Below is a initial report on fusing technology into the work of
non-profit organizations. Follow the url to provide feedback or to
participate in the project further.
kelly
URL: http://www.nsnt.org/prelimreport.html
A BLUEPRINT FOR INFUSING TECHNOLOGY
INTO THE NONPROFIT SECTOR
A Preliminary Report from the
National Strategy for Nonprofit Technology
April 1999
_________________________________________________________________
National Strategy for Nonprofit Technology
Planning Partners
Daniel Ben-Horin CompuMentor (San Francisco, CA)
China Brotsky The Tides Center (San Francisco, CA)
Richard Civille Center for Civic Networking (Washington, DC)
Gavin Clabaugh C. S. Mott Foundation (Flint, MI)
Todd Cohen Philanthropy News Network (Raleigh, NC)
Matt Edes-Pierotti Rockefeller Brothers Fund (New York, NY)
Joan Fanning NPower (Seattle, WA)
Andrew Goldfarb Independent Consultant (San Francisco, CA)
Tim Greyhavens Wilburforce Foundation (Seattle, WA)
Paul Hagen Forrester Research (Boston, MA)
MaryAnn Holohean Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation (Washington, DC)
Barbara Kibbe David and Lucile Packard Foundation (Menlo Park, CA)
Barbara Link GuideStar (Washington, DC)
Marshall Mayer Technology Project (Helena, MT)
Jane Meseck Yeager Microsoft (Redmond, WA)
Peter Miller Community Technology Centers Network (Boston, MA)
Sean O'Brien W. Alton Jones Foundation (Charlottesville, VA)
Janel Radtke Radiant Communications (New York, NY))
Deborah Strauss Information Technology Resource Center (Chicago, IL)
Rob Stuart Rockefeller Technology Project (New York; Philadelphia, PA)
Chris Sullivan Minnesota Association of Non-Profits (Minneapolis, MN)
Dale Wiehoff Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (Minneapolis,
MN)
Richard Zorza Fund for the City of New York (New York, NY)
Fred Silverman Planning Consultant (San Francisco, CA)
(Institutional names are for identification purposes only.)
Support for the planning phase of the NSNT was generously provided by
Microsoft Corporation, the Surdna Foundation, the W. Alton Jones
Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Rockefeller
Family Fund, and the Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation.
_________________________________________________________________
I. A Vision of a Transformed Nonprofit Sector
The National Strategy for Nonprofit Technology (NSNT) is a growing
leadership network of funders, technology assistance providers, and
nonprofit staff members working together to analyze the technology
needs of the nonprofit sector and to develop a blueprint for how it
can use technology more effectively and thoroughly. After an intensive
year of research and consultation, the Planning Partners of the NSNT
are convinced of the urgent need for a breakthrough strategy to enable
nonprofits of the nation to use technology to enhance their vision,
their effectiveness, and their mission. This report describes what we
have learned and offers a concrete principles-driven strategy to reach
these goals.
As this report is titled, this is a preliminary report from the NSNT.
It outlines the key concepts and guidelines for what needs to happen
in order for nonprofits to access and use technology more effectively.
The Planning Partners arrived at these conclusions based on their own
experience working on these issues from various perspectives, research
done in local communities on technology use and support within
nonprofits, and lengthy deliberations by the Planning Partners and
others who currently make up the NSNT network.
The final report will contain background information on each of the
key sections contained in this version, including the results of
interviews with nonprofit technology assistance providers, information
on the organizations we want to enlist in implementing this plan, and
case studies of successful nonprofit uses of technology.
What We've Learned
Our research - along with research undertaken by others - has shown
that most nonprofits are hesitant to use technology and are
ill-informed about the impact it could have on their work, that
funders are reluctant to invest in efforts that seem unrelated to
program delivery, and that the technology assistance providers are
ill-equipped to provide the kind of support necessary to transform the
nonprofit sector's use of technology. Also, research indicates that
there are disparities in nonprofits' access to and use of technology -
namely, that many nonprofits in low-income communities and in
communities of color are underserved with respect to technology
acquisition and use. Overall, the fundamental problems causing this
situation are lack of knowledge, fragmentation, turf protection,
inadequate investment, and lack of skills.
The year has also identified important opportunities to improve
efficiency and fundamentally restructure how nonprofits, both
individually and collectively, do their work. Without this
restructuring, nonprofits run the risk of becoming marginalized. With
such restructuring, nonprofits can be positioned to continue to bring
to the whole economy - electronic and non-electronic - the values of
cooperation and caring so often neglected today.
While our original commitment was to analyze and map needs and
opportunities, this process has taught us that effecting a solution
requires a fundamental breakthrough that represents a collective
change in behavior for the entire sector. We believe that it is not a
matter of more money, a new organization, or yet another report.
We need a "big bang" to change fundamental assumptions about how the
sector moves forward - a new way of thinking and of working together
that shatters old assumptions and creates a new sense of possibility.
This "big bang" must work to provide a radical increase in resources
and effectiveness for each of the triad of partnership groups involved
in this effort - funders, nonprofits, and technology assistance
providers.
