A Foucauldian Approach to Founder’s Influence in a Non-Profit Organization

Founder’s influence has been largely understudied in non-profit organizations (NPOs) both in terms of research and the organization itself (Ogbonna and Harris, 2001, Stevens, 2003). From, a historical perspective, the work of Foucault provides a lens for viewing such organizations in that it creates a pathway for understanding their development. In this paper, the Foucauldian framework incorporates the concepts of archaeological and genealogical underpinnings within a power and knowledge framework to explain the formation of one NPO, the Australian Girl Guides and the influence of its architect and founder Robert Baden-Powell.