Knowledge@ASB: Risk and Reward

An ambiguous relationship has evolved between the public and the third sector as increasingly not-for-profit organisations have been handed responsibility for delivering government services. Some not-for-profits may be at risk of "mission drift" and losing sight of their goals. While new policy directions in the National Compact with the third sector are designed to clarify and improve the collaboration, the emphasis must be on outcomes and not just rhetoric, insists Peter Shergold, head of the Centre for Social Impact.