • Most TNGO leaders exceeded the time commitment, indicating a strong interest in the results. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  13. Coding process • Professional transcriptions; • Atlas.ti software used to code interviews; • Development of codebook; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  14. Alignment TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  15. Emerging findings • Motives and goals • Effectiveness • Accountability • Leadership • Networking and partnerships TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  16. Bridging the gap A general conclusion: When we look across data in different areas of the interview protocol, one of the striking results is the consistent gap between the academic literature and practitioners’ perspectives. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  17. Motives • How do we best understand TNGOs? • Principled and interest-driven views compete in the current debates, in particular in IR. • Interviews show that TNGOs are not best understood as either principled or interest-driven actors. • Strategic pursuit of impact: TNGOs pursue principles within a dynamically constrained environment. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  18. Effectiveness • Leaders conceptualize effectiveness largely as goal attainment and evaluation -- outcome accountability • Stronger conceptualization of goal attainment at the program level than at the organizational level • Resource availability/growth, overhead minimization and stakeholder satisfaction are far less pervasive in the answers TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  19. Effectiveness: a gap • TNGOs monitor outputs closely but relegate outcome attribution to narrative process tracing or speculation (lack of rigor). • Definition of effectiveness as goal attainment contrasts sharply with the academic literature which has largely abandoned goal attainment for proxy measures, including reputation or resource acquisition. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  20. Defining Accountability • TNGO leaders primarily focus on three dimensions of accountability: financial management, mandate and transparency; • TNGO leaders are less likely to mention the following dimensions of accountability: responsiveness, evaluation, and participation; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  21. Benefits of Accountability • Service-delivery organizations emphasize growth as the main benefit of accountability; • Advocacy organizations emphasize reputational benefits; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  22. Accountability: a gap • TNGO leaders are satisfied with the level of their organization’s accountability • The three dimensions of accountability emphasized by TNGO leaders are least likely to lead to organizational learning. • TNGO leader perspectives confirm a gap between their current practice and ideas advanced by standard-based initiatives and the academic literature. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  23. Leadership • Leadership behavior in the face of constraints: • 57% of leaders ‘work within the system’, i.e. make incremental changes rather than challenge governance constraints head-on (‘constraint respecters’) • 11% prefer to ‘work behind the scenes’ • 13% challenge constraints head-on TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  24. Leadership • 19% have ability to either challenge directly or indirectly, depending on context; TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  25. Networking/partnerships: definition • Networks: informal, loose relationships among organizations, sub-units or individuals. Membership tends to be more homogenous. • Partnerships: more formal working or contractual relationships between institutions. Different types of expertise brought together. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  26. Networking/partnerships: motives and benefits • TNGOs join networks primarily to interact and share resources (information, expertise…). Networks help TNGOs raise their voice and may help in identifying sources of funding or potential partners. • TNGOs form partnerships primarily for joint implementation. Partnerships can attract donor support, improve effectiveness/efficiency, and increase transparency. TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  27. Networking/partnerships: answer samples • “a network expands your universe” (Interview No. 150) • “need to pool resources to actually be able to do this project; [we are] doing it jointly and splitting the budget” (Interview No. 27) TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  28. Networking/partnerships: challenges • Networks: lack of commitment, may involve wasting time and resources. • “We get tired because often the network is over time” (Interview No. 142) • Partnerships: inequality and (un)fair distribution of benefits. • “For an NGO getting one percent of the one percent of a fortune five-hundred company’s annual revenues, [how can you] call that a partnership?” (Interview No. 148) TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

  29. Future plans • Research collaboration • Data sharing • Practitioner engagement • Summer Institute • Education TNGO Initiative @ The Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs

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