Management Impact on Performance in Public, Nonprofit, and For-Profit Organizations: Evidence from U.S. Nursing Homes

Abstract

While numerous studies support the notion that management matters for performance, the varying nature of its impact across the public, nonprofit, and for-profit sectors remains underexplored in the literature. This article examines how management affects performance differently across these sectors by focusing on tangible management practices such as internal management, the exploitation of new opportunities, and strategies for buffering environmental influences. Using surveys from more than 1,000 top administrators in U.S. nursing homes, along with standardized archival performance data, this study finds that managerial priorities and the effect of management on performance vary significantly across sectors. While all three tangible management practices have a greater effect in for-profit than in public facilities, networking with political actors can enhance the comparative advantages of buffering in the public sector. This study contributes to the public management literature by advancing our understanding of the heterogeneity of managerial impacts on performance.