The False Dichotomy of Money v Mission

In multiple of my education courses at Temple it has been suggested that some organizations are driven by their mission and others by fiscal concerns. Like much I've run up against in those classes to date, I find this to be a gross and counterproductive oversimplification. In truth, money is the means, mission the ends. Not-for-profit status notwithstanding, the mission will never be done if the money does not flow. That's not to say that organizations can't lose sight of their missions entirely and continue to endure -- they can and do -- but those most sincere and efficient in carrying out their missions are just as bottom-line focused as any.

The categorical imperative of for-profits to maximize their value to their owners grants a purity to profit seeking organizations that NFPs lack. We have neither owners nor profits. Nevertheless, there's no reason not to frame strategic, tactical and even operational decisions in terms of maximizing the value of the organization as a means to effect its mission. And there's no reason to think that such a frame would not require scrupulous, disciplined attention to spending, revenue and the bottom line.

Bless and keep guidestar.org for providing ready online access to the wealth of data in the form 990 informational tax return required of nonprofits. A clearer understanding of how and where your (or any) NFP is spending its money, and particularly the extent to which it's spending its money on its mission as opposed to administrative overhead, is a few clicks away.