The lack of analysis around our sector regarding mergers is alarming. Many people, especially funders, have accepted this premise that there are too many nonprofits and that they need to merge more. I imagine these folks raising their fists at the clouds from time to time, screaming, “Why can’t these gosh darn nonprofits just merge, dag-gummit!”

I am not opposed to mergers. Some nonprofits should definitely consider merging. What I have a problem with is the thoughtlessness behind this constant push, especially by funders and other people in power. Here are a few things we need to think about:

1. Nonprofits exist because of systemic failures: Stop blaming nonprofits for the fact that there are “too many” nonprofits. Yeah, there are lots of people, especially from the corporate sectors, who decide to found organizations to send used T-shirts to poor countries or whatever. But the reality is that most nonprofits exist because of failure of government and capitalism.

2. There are “too many” nonprofits because of crappy funding practices: Progressive funders chase after shiny new things they call “innovation,” abandoning existing organizations and programs that have proven to be effective.

3. We do not expect this of for-profits: For some reason, we’ve accepted that having multiples of different for-profits is not only OK, but necessary, going as far as having strict laws preventing monopolies.

4.“Innovation” requires different orgs trying different stuff: True innovation requires lots of different people trying different things, failing and learning and iterating.

5. People deserve choices in programs and services. The people we are supposed to be helping need to know that if one organization does not work for them, that they can go to a different one.

6. We often need MORE nonprofits led by Black, Indigenous, POC communities, not fewer: When you say “there are too many nonprofits,” be specific about what kind you are talking about. Many racialized and marginalized communities are underserved or poorly served by existing mainstream organizations. They need more options among organizations that are led by those communities in order to adequately meet needs.

7. Nonprofits can be more effective pushing from different angles: There is an assumption that one giant, “more efficient” organization that cuts down on overhead or whatever and thus would be more effective. Is that really true?

8. Mergers are often messy, expensive, and tense: They are expensive (often costing 100K or more), time-consuming (taking up to years), and create all sorts of tensions about board composition, leadership structures, operating values, who gets which parking spots, etc.

9. There are better ways for nonprofits to collaborate than mergers: Many of us believe that nonprofits should collaborate more effectively. But let’s not limit ourselves to mergers. RVC, for example, the organization I was recently the ED of, over the past few years implemented this Starfleet-like model where operation support partners’ back-office tasks like financial management, HR, payroll, legal compliance, etc. are handled so orgs can focus on programs and services. This model provides efficiency while allowing organizations the time and energy to actually innovate.

Read the full article about nonprofit mergers by Vu Le at Nonprofit AF.