Nonprofit Organizational Effectiveness: Contrasts Between Especially Effective and Less Effective Organizations Robert D. Herman, David O. Renz How do key stakeholders of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) judge the effectiveness of their organization? Are the judgments of stake- holders similar, and how are board effectiveness and the use of practitioner-identified correct management procedures related to judgments of effectiveness? This study focuses on a subset of espe- cially effective and less effective NPOs from a larger sample and finds that the especially effective have more effective boards (as judged by various stakeholder groups), have boards with higher social prestige, use more practitioner-identified correct manage- ment procedures, and use more change management strategies. Practical implications discussed include adopting more correct management procedures and change management strategies. T he question of how to understand and assess the effectiveness of charitable nonprofit organizations (NPOs) continues to chal- lenge practitioners and scholars alike. Is an NPO with rapidly growing revenues and an increasing surplus more effective than one NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT & LEADERSHIP, vol. 9, no. 1, Fall 1998 © Jossey-Bass Publishers 23 Note: This article is based on a paper presented at the annual conference of the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA), New York, November 1996. A grant from the Nonprofit Sector Research Fund, administered by the Aspen Institute, made the research possible. We appreciate the support of the board and officers of the fund, and we acknowl- edge the generous cooperation of the chief executives, board presidents, board members, staff, and funders who participated. We also thank Dennis Young and three anonymous reviewers for the helpful comments on an earlier draft.