Using the Tools of Change
What would a transformed sector look like? Imagine this: Every staff
member at every nonprofit organization and foundation uses computers
and the Internet as easily as pen and paper, the telephone, or a fax
machine. More importantly, they understand technology's potential -
having participated in making technology an integral part of their
agency's organizational plan - and are excited to test its limits to
advance their group's mission. Everyone knows how to use e-mail and to
do research on the Internet; access client databases; and get reports
from the organization's contact database about donor history, advocacy
actions, information sent and received, and individuals' particular
interests in a program or position on an issue. Staff coordinate
strategic planning and day-to-day activities through an on-line
calendar while participating in videoconferences with colleagues
around the state from their desk. All systems - phone, fax, computer,
copying machines - are streamlined and work together for maximum
efficiency. When a problem arises, help is on call.
Often, a team gets together to brainstorm what's needed and what's
possible, given challenges the organization is facing. The expertise
needed to interpret the problem and implement a solution using
appropriate and cost-effective technology is affordable and available.
At the same time, this participatory problem-solving generates ideas
for technology experts to invent software and systems to address that
need while making the solution available to the rest of the sector at
a fair rate of exchange. By making the technology solution affordable
for everyone - and easy to adapt to others' specific needs - the
sector's capacity to educate, advocate, and serve grows exponentially.
Everyone who provides technology assistance to the sector not only
shares what it is they do or build, but also expands upon and
re-engineers each other's ideas and products. Diverse approaches to
providing assistance are integrated so that each delivery method -
whether a circuit rider, a technology center, volunteer problem
solver, or corporate mentor - builds off the efforts and successes of
each other. Synergy catalyzes innovation while commitment to the
sector makes anything possible.
Principles That Make It Work
We believe that this vision will come about only when a national
network of funders, providers, and nonprofits work within a framework
under which they commit to four specific principles that encourage
people to think and operate in new ways. These four principles are: 1)
Open Systems, 2) Fair Exchange, 3) Technology Transparency, and 4)
Fair Compensation. These are the building blocks for creating a new
way of doing business, without which the sector is in danger of taking
small, tentative steps that result in only incremental change.
1) The principle of Open Systems means that projects - not just
software - are designed from the first instant so that they can be
shared and cloned as easily as possible, and that, as with the
Internet, the clones themselves can be cloned ad infinitum. It is a
system that encourages the development of new tools and ways to share
them, with the underlying assumption that no one entity owns them.
2) The principle of Fair Exchange - of resources, ideas, and
intellectual assets - refers to the creation of an environment in
which people and organizations that have these assets will be
motivated to share them and receive appropriate compensation,
including barter and other value exchange systems.
3) Nonprofits will make the most productive and innovative use of
technology only when it becomes integrated into the way they think,
work, and communicate - in other words, when it becomes transparent.
This is the meaning of the principle of Technology Transparency. It
also means that learning and open evaluation will be ongoing
activities at nonprofits, in order to guarantee the high quality of
work that makes leveraging and cloning worthwhile.
4) Technological know-how will flourish in an environment in which
people and organizations who have it are compensated fairly and
integrated into the life of the nonprofit organizations they serve.
That is the meaning of the principle of Fair Compensation.
We believe if all players commit to these principles - and to working
with those who commit to the principles - nonprofits will find the
vision to use technology well, funders will have the confidence to
support such work, and technology assistance providers will be more
effective.
The network and these principles are already being tested, in the
development of a national network of technology assistance groups,
including NPower, a Seattle-based technology center for nonprofits;
Technology Works, a new initiative in Washington, DC; and a network of
over 40 circuit riders who travel around the country to assist
nonprofits with technology.
Opportunities To Get Involved
The work of the NSNT and the network that is growing out of it are
structured so that new players can join the network at any time.
People interested in learning more about the NSNT or with a
willingness to commit to the principles can start by going to the NSNT
web site (http://www.nsnt.org
).
For the funding community
, the network is an opportunity to obtain quality and leverage in
their investments. By supporting groups that are members of the
network - and that in turn receive support from providers that are
network members - funders will have the assurance that the technology
efforts they support will be effectively used, widely shared, and
easily replicated.
For nonprofits
, the network provides a guarantee of quality in their technology,
since they will have the opportunity to learn from other groups that
are using technology to support and enhance their missions. By using
providers committed to transparency and sharing, they will receive
essential help while minimizing the risks they face. Nonprofits will
also have access to the tools developed by the NSNT - including a
means of measuring their technology capacity against a set of
benchmarks. Moreover, involvement with the network will attract funder
interest, since projects will be developed and implemented within a
system that encourages ongoing evaluation, sharing, and support.
For technology assistance providers,
the network will expand their customer pool, ensure that their work
reaches a far larger audience, provide connections to a larger
movement, and build in opportunities for them to learn from each other
and build on each other's work.
Expansion Without Limits
Since a key outcome is scalability of nonprofit technology efforts,
this requires that the network be structured so that it can expand
without limit. In its next phase, funders, providers, and nonprofits
will start the process of joining and engaging the network at a web
site - itself an unlimited and highly scaleable concept. They will
commit on-line to the principles and to ongoing reporting of their
work to the web site.
Thus, when an organization seeks to find a network member for a
partnership, or to review the work of a member for a potential
partnership, they will be able to go to the web site, which will act
as a match-making service. Fair exchange requires that information
about the member be comprehensive and that the products of the work be
viewable by all members. The site will include links to the partners
with which that member has already collaborated so that a dialogue
between organizations trying to solve the same problem can be
established. This will in turn increase the knowledge of all as to
what works and what doesn't.
