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OM Forum—Challenges and Strategies in Managing Nonprofit Operations: An Operations Management Perspective

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  • Gemma Berenguer

    (Krannert School of Management, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907)

  • Zuo-Jun (Max) Shen

    (Department of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720)

Abstract

The operations management (OM) community is paying increasing attention to the analysis of nonprofit operations. However, what is it about this type of operation that makes it particularly interesting to OM scholars? We address this question by studying the objectives, actors, and main activities of nonprofit operations and the most common challenges they face. In addition, we suggest tactical and operational strategies to address these challenges by considering works in the for-profit sector and in different applied areas. The ultimate goal of this paper is to inspire and stimulate OM researchers to develop significant theoretical and empirical models in this novel stream of literature.

Suggested Citation

  • Gemma Berenguer & Zuo-Jun (Max) Shen, 2020. "OM Forum—Challenges and Strategies in Managing Nonprofit Operations: An Operations Management Perspective," Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, INFORMS, vol. 22(5), pages 888-905, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ormsom:v:22:y:2020:i:5:p:888-905
    DOI: 10.1287/msom.2018.0758
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