Transforming Nonprofits

Guest expert Stefanie Cruz, from DigiGeeks Collective and Build Consulting's Kyle Haines had an informal discussion on how nonprofits can pivot from using social media simply for marketing and communications to something much more integrated into the relationships organizations value most.

Stef is the founder of DigiGeeks Collective, a community of communication and digital strategists who collaborate on compelling projects with social cause organizations and movements. In addition to being a co-founder of Build, Kyle also serves as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the Lymphoma Research Foundation where social media is playing an increasing role in delivering high-quality patient and professional content.

Our Fireside Chats are designed for audiences with varied experiences with technology. In this Fireside Chat learn more about how social media deepens relationships with an expert and innovator in communications and outreach.

In Part 2 of this episode Peter Mirus, co-founder of Build Consulting, discusses ways to succeed with your software implementation, shares leadership strategies, and answers questions from the webinar audience.

What you'll learn:

• What does it mean for the implementation of a new software or platform project to be a "success?"
• What are the key elements your organization needs to have in place to guide an implementation to success?
• What are the secrets of successful nonprofit tech implementations that fail to get enough attention?
• How can you help your nonprofit be in the 50% of tech projects that succeed?

There are many reasons why software implementation can be less than successful. Maybe you need to alter the composition of your project leadership team, perhaps your training objectives or requirements aren't clear, perhaps you haven't organized your time management well, or maybe you just need a strong change management template to help you keep up on multiple and multi-faceted team tasks.

In this webinar on how to succeed with your software implementation, Peter Mirus shares tips gleaned from over two decades working with nonprofit leaders to improve tech selection and adoption. Learn how to set your nonprofit up for success.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. Build is scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so this conversation will feature a realistic look at the impact thoughtful leadership can have on your project implementation outcomes. Presenter:

Peter Mirus co-founded Build Consulting in 2015, following over 15 years of nonprofit consulting experience in the areas of technology, branding, marketing, and development. Peter's work for Build clients has a broad focus spanning many operational areas, including fundraising, program monitoring and evaluation, accounting, and impact reporting/analysis.

In this episode Peter Mirus, co-founder of Build Consulting, discusses ways to succeed with your software implementation, shares leadership strategies, and answers questions from the webinar audience.

What you'll learn:

• What does it mean for the implementation of a new software or platform project to be a "success?"
• What are the key elements your organization needs to have in place to guide an implementation to success?
• What are the secrets of successful nonprofit tech implementations that fail to get enough attention?
• How can you help your nonprofit be in the 50% of tech projects that succeed?

There are many reasons why software implementation can be less than successful. Maybe you need to alter the composition of your project leadership team, perhaps your training objectives or requirements aren't clear, perhaps you haven't organized your time management well, or maybe you just need a strong change management template to help you keep up on multiple and multi-faceted team tasks.

In this webinar on how to succeed with your software implementation, Peter Mirus shares tips gleaned from over two decades working with nonprofit leaders to improve tech selection and adoption. Learn how to set your nonprofit up for success.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. Build is scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so this conversation will feature a realistic look at the impact thoughtful leadership can have on your project implementation outcomes. Presenter:

Peter Mirus co-founded Build Consulting in 2015, following over 15 years of nonprofit consulting experience in the areas of technology, branding, marketing, and development. Peter's work for Build clients has a broad focus spanning many operational areas, including fundraising, program monitoring and evaluation, accounting, and impact reporting/analysis.

An Ask the Experts panel discussion with Community IT CEO Johan Hammerstrom and David Deal, co-founder of Build Consulting for a webinar on nonprofit IT staff training – how to do it, why to do it, and how to make time to prioritize it.

Training is a security, cost-saving, and productivity measure. Learn real-life examples of technology training that saved clients money – or helped them realize they were already paying for the software solution they were looking for. Learn tips for integrating continuous training and ideas on making it fun and productive for staff. Learn how to reward staff for learning and save your organization time and money in the long run.

In this webinar on nonprofit IT staff training, the Community IT and Build Consulting panelists took questions and shared tips on how to get the most out of your IT investments through IT training.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. Build and Community IT are scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so this conversation will feature a realistic look at the impact technology training can have on your efficiency and budget.

