Technology meets nonprofits
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Today’s tech office reality is a melange of all current workforce buzzphrases – great resignation, great reset, great reshuffle – with more descriptors on the horizon. More and more prospective technically-minded employees are not only reaching for the stars but walking away with them.
For many, new opportunities involve diving headfirst into new-to-them industries. With new employment acclimation comes excitement for the unknown, expanding comfort zones (safe spaces even!) and, at times, jarring new realities on marked experiential differences across industries.
What you’ve experienced for years in your current industry may be wildly different in your new environment.
What about when that new industry is not-for-profit?
Vendors, vendors everywhere, but not a partner to find
If serving the nonprofit space checks all your personal and professional boxes, be prepared.
While notoriously underfunded-to-financially-thrifty, nonprofit businesses are the epitome of ‘champagne tastes on a beer budget’, or rather, in dire need of best tech strategy to deliver highest value.
Every penny not spent on technology can be spent on the mission critical work that delivers support, art, education, healthcare, access and more to our nation.
Those that jump out of corporate or higher education will be surprised to find there are fewer technology partners beating down the door. And at a time when strong vendor partnerships are more important than ever. A routine review by fresh eyes, a reminder of new practices and capabilities, even simply reenforcing that well-worn strategic plan aiming to stay modern, scalable and sustainable truly means something in businesses that are driven to serve others in the most meaningful ways.
There are so many rules, regulations and laws surrounding how the not-for-profit space spends and receives money. If you can’t find a strong tech partner educated on the nuances of serving this industry, it’s worth the investment to find one that is close enough and invest some time in them, getting them up to speed.
Additional effort, yes. Worthwhile, beyond. Can tech partners out there do better for nonprofits? Absolutely.
And then there are the basics.
Software access and cost models
Most of the lesser-known, non-governnment-funded nonprofit businesses don’t have big budgets. But it’s often these services that provide life-altering and foundation-building experiences within our communities. Access to art, child development interactions, free resources for pre-education, hands-on activities – all of these offerings compliment and reenforce our future leaders and customers.
Yes. A handful of software companies not only provide affordable options for their products, they have intentionally developed entire organizations geared toward supporting the not-for-profit industry. A few, Salesforce for example, take it even further by pre-developing relationships with integration partners who deliver services at a more affordable rate for non-profit customers.
Unfortunately, this support model has gone terribly wrong for a few industry tech giants.
Several large technology companies push their non-higher-education non-profit customers to a third-party that provides licensing and hardware at a deep discount. However, upon review, the service is shockingly subpar. The business model is bargain store -esque – you get what you get until it’s gone and you best be happy about it. In addition, should you acquire what you need, there’s no licensing or administrative management interface provided. Bargain basement, no frills service.
It’s as if a handful of licenses or laptops, while discounted, are thrown out the window with no administration panel for organization.
Of course the pricing accommodation is appreciated, but the experience and service is wildly different than what others are receiving for the same product, from the same company.
Equity – or at a minimum, feigned equity – would be preferred.
Finding peers
Technology workers thrive on collaborating across all the lines. Innovation and excellence occur via interactivity and continuous improvement.
In the for profit space, industry conferences and fancy tech gatherings are in abundance. In higher education, there are large annual conferences like Educause and smaller, system-specific gatherings. Stepping out of either results in dramatic industry change and an unexpected melancholy over those deep, baked-in relationships. “Where are my people?” is often asked. Simply put, each new nonprofit tech leader must hunt and gather their own.
And given the additional work that is often required in the industry to find best pricing, develop coordination of all software and systems, hunt down tech partners – there’s simply not enough time find peers. And when they are uncovered, those peers are bogged down by all of the above. Excessive time, coupled with less resources, must be spent coordinating what comes simply delivered in the for profit industry.
Why colleges and not arts?
While education is predominantly a nonprofit industry, vendors still flock to schools and colleges to offer support. So wait. Why do many other flavors of nonprofit experience less than what higher education experiences?
The images of nonprofit support by the tech industry are riveting, the marketing extensive and the lip service loud. Higher education is largely the bragging spot for ‘giving back’ in the tech industry. The question must be asked, “Why not the rest of us?”
The answer? Unclear. However, when answered, ideally it will be something beyond higher amounts of state and federal funding and the fact that higher ed has instant access to tomorrow’s consumers.
All of the nonprofit building blocks should be important, including (especially?) those with less access to funding.
Leading through the service gap
So how do we persist in the nonprofit space that exists beyond college campuses? It’s just what we do.
Tech experts tend to be helpers, a creative bunch and, with creativity, comes empathy and service-mindedness. At a time where opportunities abound for tech talent, choices can involve serious innovation and stroke that inner higher meaning id.
Interested in being a part of the solution? Being the change you want to see in the world? The nonprofit space supports the things that deeply matter. The tech challenges and slights are minimal in comparison to the possible outcomes. Don’t shy away from the challenge, lean in.
Technology providers and industry giants? Shine a light on what is made available to those that carry our loved ones through difficult diseases and end of life, that provide free educational experiences to our nation’s at-risk toddlers, that provide access to everything and for all. These are the critically vital outlets that develop, nurture and supplement our population prior to and throughout the education, leadership and contribution stages.
Nonprofits are the invisible life partners.
At the end of the day, solidifying tech partnerships, driving down pricing models and developing peer opportunities within the non-profit industry may end up setting the tone to how these lower-budget, higher-value entities serve and grow more – this is the important work!
