Motives matter: The relation between motives and interpartner involvement in nonprofit–business partnerships

Abstract This paper explores what motivates nonprofit and business managers to engage in nonprofit‐business partnerships. We use a relational‐based lens to look at how the motives of nonprofit and business managers influence the intensity of interpartner involvement and commitment. Using survey data collected from senior managers involved with nonprofit‐business partnerships in the Netherlands, we find that the motive of joint problem solving is the primary motive for managers to engage in partnerships. Nonprofit managers are primarily motivated to acquire knowledge and financial resources, while business managers enter partnerships for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and image improvement reasons. Our quantitative findings also refine the dichotomy of instrumental and moral motives by introducing a second dimension: the expected impact of motives (from low to high). Evidence shows that the motives help determine the nature of the partnership: low‐social impact motives are associated with collaborations with a low degree of inter‐partner involvement, while high‐social impact motives lead to partnerships where there is a high degree of inter‐partner involvement.