This web of links will create a system by which nonprofits can review
the records of providers or connect to each other to share information
and resources, and funders can review the records of providers and
nonprofits. This fair exchange under an open system environment -
critical to the effectiveness of the network - is significant, but the
rewards in terms of access to resources and enhancement of faith in
these resources will be great.
In the long term, the network will create a number of additional
projects aimed at strengthening the technological capacity of the
nonprofit sector. These are discussed later in this report. Each will
be guided by the principles, each will build on all the others, and
together they will help to produce a "big bang" that will transform
the sector by creating a sense of visionary potential, by attracting
dramatically more resources, and by guaranteeing the quality necessary
to fueling this transformation.
II. A Call for Change
In the following section, the Planning Partners of the NSNT propose
changes that need to occur within each of the primary constituencies -
nonprofits, technology assistance providers, and funders - in order
for the nonprofit sector to use technology more effectively. In
Section III, a list of initiatives that begin to address these needs
will be discussed.
Nonprofit Groups: Embracing Tools for Change
Already, today's information technologies are being used to enhance
the work of nonprofit groups by streamlining back-office operations,
improving existing programs, developing new programs and services, and
communicating with its constituents. Technologies of different kinds
are impacting fundraising, volunteer outreach, advocacy efforts, civic
participation, and virtually every other kind of activity in which a
nonprofit is engaged. For example:
* A chapter of the American Red Cross created a database that
enables them to contact the right people at the right time when
disaster strikes - as well as reduce administrative costs from 24%
to 9% of its budget.
* A nonprofit organization uses a simple computerized database and
conference calling to help clients find the services they need
from among 3,500 agencies.
* A low-cost electronic bulletin board enables a working-class
neighborhood to organize a food co-op, publish a newsletter, and
establish crime watches.
* An outreach effort to its constituents enabled an environmental
group to mobilize tens of thousands of people to offer public
comments in favor of protecting wild places in just eight months.
Most nonprofits, however, lack the ability to use technology
effectively, both in their operations and in their service delivery.
Numerous surveys of and interviews with nonprofits indicate that they
are without adequate expertise or resources. Many don't yet know how
powerful an impact technology can have in their work. They don't know
how to plan for training and support, let alone the acquisition of
hardware and software. Staff and volunteers don't know where to turn
for guidance, and management does not have the information necessary
to plan and budget for technology.
Overall, those working with nonprofits suggest that an organization's
internal culture regarding technology is the strongest indicator of
its ability to use it successfully. The following six "technology
cultures" have been identified:
* total unawareness of technology: groups here do not know what is
possible, have not been exposed to the simplest of tools and
solutions, operate in entirely paper-based environments, and make
extensive use of express mail and long-distance phone calls to
communicate with their constituents.
* technology as unnecessary: groups that operate in this culture
view it as overhead, do not use e-mail even if they have access to
it, are not networked, upgrade only as a last resort, and rely
more on paper files than electronic databases.
* technology as a necessary evil: groups here upgrade only to
current levels, have a mix of current and outdated equipment, use
both old and current software, and have only a few individuals who
use e-mail.
* technology as a necessary good: groups in this culture view
technology as a necessary part of their work, use relatively
current software, have and use e-mail, and have a web site - but
which is static and underutilized.
* technology as a strategic advantage: groups here use technology
extensively in delivering services, raising funds, and for
communications. Often, however, they lack a long-term plan for
integrating technology into the work of the agency.
* technology as central to the mission: in this culture, programs
and services are built around state-of-the-art and/or emerging
technologies. Groups have a long-term technology plan, ensure that
all staff are regularly trained on new technologies, have ongoing
relationships with both technology assistance providers and
collegial organizations to ensure they are making the most of the
tools available to them, and regularly share the tools they have
created.
What needs to change
The NSNT - with input from nonprofits, technology assistance providers
who work with nonprofits, and funders - has identified several key
areas that nonprofits need to address in order for them to use
technology effectively. Specifically, nonprofits need to:
* understand the impact that technology can have on their work. They
need to see what their colleagues are already doing using a wide
range of technologies, including the Internet, electronic
publishing, fax-on-demand, video conferencing, etc. Nonprofits
need to understand how technology can help shape entirely new
services and programs, which is very different from seeing
technology as a way of enabling them to do "old" things in "new"
ways.
In particular, leaders of nonprofits - including boards of directors
and executive directors - need to understand the value of
technology in the organizations they run, since they make the
ultimate decisions about resource allocation.
Those groups already integrating technology solutions, on the
other hand, need, when possible, to become active participants in
efforts to evangelize the benefits of technology to the sector -
and to the funder community - and to encourage new users to take
critical first steps toward becoming savvy users.
* treat technology as an integral part of their organization. In
order to have a major impact on an institution, technology needs
to be pervasive - used by everyone in back-office as well as
programmatic activities, budgeted for appropriately (including
training as well as hardware and software), and, most importantly,
designed and implemented as part of a comprehensive organizational
plan.
* evaluate their own use of technology. Nonprofits need to evaluate
their own uses of technology against a set of standards. They need
to know what "best practices" are being used by their colleagues
working in similar kinds of organizations. And they need tools to
develop solid and realistic technology plans.
* access appropriate and affordable help. No one - in any setting -
can be expected to understand and implement technology-based
solutions on their own, especially given how fast technology
changes. Nonprofits need to know what assistance is available to
them to incorporate technology into their work. They need to
understand both how to find help and how to effectively make use
of that help. They also need to know about the assistance that is
available directly from software and hardware vendors, and about
web-based resources.
