Exploring the effects of collaborations on member organizations: Washington county's welfare-to-work partnership

Through a case study, this article explores the question of whether and how actions taken by a collaborative alliance influence the strategic behavior of its nonprofit members. The article then assesses how well the existing strategy formulation models accommodate an environment of collaborative alliances. The study finds that this and other local partnerships increased the complexity of the nonprofits' decision-making environment; had amplifying and rippling effects on their strategic direction; and changed, to some degree, perceptions of managerial roles. Despite these effects, organization-level strategic planning did not take into account the actions and decisions of these partnerships. The article argues that traditional strategy formulation models often assume a more static and apolitical environment than is the case when collaborative alliances are a significant part of that environment.