Cross-sector social partnership case-based theory and research have long argued that nonprofits that engage in more integrative and enduring cross-sector partnerships should increase their organizational capacity. By increasing their capacity, nonprofits increase their ability to contribute to systemic change. The current research investigates this claim in a large-scale empirical research study. In particular, this study examines whether nonprofits that have a greater number of integrated cross-sector partnerships have greater capacities for financial management, strategic planning, external communication, board leadership, mission orientation, (...) and staff management than nonprofits that have other types of interorganizational relationships. Moreover, it examines whether the length of these partnerships is associated with better capacity. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis drawn from surveys of 452 nonprofit organizations suggests that cross-sector collaboration is not systematically related to increased capacity. However, the results suggest that more enduring relationships between government and nonprofit organizations that extend beyond funder–recipient relationships are related to greater strategic planning capacity. Implications for CSSP research are drawn from the results, especially those concerned with the outcomes of CSSPs. (shrink)

Growing research suggests social ventures (SVs) variably combine social and profit orientations in core organizational features, and this variation in hybridity leads to divergent organizational dynamics and outcomes. However, no comprehensive and precise measurement scale has emerged to capture the varying degrees of hybridity across SVs. To advance theory and empirical research, this study presents an instrument for assessing how organizational actors perceive the degree to which social and market logics are (a) compatible and (b) central to organizational functioning. An (...) inductive-confirmatory two-study approach ( Nstudy1 = 293, Nstudy2 = 315) validates a hybridity scale—composed of 6-item compatibility and 4-item centrality factors—for U.S. nonprofit organizations, benefit corporations, and social enterprises. Moreover, results reveal perceived compatibility is associated with SVs’ revenue structure, whereas centrality is related to their legal status. The development of this scale will facilitate large-scale quantitative research that systematically examines the varied nature, drivers, and implications of organizational hybridity. (shrink)