* understand and value the "human capacity" aspect of technology
implementation. People make technology work; the "boxes" do
nothing on their own. Nonprofits need to take into account the
many human resource issues involved in successful technology
implementation. Senior management and boards of directors need to
understand the skills required within their organizations,
appreciate the compensation and related aspects of hiring and
retaining qualified technical staff, realize the importance of
ongoing training and development of all staff with regard to
technology use, and ensure that people with technology-related
responsibilities be included in key organizational decisions.
* value ongoing learning about the role of technology in their work.
Technology changes all the time. Also, many nonprofits report that
as staff becomes more comfortable using these tools, they
invariably find other, new ways to use them. Therefore, every
staff member should have the opportunity and incentive to remain
informed about the potential role of technology in their work -
beyond merely receiving training on new software programs. Time -
and money - need to be budgeted to allow for this to happen on an
ongoing basis.
* share their work with others. As many in the nonprofit world
already know, many groups are already using technology in powerful
ways. Good models and materials have been developed, but too often
these are not shared with groups that need to know about them.
Technology itself makes it possible to avoid re-inventing the
wheel when an agency is exploring, for example, how to use the
Internet to galvanize its members around an issue. We need to
create an environment in which groups have the incentive to share
their technology-based efforts, including success stories, and
mechanisms to do this that are widely available and easily
accessible. Nonprofits are already under-resourced.
* acquire appropriate software and hardware. Nothing can happen
without appropriate hardware and software. Nonprofits need to
acquire these products - including both new and used equipment -
in ways that are efficient, cost-effective, and supported over
time. Most importantly, nonprofits need to assess their needs so
that what they acquire is appropriate to accomplish what they want
to do.
Technology Assistance Providers: Enabling Others To Be Successful
Despite a large number and variety of technology assistance providers
- including site-based centers, "circuit riders," and volunteer-based
efforts - there still is not enough help available to nonprofits that
need it. Providers are often not part of the larger technical
assistance infrastructure for nonprofits, they often operate in
isolation, and they don't benefit from the work of their colleagues.
Also, their role in assisting nonprofits is often not built into
technology-related initiatives supported by funders.
What needs to change
Specifically, providers need to:
* be supported in receiving ongoing training in technology and
nonprofit issues. Since providers are at the intersection between
technology and nonprofit issues, they need to receive ongoing
professional development in both fields in order to provide
services to their clients. They also need to have opportunities
for collegial interaction.
* coalesce into a community where learning, resource-sharing, and
problem-solving can occur. They need to operate in an environment
where resources, materials, and best practices developed by one
can be used by others. A related benefit of forming this kind of
community is creation of a comprehensive list of providers,
including those organized as independent nonprofit groups,
programs of nonprofits providing broad technical assistance to
other nonprofits, individual "circuit riders" supported by
foundations, volunteers, consultants, and for-profit companies.
* contribute to the identification of model programs, trends, and
long-term issues facing their clients. There needs to be an
ongoing mechanism by which technology assistance providers can
identify best practices, trends, and anticipated needs concerning
nonprofits' use of technology. Because of their own expertise and
contact with their clients, they are a critical source of
information that could greatly impact the sector's use of
technology.
* grow the industry. Current providers need to play a role in
expanding the number and kinds of technology-related resources
available to nonprofits. They should be open to opportunities to
develop these resources where they are currently not available,
and - in general - to providing leadership in stimulating greater
resource development for other nonprofits, based on the principles
delineated in this report.
Funders: Putting Resources To Work
The funding community - including private, family, and community
foundations, as well as corporations - has increasingly been asked to
support the technology-related efforts of their grantees. However,
most foundations have been hesitant to fund these initiatives: they
don't have the expertise to evaluate proposals, they view the
provision of technology support as an example of general technical
assistance (which many do not fund), they view computer hardware as a
capital expense (which often falls outside funding guidelines), or
they see technology as an operating expense (again, not covered by
funders focusing on programs).
However, more and more foundations, seeing that many nonprofits are
using technology to develop or enhance their programmatic and
operational activities, are beginning to fund these efforts. A few,
including high-tech companies, have programs that focus on technology
as a program area. And many corporations make contributions of
hardware and software, encourage their employees to volunteer with
nonprofit groups in order to share their technology-related skills,
and sponsor nonprofit web sites.
What needs to change
Specifically, funders need to:
* learn more about how technology can enhance the work of nonprofits
- as well as their own organizations. They need to understand
various ways in which technology has already spurred new programs
and improved existing ones that their grantees have undertaken.
They also need to use technology more effectively within their own
organizations, since this experience can have a direct impact on
their willingness to fund efforts proposed by current and
potential grantees.
* view technology support as an element of their grantmaking. Far
too often, funders - including contributors of hardware and
software - do not ensure that grant recipients have thought about
or have the resources for training and support. They need to make
greater efforts to involve technology assistance providers in
technology-related grantmaking - as part of the evaluation of
proposals and in supporting the implementation of specific
projects (such as forming a partnership with a technology provider
to assist grantees' efforts.)
* think differently about how to fund technology-related
initiatives. Funders should be open to alternative funding
strategies that reflect how technology can make the greatest
impact on nonprofits. For example, they should be open to
supporting projects undertaken by individual agencies,
collaborative efforts that provide inter-agency or community-wide
connections, educational efforts aimed at helping nonprofits use
technology, and the development of Internet-based tools to assist
nonprofits in the use of technology.
