The Audacity of Telling Us How to Read the Book (p. 9), After Purchase: I Assume Left to Right

In Forces for Good, Crutchfield and Grant state, “greatness has more to do with how nonprofits work outside the boundaries of their organization than how they manage their own internal operations” (p. 19). The authors endorse nonprofit collaboration and integration with business and government to address issues such as climate change, poverty, and health care. Without cross-sector interaction, we will be unsuited to address these convoluted dilemmas and those to come. Steve Chase adds that the continued blurring of institutional boundaries through public-private collaboration is necessary to catalyze critical changes (p. viii). This is intuitive; far-reaching problems affect us all, directly or indirectly, and we must adopt coordinated efforts as remedies. This should come as no surprise, at least after reading The Networked Nonprofit, given the importance of social media networking, openness, and adaptation.

The authors also submit, “if you were to study the existing nonprofit management literature, you’d be no closer to understanding how to achieve meaningful impact in this new fast-paced, global environment” (p. 4-5). In stressing the importance of concerted efforts and considerable change, the authors acknowledge the critical and rapid nature of the present day. New strategies are needed for a new world. More than ever, solidarity is indeed required for us to rise to the occasion. With the current potential of solving social ills, rather than employing “social Band-Aids” (p. 24) as incomplete relief for perpetual crises, we must be responsible in applying the most effective means to transform the world. Great change necessitates the impressive means of profound breakthroughs, such as those evidenced by technological progress.

In making transitions, the difficulty lies in breaking institutional norms and traditions. There is a natural force to grow and adapt, as new resources and a continual stream of new knowledge inundate us. Despite free access to a wealth of credible knowledge and with many advocating adaptation, a multitude of agencies and individuals are nonetheless resistant to change. Change must occur from within, whereas we must each internally accept the changing world and the need to be fully socially concerned. We must be flexible in thought and action, accepting that our institutions will continue to change, perhaps more quickly than we once thought.