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In the past decades, NGOs have assumed a greater role in processes of governance, that is in processes that affect the distribution of material and symbolic resources. Humanitarian relief NGOs, and human rights organizations are all committed to values that are universal, or global in ambition. So how do these organizations translate these commitments into specific activities and allocate resources to specific areas, and specific groups of beneficiaries? Based on in-depth interviews with managers in a diverse set of international humanitarian and human rights NGOs, this paper examines the organizational routines and mundane practices that shape how NGOs allocate resources. It discusses the role of 'projects' as a unit of work in humanitarian relief, and the incentives the pursuit of the good project creates for NGOs. It shows how organizational structures and themes direct resources in human rights NGOs and how a broad but still limited set of accepted practices shape what organizations do and don't do. It raises questions about political order on the global level based on attention to professional and organizational practices.

Monika Krause is Senior Lecturer, Department Sociology, Goldsmiths, University of London. She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from New York University and an MA in Political Sociology from the London School of Economics. Her research addresses comparative questions about forms of expertise, professions, organization and fields of practice.