* become spokespersons for increased technology funding. Funders
also need to become involved in the evangelism activities
discussed above - i.e., they need to encourage their colleagues at
foundations and corporations to consider technology applications
and assistance as a critical component of helping nonprofits
deliver effective and timely services.
III. Steps Toward A Transformed Nonprofit Sector
The NSNT recommends the following eight steps be taken in order to
dramatically change how nonprofits use technology:
1. The creation of a "nonprofit technology portal" on the World Wide
Web.
2. The development of tools to help nonprofits and technology
assistance providers assess an organization's use of technology.
3. The development of people trained and motivated to help meet
nonprofits' needs.
4. The development of technology assistance models that incorporate
the NSNT's principles
5. The development of alternative funding mechanisms that leverage
the principles and initiatives of the NSNT.
6. Creating new relationships between the nonprofit sector and
high-technology companies.
7. The development of nonprofit-specific technology solutions.
8. Efforts to connect and reach out to others.
Some of these have already been started by NSNT Planning Partners,
others are proposed by the NSNT, and still others are already in place
as parts of other initiatives.
1. The creation of a "nonprofit technology portal" on the World Wide
Web.
A key element of the NSNT is the creation of a new portal - a kind of
online co-op - to which all nonprofits could belong and where they
could find the tools, skills, know-how, ideas, and partners they
need to help them do their jobs better. This "nonprofit technology
portal" will, essentially, be the means by which groups and
individuals join and become involved with the NSNT network (or
Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network - N-TEN). By joining
N-TEN, nonprofits could work together to integrate computers,
telecommunications, the Internet, and entrepreneurial thinking
into the way they work, communicate, and serve their communities.
N-TEN would also serve as a way for existing sites that serve the
nonprofit sector to coordinate their services - and even data - in
ways that will enhance the functionality of each site. In other
words, this marketplace would help facilitate wider connections
and understanding of the content and services that each of these
sites provides.
This N-TEN is envisioned as the hub - the initial gathering place
- for nonprofits wanting to use technology more effectively and
for technical assistance provides who want to exchange experience
and information. The portal would be built with a map-based
interface so a user could scan nationwide, by a region, a city, or
a neighborhood. A core set of data elements upon which services
would be built would include zip code and three-digit IRS codes
for charitable organizations. Upon this basic data structure and
interface, a large number of services and applications could be
built and scaled up nationwide or down to the block level.
The portal would have both public (open) areas and private
(membership) areas. Public areas would include information and
advocacy spaces for a wide range of issues, links to relevant
organization sites, spaces to reach out to and engage with clients
and the broader community, and a range of public forums and chat
rooms. Private or membership areas would include resource linkage
and match-making services to connect nonprofits to each other and
to registered technical assistance resources.
The nonprofit portal would combine several key service themes,
upon which other applications may be linked. The first two primary
themes are Connecting Nonprofits to Resources, and the second is
Connecting Learning to Assessment through an on-line set of
benchmarking tools for organizational development and capacity
building. Neither of these services is unique. It is in how these
services are combined through a common interface and design
philosophy that will make the difference.
Connecting Nonprofit to Resources
When Connecting Nonprofits to Resources, the portal would provide
a way for technical assistance providers to register themselves
and make their services available to a growing marketplace of
nonprofits seeking assistance. This database-driven function would
also enable providers to connect to each other, forging stronger
and more productive ties and creating a more informed community of
providers. Additionally, this would provide an ongoing forum for
providers to discuss gaps in services for nonprofits and other
challenges in meeting their needs; this would build on the surveys
of and interviews with providers that have been undertaken by the
NSNT over the past year.
Connecting Learning to Assessment
The second service theme, Connecting Learning to Assessment, is
envisioned as a benchmarking tool and set of self-assessment
services (see section that follows), linked to a database system
that puts nonprofits in touch with service providers prepared to
deal with a set of defined organizational circumstances. This
service would be membership-based, requiring accounts and
passwords both for the nonprofit and for the technical assistance
provider. As part of the initial registration, a new organization
would complete a self-assessment survey, which would provide
baseline data on their information technology skills and capacity.
Not only would such a system help to increase the frequency and
quality of technical assistance matching, it would also provide
valuable aggregate data to funders and researchers on the overall
capacity of the nonprofit sector to work effectively with the new
technologies.
By using these various tools, an agency can also begin to discuss
and describe its own "technology culture" (described earlier),
since this culture can be an important indicator for the
successful use of technology.
The nonprofit portal can be built incrementally, using existing
projects with organizations that have developed close
relationships during the work of the National Strategy for
Nonprofit Technology. These groups have identified a need to
jointly develop such Internet-based systems designed for customer
support, technical assistance matchmaking, or evaluation and
assessment of grant projects. Rather than build such systems
independently of each other, in so-called "sectoral stove-pipes,"
it makes sense for joint development along open systems
architectures to build common systems with common functionality,
which can be customized for a particular use and broadly
disseminated to other organizations.
Like commercial web sites, the nonprofit portal would generate
revenues from advertising, membership fees and charges for
transactions conducted over the portal, such as the sale of tech
services or products. The cooperative portal service also might
create a kind of barter system that would allow users to exchange
products, services and know-how - assigning values to those
exchanges, with a portion of the value going to the portal
service.
2.
The development of tools to help nonprofits and technology
assistance providers assess an organization's use of technology.
