Legitimacy Work

Convincing people that your organisation and its activities are legitimate is work. In organisation and management science, these efforts are referred to as 𝐋𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤. What does this work entail in the humanitarian sector?

Humanitarian organisations must

• Reflect current ideas and discussions (𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞) around positive social change in their image and actions. 

• Adhere to sectoral norms and guidelines (𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬) around positive social change and quality control.

• Present a credible value proposition to donors (𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐬) by delivering quality work in a cost effective manner. 

The problem humanitarians face is that the legitimacy requirements of discourse, institutions, and markets do not always align. They misalign, for example, on who should be responsible for quality control. This affects how humanitarian organisations conduct legitimacy work.

Legitimacy work can be 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞, reflecting genuine commitment and action. However, it can also be merely 𝐬𝐲𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜 and just focus on managing optics. When legitimacy requirements conflict, many humanitarian organisations turn to image management rather than substantive legitimacy work. This happens because it is impossible to commit genuinely to tasks that directly contradict one another, such as both retaining and transferring responsibility for quality control.

For a discussion of legitimacy work in the humanitarian sector, see https://lnkd.in/eTiAzfFR