| Performance evaluation should be a key aspect of strategic management (Kanter & Summers, 1987), therefore, one of the primary goals of all organizations should be the development of practical evaluation mechanisms. This is especially true for nonprofit organizations as this sector continues to increase in size and importance in the market economy. However, determining how best to evaluate nonprofit performance and understanding the relationships between an organization's performance and the organizational characteristics that may influence that performance, are questions that continue to challenge researchers and practitioners.;The purpose of this research is to explore the influence of selected elements of organizational structure and the quality or comprehensiveness of an organization's mission statement on its performance. These are two separate streams of research that this study effectively combines, while extending the operationalization of performance beyond traditional financial measures, to include an assessment of how well the organization is accomplishing its mission. Mission plays an important role in organizational planning for all organizations, but is especially critical for nonprofits in defining the reason for their existence.;The study utilizes qualitative and quantitative data from nonprofits that provide child day care services in the East North Central Midwestern region of the United States, which includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin. Structural equation modeling is used to evaluate the strength of the direct and indirect relationships between four constructs representing organizational structure, mission statement content, mission accomplishment and financial performance.;The study found that the quality of an organization's mission statement as well as its age and board size, were positively associated with its financial viability. However, there was no evidence to support the existence of a relationship between age and board size and the quality of an organization's mission statement, or age and board size and the extent of an organization's reported mission accomplishment. The study also found a negative relationship between size and financial viability. Implications of these and other findings are discussed, as well as recommendations to improve the quality of performance reporting by nonprofit organizations. |
