Twenty-second International Conference on Knowledge, Culture, and Change in Organizations

Abstract

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has put the finances of many third sector organisations to the brink. Volunteer numbers have decreased creating capacity issues and concern about long-term volunteer retention. Staffing had also to adapt to new ways of working whilst facing additional pressures including isolation, anxiety and personal impacts of the pandemic. More than half of charities taking part in the Covid-19 Voluntary Sector Impact Barometer observed an increasing demand for their services during the last two quarters of 2020 calling for even further operational change and adaptation. Covid-19 has also accelerated digital transformation in the sector, with charities moving existing face-to-face services online and funders supplying local charities with Zoom licences. In light of the challenges Covid-19 is posing to third sector organisations in the UK and elsewhere our project explores the extent to which charities and NGOs have adapted their accounting and accountability practices to navigate the ongoing health crisis. This research project addresses the following research questions: (1) what hurdles third sector organisations have experienced during the ongoing Covid-19 crisis; (2) how third sector organisations have dealt with such hurdles while pursuing their mission. Our project will pay particular attention to the extent to which financial and accountability practices are implicated in building resilience (or lack thereof) in face of the current health crisis. Interviews will be conducted with those who could shed light to how organizations have been affected by and are responding to the Covid19 pandemic, what strategies are adopted.