The challenges and changes faced by the not for profit sector and its managers are many and diverse. Perhaps the most profound challenge has been the restructuring of public and not for profit sectors during the 1990s, which has generated substantial interest. The emphasis given to deficit reduction and the concomitant reductions in government funding for the not for profit sectors, during the past decade, has had significant impacts on these organizations.The purpose of this study is to examine how senior managers in the not for profit (NFP) sector perceive and interpret government and social changes. The senior managers accounts are reviewed in terms of how these decision makers in NFP organizations construct and communicate their understandings of social forces in the environment is the central focus of this study. An Institutional Theoretical framework is applied to analyze the senior managers accounts of their understandings.