Information Technology and the Voluntary Sector Workplace

Abstract

There is little debate over whether technological change affects work processes and tasks. Yet, exactly how this happens is not at all clear. This study asks the question: How have information technologies changed the nature and distribution of work and workplace relationships in voluntary sector organizations? The authors conducted in-depth, semistructured interviews with 23 respondents in three nonprofit agencies in the capital region of New York State that had an extensive history of involvement in contracting relationships with multiple government bureaucracies. The results indicate that the autonomy and flexibility associated with much of the work performed by the nonprofit labor force influence how information technology affects workplace processes and relationships. Employees with widely varying backgrounds fill newly defined IT jobs. Job satisfaction, workload, and the distribution of power have been altered in a number of complex ways. Responses regarding technology and the relationship between nonprofits and government are also explored.