Strategic Orientation in the Nonprofit Arts - A Stakeholder Approach

Management studies in nonprofit arts have been a stepchild of business research. Strategic marketing issues involved in managing nonprofit arts organizations have received limited attention. In the hope to fill in some of this gap, this research explores the relationship between market orientation and organizational performance from a multiple stakeholder perspective. Inspired by the view that nonprofit organizations deliver services that satisfy individual and societal needs, this research sets out to investigate the implications of stakeholder concept on strategic management in the US nonprofit performing arts context. A key postulate central to the argument is that strategic orientation in the nonprofit arts setting is inherent in a stakeholder environment. An organizations sustainability significantly depends on its capability to align with stakeholders interests and to adapt its strategic behaviors in the same regard.