The following tools are already under development:
* A benchmarking tool that identifies best-practice uses of
technology in nonprofit agencies and provides resources to help
nonprofits meet or surpass these best practices.
* Standardized survey, assessment, evaluation, and data-analysis
tools. All evaluation tools will be standardized and validated so
that comparisons among technology assistance providers or
nonprofit communities and similar nonprofit agencies can be made.
* Technical assistance in using and interpreting the survey,
assessment, and evaluation tools.
The goal is to provide a web-based set of tools and resources that
include the following:
* Best-practice standards for technology use in nonprofit
organizations. NSNT will identify and publish best-practice uses
of technology in nonprofit organizations. The work done by the
NSNT during the planning process (see http://www.sustain.org/nsnt)
will serve as a starting point for identifying these best-practice
benchmarks and be refined to reflect the difference among size,
type, and locations (urban versus rural) of nonprofits.
* Standardized nonprofit technology survey and assessment tools that
track and measure how nonprofit organizations are doing relative
to these best practice benchmarks. The survey and assessment tools
will track and measure how nonprofit organizations incorporate and
use technology in three areas: a) planning and budgeting; b)
agency operations, both direct service and back-office, and; c)
internal and external communications. Information gathered from
these survey and assessment tools will be used to refine and
inform the best-practice nonprofit technology use benchmarks and
measure movement over time in the nonprofits meeting these
standards.
* Data analysis tools for nonprofit organizations to compare their
use of technology to similarly situated organizations and/or
nonprofit communities. A necessary component of measuring outcomes
and benchmarking is comparing an individual organization's data or
processes to other like organizations. Data that is isolated from
a broader context or comparison group is of little use. The NSNT
will create and provide an on-line data-analysis tool to allow
local nonprofit organizations and technology assistance providers
to compare and contrast the use of technology in their
organizations or communities to others around the nation.
3. The development of people trained and motivated to help meet
nonprofits' needs.
People at different levels and within different kinds of organizations
need to be enlisted in efforts to ensure that nonprofits have the
"people skills" required for successful technology implementation.
After a careful analysis of individuals' needs - along with the
institutions where they typically receive professional development
- the NSNT proposes the following activities that can build on
those already being undertaken:
* The development of trained, motivated technology professionals to
serve as staff at nonprofit organizations. This should include
efforts to encourage schools of engineering to develop curricula,
community outreach programs, internships, and career planning
activities that expose students to potential careers in the
nonprofit sector. All these efforts should include training in
nonprofit issues - both management-related and programmatic - and
how technology can impact them.
Those technology professionals currently working in nonprofits should
have opportunities to develop collegial networks, receive ongoing
professional development (on technology as well as nonprofit
sector issues), and be exposed to a variety of career paths within
the sector.
For college students, NetCorps is already building a program that
engages them as technology interns in nonprofits. And for those
currently working with nonprofits, efforts like the Rockefeller
Technology Project's "Circuit Rider" roundups and listservs
provide forums where expertise is shared and where problem-solving
occurs.
* The training of nonprofit staff to enable them to use technology
successfully. Just as people with technology skills need a solid
background in nonprofit management, so nonprofit staff members -
at every level in the organization - need to understand how
technology can impact the work of their organizations. Therefore,
classes on technology integration should be developed by
institutions that provide programs on nonprofit management.
Special emphasis should be placed on how to recruit and retain
people with technology and nonprofit expertise, and special
efforts should instill in executive directors and members of
nonprofit boards the importance of planning and budgeting for
technology.
Groups such as The Support Center for Nonprofit Management (in San
Francisco) and the Information Technology Resource Center (in
Chicago) have provided this kind of training for nonprofits for
many years. In a recent effort, the Philanthropy News Network is
presenting a series of conferences around the country on nonprofit
technology, with the goal of helping nonprofit staff members
understand the critical role computers and the Internet can have
in their organizations.
And, a new initiative is under way in the graduate program in
nonprofit management at the New School for Social Research in New
York City to include research, academic and executive training and
education in the relationship between technology and the
challenges it presents for nonprofit organizational change.
* Outreach to corporations to recruit employees to volunteer with
nonprofit groups. Increased efforts should tap this huge resource
of technologically skilled people. Outreach should target
companies (high-tech and others), volunteer centers, and special
programs (such as CompuMentor) that match corporate volunteers
with nonprofits in need of specific help. At the same time, the
experience and lessons learned by these volunteers must be
captured and become part of the knowledge base of N-TEN.
This outreach should also focus on recruiting individuals from the
high-tech sector to serve on the boards of nonprofit groups,
thereby helping boards to think through technology issues related
to the organizations' work.
* Efforts to educate individual consultants about nonprofit needs
and solutions. Since so many nonprofits make use of individual
consultants for their technology needs, special efforts - such as
bringing them together in a network - should ensure that they are
well-informed about best practices and nonprofit-specific
solutions. At the same time, the experience and lessons learned by
these consultants must be captured and become part of the
knowledge base of N-TEN.
Initiatives like the Packard's Foundation Organizational Effectiveness
Program are already addressing this issue through their Consultant
Initiative Project.
4. The development of technology assistance models that incorporate
the NSNT's
principles.
For funders and others exploring the support needs of the sector, good
models of technology support are critical. Best practices need to
be shared in the areas of fundraising, curriculum development,
outreach strategies, organizational development, volunteer
recruitment, and training strategies. Many groups - including
those operating under the umbrella of the Technology Resource
Consortium - have been active for many years in this work and are
excellent sources of help.
