Tizian Fritz | University of Basel (original) (raw)

Papers by Tizian Fritz

Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) as mission-driven organizations could profit from investing in sto... more Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) as mission-driven organizations could profit from investing in stocks diametrically opposed to their mission, as they serve as a perfect hedge. Earning more income from oil or tobacco companies when there is a greater need for ecological interventions or cancer research might help effectively fighting the cause. We show the flaw in this logic as in its optimal state, this strategy is at most a financial zero-sum game. However, as NPOs strive at creating net value by aiming at a most effective mission-accomplishment, socially responsible and impact investments may offer a better way of doing so. We present NPOs as an ideal type of a socially responsible and impact investor and give the corresponding formal economic reasoning. For mission-driven organizations only the combination of financial and mission-based goals allows for an effective, goal-oriented financial decision-making. The full application of this logic is what is broadly understood under the term of mission investing (MI). Based on a theoretic introduction, we present a formalized way of analyzing multidimensional tradeoffs in the case of NPOs being mission-driven investors. This formalization will supply NPOs with a tool that enables them to capture their investments' financial and mission-based impact and therefore the full benefit of responsible and impact-driven investments.

"Mission Investing" (MI) is an umbrella term for the practice of non-profit organizations (NPO) t... more "Mission Investing" (MI) is an umbrella term for the practice of non-profit organizations (NPO) to include their mission into their investment policy. Despite the growing popularity of this concept it still greatly lacks a scientific foundation. This article identifies key characteristics of MI by conducting a conceptual discussion. These characteristics include the incorporation of non-monetary goals into the investments process which are closely related to the organization's mission and values as well as the aim of achieving a more effective mission accomplishment through the unification of investment-and grantmaking policy. Further, in the framework of a meta-analysis, this article compares recently published data from across Europe with regard to the current state-of-art of MI. Among the three basic instruments of MI (screening, shareholder advocacy, and proactive mission investing), screening is used the most.

Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly

Nonprofit organizations (NPO) rely on a diverse mix of revenue sources. The existing literature m... more Nonprofit organizations (NPO) rely on a diverse mix of revenue sources. The existing literature mainly supports diversification among different revenue sources as desirable because it enables organizational stability. Using a new data set of over 200 Swiss fundraising charities, we prove the opposite to be true: organizations that displayed a higher degree of revenue concentration grew stronger between 2005 and 2012. We identify factors influencing the organization's capital and revenue structure. These factors can be divided into "nature" and "nurture" factors, which allows us to demonstrate which of them may be actively influenced by an organization's management and which stem from conditions of the organization that cannot be readily overcome by managerial interventions (such as age, size, and legal form). Revenue concentration is positively influenced both by an organization's geographical range of activity and dependence on its primary revenue source, and negatively influenced by board size and diversity.

Sustainability

In their pursuit of value creation, charitable foundations are mission- rather than profit-driven... more In their pursuit of value creation, charitable foundations are mission- rather than profit-driven. Therefore, foundations are also mission-driven investors. We explore the effects of mission-driven portfolio selection based on three model foundations, representing common fields of activity in Switzerland. Employing a moving block bootstrap approach, we simulate time series. Based on these model foundations and under the integration of qualitative company rating data, such as environmental, social, and governance-related characteristics (ESG), we find both negative and no significant financial effects of portfolio screening. However, screening portfolios substantially increases mission-driven portfolio quality. Additionally, screening reduces reputational risks and even leptokurtic return characteristics under special consideration of governance issues. After a joint analysis of financial and qualitative factors for portfolios with equity shares of 25% and 50%, we did find strong eno...

Sustainability, 2019

In their pursuit of value creation, charitable foundations are mission-rather than profit-driven.... more In their pursuit of value creation, charitable foundations are mission-rather than profit-driven. Therefore, foundations are also mission-driven investors. We explore the effects of mission-driven portfolio selection based on three model foundations, representing common fields of activity in Switzerland. Employing a moving block bootstrap approach, we simulate time series. Based on these model foundations and under the integration of qualitative company rating data, such as environmental, social, and governance-related characteristics (ESG), we find both negative and no significant financial effects of portfolio screening. However, screening portfolios substantially increases mission-driven portfolio quality. Additionally, screening reduces reputational risks and even leptokurtic return characteristics under special consideration of governance issues. After a joint analysis of financial and qualitative factors for portfolios with equity shares of 25% and 50%, we did find strong enough evidence to encourage foundations to implement negative and positive screening criteria. Additionally, we argue that without the integration of mission-based qualitative criteria, for instance, the involvement in business activities contradicting the foundation's mission, an adequate evaluation of investment opportunities' desirability is not feasible.

