The Politics of Partnerships: A Critical Examination of Nonprofit-Business Partnerships

Abstract

We are currently living in what Seitanidi calls the ‘‘partnership society’’. In this society, new relationships between governments, businesses and nongovernmental organisations are introduced as a new way to govern; partnerships have become the agents of social change. Based on an extensive literature study of partnerships, she particularly analyses partnerships between nonprofit organisations (NPOs) and businesses (BUSs), conceptualised as micro-associational domains in which new roles and responsibilities are negotiated through the participating organisations. The research examines the extent to which the positive outcomes delivered by a partnership relationship extend to the social domain and if indeed they are the result of combined efforts between the partners.