Center for Nonprofit Management - Leadership and Governance

Executive Leadership and Board Governance

Privatizing Better: Representing Nonprofit Service Providers Contracting with the Government

by Peter Manzo, Former Executive Director, Center for Nonprofit Management

This article originally appeared in Clearinghouse Review Issue 35, pp. 666 - 673 (Jan.-Feb. 2002)

For all its flaws, government contracting of social services offers opportunities to improve services for vulnerable people. This view underlies much recent debate about the virtues of privatization. Government contracts also impose significant burden and risk on nonprofit entities. Public interest advocates and nonprofit leaders have common interests therefore in ensuring that nonprofit entities can deliver effective, responsive service while sustaining themselves as important community resources.