Also, I suspect that such a pivot on an institutional scale is difficult to pull off. People often prioritize altruistic work because they’re passionate about a specific cause—maybe they were homeless in the past, or they were a cancer survivor, etc. That wouldn’t necessarily translate.
It has been done. March of Dimes was originally an anti-polio organization; after the polio vaccines basically solved their problem, they generalized...
If those resources were freed up, couldn’t a lot of homelessness charities pivot to some other problem? You’re not wishing their funders away.
Some things would be different, but a lot of the skills are the same (research, running organizations, running political campaigns, marketing, etc.).
They would need another problem to pivot to.
Also, I suspect that such a pivot on an institutional scale is difficult to pull off. People often prioritize altruistic work because they’re passionate about a specific cause—maybe they were homeless in the past, or they were a cancer survivor, etc. That wouldn’t necessarily translate.
It has been done. March of Dimes was originally an anti-polio organization; after the polio vaccines basically solved their problem, they generalized...
Thanks! I’ve been pointed to them by others as well; it’s a good example of an institution surviving the death of their problem.
I do think that the case underlines how important problems are for institutions, in a sort-of “exception that proves the rule” kind of way.