Innovating from the Inside Out? A Scoping Study Informing Organizational Innovation for Social Innovation

Abstract

To make a sustained social impact in changing contexts, nonprofit organizations (NPO) must innovate their organizational practices, processes, and structures. These innovations can enhance their social innovation capacity. This scoping study synthesized key elements of the capacity to engage in social innovation. Four databases were scanned, and 110 peer-reviewed studies were selected for content analysis, and thematic analysis. The findings show how internal factors, such as leadership, procedures, structures, values, and organizational culture, influence organizational innovation in NPOs and how inclusive processes are important for innovating. This study informs which factors to address when conducting organizational innovation, and it shows how organizational innovation has been conducted. By engaging in organizational innovation, NPOs can enhance social innovation capacity. However, more research is needed–especially in non-Western contexts–on the complex efforts and dynamics related to conducting innovations at the organizational level and their significance for NPO performance and long-term viability.