Journal of Finance and Risk Perspectives, Oct 2015

Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) strive at creating net value by aiming at a most effective mission... more Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) strive at creating net value by aiming at a most effective mission-accomplishment. We present NPOs as an ideal type of a socially responsible and impact investor and give the corresponding formal economic reasoning. Based on a theoretic introduction, we present a formalized way of analyzing multidimensional trade-offs in the case of NPOs being mission-driven investors.

ZögU, 2012

Stiftungen stehen heute stärker im Blickfeld der Öffentlichkeit. Einerseits nutzen Stiftungen die... more Stiftungen stehen heute stärker im Blickfeld der Öffentlichkeit. Einerseits nutzen Stiftungen dies, um ihre Tätigkeit kommunikativ zu unterstützen, adererseits werden Stiftungen auch kritischer betrachtet. Dieser Beitrag untersucht mit HIlfe theoretischer Gestaltungsansätze, wie Foundation Governance zur Stärkung von Reputation und Legitimation der Stiftung eingesetzt werden kann.

This report provides a first overview on the state of research funding by private foundations in ... more This report provides a first overview on the state of research funding by private foundations in Switzerland. It contains various information on number, financial donations and fields of activities.

“Mission Investing” (MI) is an umbrella term for the practice of non-profit organizations (NPO) t... more “Mission Investing” (MI) is an umbrella term for the practice of non-profit organizations (NPO) to include their mission into their investment policy. Despite the growing popularity of this concept it still greatly lacks a scientific foundation. This article identifies key characteris-tics of MI by conducting a conceptual discussion. These characteristics include the incorpo-ration of non-monetary goals into the investments process which are closely related to the organization’s mission and values as well as the aim of achieving a more effective mission accomplishment through the unification of investment- and grantmaking policy. Further, in the framework of a meta-analysis, this article compares recently published data from across Europe with regard to the current state-of-art of MI. Among the three basic instruments of MI (screening, shareholder advocacy, and proactive mission investing), screening is used the most.

Vor rund fünf Jahren wurde in Grossbritannien der weltweit erste Social Impact Bond (SIB) und da... more Vor rund fünf Jahren wurde in Grossbritannien der weltweit erste Social Impact Bond (SIB) und damit ein neuartiges, innovatives Finanzierungsinstrument lanciert. Dieses verbindet private und gemeinnützige Investoren, welche staatliche Sozialprojekte vorfinanzieren und abhängig vom Projekterfolg entschädigt werden. Dabei wird die soziale Intervention von einem privaten Dienstleister durchgeführt. Ende 2014 hat das Sozialamt des Kantons Bern den ersten SIB der Schweiz ausgeschrieben. Aus diesem Anlass werden im Rahmen dieser Publikation zentrale Fragen zur Definition, Funktionsweise und Evaluation dieses „pay for success“ Kontraktes beantwortet. Dabei analysiert dieser Band ebenfalls die Logik des SIB im Kontext des gemeinnützigen Sektors und diskutiert aktuelle Herausforderungen und Trends.

Drafts by Tizian Fritz

Nonprofit organizations (NPO) rely on a diverse mix of revenue sources. The existing literature m... more Nonprofit organizations (NPO) rely on a diverse mix of revenue sources. The existing literature mainly supports diversification among different revenue sources as desirable because it enables organizational stability. Using a new data set of over 200 Swiss fundraising charities, we prove the opposite to be true: organizations that displayed a higher degree of revenue concentration grew stronger between 2005 and 2012. We identify factors influencing the organization’s capital and revenue structure. These factors can be divided into “nature” and “nurture” factors, which allows us to demonstrate which of them may be actively influenced by an organization’s management and which stem from conditions of the organization that cannot be readily overcome by managerial interventions (such as age, size, and legal form). Revenue concentration is positively influenced by both an organization’s geographical range of activity and consistency in its primary revenue source and negatively influenced by board size and diversity.

Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly

Sustainability

Sustainability, 2019

Journal of Finance and Risk Perspectives, Oct 2015

ZögU, 2012

Nonprofit organizations (NPO) rely on a diverse mix of revenue sources. The existing literature m... more Nonprofit organizations (NPO) rely on a diverse mix of revenue sources. The existing literature mainly supports diversification among different revenue sources as desirable because it enables organizational stability. Using a new data set of over 200 Swiss fundraising charities, we prove the opposite to be true: organizations that displayed a higher degree of revenue concentration grew stronger between 2005 and 2012. We identify factors influencing the organization’s capital and revenue structure. These factors can be divided into “nature” and “nurture” factors, which allows us to demonstrate which of them may be actively influenced by an organization’s management and which stem from conditions of the organization that cannot be readily overcome by managerial interventions (such as age, size, and legal form). Revenue concentration is positively influenced by both an organization’s geographical range of activity and consistency in its primary revenue source and negatively influenced by board size and diversity.