Cet article analyse dans une perspective historique les pratiques gestionnaires d’une association – l’ADAPEI du Rhône (1948-1963) – qui, portée initialement par une cause militante et politique (défendre les droits des personnes handicapées mentales), est devenue gestionnaire d’établissements spécialisés. La noblesse de la cause a d’abord réduit la gestion à une simple intendance technique. Le contexte favorable des Trente Glorieuses a ensuite orienté l’association vers une gestion domestique de distribution des ressources (1963-1980). L’arrivée d’une nouvelle génération de parents issus du monde industriel a modifié les pratiques gestionnaires, inspirées davantage de l’entreprise (1980-2002). Ces métamorphoses dessinent un rapport à la gestion plus complexe que ne le laissent sous-entendre les stéréotypes autour de la gestion associative.
This article uses an historical approach to analyse the transformation of managerial practices in a French non-profit organization (ADAPEI, in the Rhône). It draws on fifty years of records and interviews with former and current administrators and managers. At the end of the Second World War, a small group of Catholic, middle-class parents demanded new policies for mentally disabled persons. They created an association dedicated to help families care for their children. In 1963, the administrative board decided to transform this association into a managerial one, assuming responsibility for the administration of several institutions dedicated to the education and care of disabled persons. This “turning point” in the history of the association was not immediately identified with the development of managerial functions and methods. Economic constraints were minimal: public funds were available to ensure the growth of the association (one institution created per year). The association was administered by volunteers informally. Between 1980 and 2002, however, a new generation of administrators came to power. Most of them were top managers in big industrial firms and transferred corporate methods and rules into the association. The formerly informal style of management persists in the association alongside more professionalized administrative methods. The article suggests that current managerial practices reflect both the identity of the administrators (parents of disabled children) and the profound influence of corporate ideas and methods.