Two new efforts - NPower in Seattle and Technology Works in
Washington, DC - were developed specifically using the NSNT
principles. For example, the business plan of NPower (which is a
center-based initiative) was designed to be model for anyone
interested in creating a local technology assistance center, and
copies of it are available for free. This plan was based on a
thorough analysis of the local nonprofit sector and its technology
support needs. Also, NPower is developing a tool to evaluate the
effectiveness of its work - again, this is freely available to
other groups that work with nonprofits.
In Washington, Technology Works is exploring another model.
Initial assessment indicated a large number of technology support
resources in the Washington metropolitan area, both nonprofit and
for profit, but a major disconnect between these resources and the
area's 6,000 community-based nonprofits. Technology Works is
seeking to create a network - grounded in the NSNT principles of
open systems, technology transparency, fair exchange, and fair
compensation - that links nonprofits, existing providers, high
tech firms, and funders in order to facilitate a continuum of
services for community-based nonprofits. In cases where resource
gaps are identified, Technology Works will support the development
of new resources.
5. The development of alternative funding mechanisms that leverage the
principles
and initiatives of the NSNT.
For the "big bang" strategy to be effective, funders must commit to a
coordinated series of initiatives that range from relatively small
adjustments in current funding mechanisms to the creation of new
and innovative funding mechanisms.
* Foundations should look for and encourage proposals that commit to
the NSNT principles and that in turn work with technology
assistance providers committed to these principles. In return,
foundations will know that their investments will be highly
leveraged, since the organizations that receive support will have
committed to making technology an integral part of their
organizations and to sharing their work widely within the
nonprofit sector.
* Foundations should find systematic ways to integrate technology
into their own missions and funding strategies. For example,
foundations could make it a criterion that technology goals be
integrated into the mission of their applicants. In requesting
project budgets, foundations could encourage line items for
technology purchases and maintenance, and could consider
requesting applicants to routinely specify technology-related
budget items as a percentage of overall program costs.
Foundations, with the help of technology resource providers, should
also enhance their capacity to evaluate the technology components
of proposals. This is already taking place in Chicago, where the
Chicago Community Trust has turned to a local provider, the
Information Technology Resource Center, to help the foundation
assess the technology aspects of grants proposals.
* Foundations should consider creating and supporting new funding
mechanisms to advance the effective use of technology by
nonprofits. One idea is the creation of a virtual community
foundation - a "Technology Community Foundation" - that would both
raise and distribute money. Like a traditional community
foundation, it would be responsive to the needs of specific donors
and be flexible and creative ways in how it supports
technology-related needs of nonprofits. For example, corporations
and other funders could create donor-advised funds targeted to
supporting specific kinds of projects, knowing that the
foundation's staff and board members will be experts in nonprofit
technology issues.
Such a foundation could, like other community foundations, serve as a
convenor, bringing together donors from different sectors -
including private and community foundations, private industry, and
government - to work together in ways they might be unable to do
on their own.
This foundation could in fact be the entity that raises funds and
supports the major new initiatives described in this report -
projects that will require the participation of many different
groups already working on various aspects of technology use by
nonprofits.
Finally, the foundation could serve as the hub for much of the
activity described in this report, including serving as a
collective voice to the high-tech industry about nonprofit needs
and as a channel between emerging technologies and nonprofits that
could use them in socially beneficial ways.
* Funders should be part of the effort to evangelize what's working.
They should look for opportunities to reach out to other funders
in order to educate them about the role of technology in the work
of their grantees. They should include "technology success
stories" in their annual reports and newsletters, on their web
sites, and in their outreach to the philanthropic press.
6.
Creating new relationships between the nonprofit sector and
high-technology
companies.
Given the tremendous growth of the high-tech sector, and given the
potential for the products they make to have a dramatic impact on
a wide range of social needs, fostering relationships between
high-tech companies and the nonprofit sector is critical. Today
these relationships are few and far between. In-kind donations
represent a miniscule percentage of corporate profits, and many
other resources are hardly being shared at all.
Efforts that benefit both business and nonprofits need to address
this disparity. Nonprofits need to use donated products and
services more effectively, thus encouraging companies to
contribute more. Companies can also improve the quality of life
while contributing to overall continued economic growth.
Ultimately, these efforts focus on the desire to link the creation
of wealth to efforts that benefit society as a whole.
The first place to start in structuring new relationships between
high-tech corporations and nonprofits - and to accessing assets
beyond hardware and software - is to make a more efficient link
between high-tech vendors and nonprofits. This would involve
consolidating how nonprofits request donations, linking software
donations to accessible and affordable technology assistance,
streamlining how donations are made, and creating social value for
the participating companies.
To reach these goals, the NSNT Planning Partners propose that:
* a high-level industry-sponsored conference be held to discuss how
all key players can work together more effectively to meet
increasing demands and to begin to create a common language to
bridge the two sectors;
* software and hardware vendors be interviewed to enlist their
involvement and to refine how they can participate in this effort;
* a consolidated point of application for support - or Tech Exchange
- be created on the nonprofit technology portal (described
earlier) to facilitate both the seeking and granting of products.
This would meet the needs of companies seeking better ways of
receiving and processing applications and of making support and
training key components of their giving. To ensure that they
acquire appropriate products and use them effectively, nonprofits
would be required to complete an on-line needs assessment,
undertaken in conjunction with a sponsoring technology assistance
provider that has agreed to the core principles of the NSNT.
* preference be given to applicants that have had a technology
assistance provider verify their capacity to use donated software
or hardware, and that have identified a provider for assistance
with installation, training, and support.
* fulfillment options be explored that are efficient,
cost-effective, and attractive to potential donors. These might
include working with a national retailer, using electronic
distribution (of software), and shipping from a central warehouse
that is managed by an existing nonprofit intermediary.
Some projects have already benefitted from these kinds of creative
partnerships. For example, a Hewlett-Packard initiative to support
childcare centers includes H-P equipment and technical support
from employee volunteers. It also is likely that productivity
software from Microsoft will be available. Additionally, the
Packard Foundation will fund "circuit riders" - managed by San
Francisco-based Support Center for Nonprofit Management - to
provide hands-on technical support to the childcare centers and
help secure other resources.
7. The development of nonprofit-specific technology solutions.
The nonprofit sector represents 8% of the U.S. economy and one in ten
jobs. This is a large potential market for high-tech products.
Coordinated efforts need to be undertaken to work with high-tech
companies (particularly software developers) to design products
specific to the needs of nonprofits. For example, companies should
be encouraged to develop software using open systems that allow
others to adapt it easily to meet their own needs.
Already, with the development of the database management program
ebase, a solution has been developed by a nonprofit - the
Technology Project - for nonprofits. This package enables an
organization to keep data on memberships, donations, and activist
information in one place, and to provide secure, easy-to-learn
access to everyone who needs to use it. It is already proving to
be a powerful tool for producing customized mailings to agency
constituents. ebase is free, and the software is completely open
so that nonprofits and technology assistance providers can
customize it and contribute their improvements back to the
community of ebase users.
8. Efforts to connect and reach out to others.
As this report has stated throughout, the fulfillment of the vision of
the NSNT requires the participation of many different players. In
addition to those already discussed, there are a number of other
national efforts that address nonprofit uses of technology. Some
focus on the use of communications technology to engage citizens
in advocacy efforts; others focus on integrating technology
support into general nonprofit management assistance; some have
created web sites with hundreds of links to on-line resources
geared to nonprofit needs; and still others are efforts of
national organizations that work with their affiliates around the
country on a range of community issues, including job training.
We envision these groups - and others - working together to
implement the initiatives proposed by the NSNT Planning Partners,
particularly the nonprofit portal. These interconnections are not
meant to create yet another web site with links to yet more. It's
the integration of these efforts - and the expertise imbedded in
them - that will transform how technology serves the nonprofit
sector. As a starting point, the NSNT proposes that the key
electronic nonprofit service providers convene at a summit to
discuss how they can collaborate on the creation of this portal.
Finally, we need to reach out to foundations, corporations,
government officials, the media, and the general public to
galvanize their interest and involvement in this effort. We need
to create the same level of national attention to technology use
by nonprofits that took place during the NetDay effort focusing on
technology in schools. We need to develop consistent and clear
messages that can be delivered through a variety of media,
including - of course - the Internet. This awareness will serve
several ends: educating people about the roles and needs of
nonprofits, alerting people about the web-based activities of
nonprofits in which they can participate, creating an environment
that will attract resources, and building awareness for the
creation of sound public policies related to nonprofits and
technology.
How To Get Involved
The Planning Partners are committed to growing the N-TEN network. We
envision a system where any individual, organization, or association
can join and have an equal opportunity to help grow the network and
use it to support their work. In the coming months, planning members
will convene several sessions to discuss the findings of this report
and focus collective energy on determining the specific rules and
responsibilities that will govern the growth of the network.
In the short term, anyone who is excited by this report and thinks
they may have something to exchange with other members of the network
should visit the NSNT web site at http://www.nsnt.org
. The site will be built to encourage and enable network members to
learn about each other's work and to develop new working partnerships.
The site will also capture and catalog existing efforts and
initiatives that are consistent with the vision contained in this
report. Opportunities for participation in on-line forums will be
established, and meetings at relevant conferences will be facilitated
and encouraged by network members. In particular, N-TEN members will
gather at each of the Philanthropy News Network's "Nonprofits and
Technology" conferences.
We also encourage initiatives at the local level. Communities with an
interest in replicating the NSNT planning process should move forward
now. New collaborators should feel free to use and enhance the
resources the network members post on the web site and invite Planning
Partners to help build locally based networks, similar to what is
being done in Washington, D.C. with Technology Works, and in Seattle
with NPower.
More generally, all other nonprofit technology initiatives are invited
to make use of the principles and resources of the network in their
planning and implementation. In particular, commitment to the NSNT
principles should make projects more appealing to potential planning
and funding partners. Similarly, funding organizations are encouraged
to make use of the lessons of this planning process to incorporate
these insights into their own decision-making and support processes.
One of the most fulfilling experiences of the past year's planning
process was the creation of new, innovative, and highly productive
working relationships between creative individuals who are committed
to helping build a strong nonprofit sector and who value this kind of
collaboration. The force of these insights will be tested by the
success of all of us - original planning partners, new collaborators,
and a much broader partnership network - in conceptualizing, creating,
and supporting future initiatives.
Moving forward, we will now focus our efforts on drastically
increasing the number of colleagues who can share the experience of
developing systems that harness the benefits and power of increased
interaction in order to help transform the nonprofit sector.
We invite you to join us in this effort.
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