Presenters:

David Deal co-founded Build Consulting in 2015, building on over 20 years of deep experience in the nonprofit technology sector. His work for Build's clients has a broad focus spanning many operational areas including fundraising, program and case management, human resources, accounting, and many others.

Johan Hammerstrom is CEO of Community IT Innovators. He has a BS in Chemistry from Stanford and an MA in Biophysics from Johns Hopkins. He left academic science to pursue a career in Information Technology, with the goal of improving our communities and our world. He started at Community IT in 1999 as a Network Administrator. Since that time, he has been a Network Engineer, a Team Lead, the Director of Services, Vice President of Services, Chief Operating Officer, President, and beginning 2020, CEO.

An Ask the Experts panel discussion with Community IT CEO Johan Hammerstrom and David Deal, co-founder of Build Consulting for a webinar on nonprofit IT staff training – how to do it, why to do it, and how to make time to prioritize it.

Training is a security, cost-saving, and productivity measure. Learn real-life examples of technology training that saved clients money – or helped them realize they were already paying for the software solution they were looking for. Learn tips for integrating continuous training and ideas on making it fun and productive for staff. Learn how to reward staff for learning and save your organization time and money in the long run.

In this webinar on nonprofit IT staff training, the Community IT and Build Consulting panelists took questions and shared tips on how to get the most out of your IT investments through IT training.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. Build and Community IT are scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so this conversation will feature a realistic look at the impact technology training can have on your efficiency and budget.

Presenters:

David Deal co-founded Build Consulting in 2015, building on over 20 years of deep experience in the nonprofit technology sector. His work for Build's clients has a broad focus spanning many operational areas including fundraising, program and case management, human resources, accounting, and many others.

Johan Hammerstrom is CEO of Community IT Innovators. He has a BS in Chemistry from Stanford and an MA in Biophysics from Johns Hopkins. He left academic science to pursue a career in Information Technology, with the goal of improving our communities and our world. He started at Community IT in 1999 as a Network Administrator. Since that time, he has been a Network Engineer, a Team Lead, the Director of Services, Vice President of Services, Chief Operating Officer, President, and beginning 2020, CEO.

On July 16, 2020, Build Consulting learned that Blackbaud experienced a significant, and extensive, theft of data and was the subject of a ransomware attack. As of July 22, much remains uncertain about the full scope of the attack, but Kyle Haines, Partner at Build Consulting, shares what we have learned thus far and what your organization should consider as you determine how to respond—including:

• How to evaluate what notifications, if any, should be sent to constituents?
• What are some of the potential areas of risk for your organization moving forward?
• What changes should you immediately make to how your organization uses and manages systems that contain constituent information?

Part 2 of this presentation is approximately 30 minutes of facilitated Q&A from the conclusion of the webinar.

Kyle has over two decades of experience in nonprofit development and constituent relationship management operations, including making use of Blackbaud technologies to meet various needs—particularly the Raiser's Edge. He is also an experienced nonprofit technology strategist and CIO.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. And Build is scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so you will benefit from Kyle's candid insight into this incident—including what it means for your nonprofit organization in the short-term, and for the nonprofit technology community at large.

Disclaimer: Build Consulting partners are not lawyers and this webinar should not be considered legal advice. You should seek appropriate counsel for your own situation and in the jurisdiction where you do business. We highly encourage you to understand your legal rights and liabilities regarding any cybersecurity incident your organization faces.

Kyle co-founded Build Consulting in 2015, after working in and with nonprofit organizations to improve their development operations and technology for over 20 years. Kyle's consulting work at Build touches all nonprofit operational areas—but has a strong focus on using technology to enhance constituent experiences, which leads to improved fundraising and greater mission impact

On July 16, 2020, Build Consulting learned that Blackbaud experienced a significant, and extensive, theft of data and was the subject of a ransomware attack. As of July 22, much remains uncertain about the full scope of the attack, but Kyle Haines, Partner at Build Consulting, shares what we have learned thus far and what your organization should consider as you determine how to respond—including:

• How to evaluate what notifications, if any, should be sent to constituents?
• What are some of the potential areas of risk for your organization moving forward?
• What changes should you immediately make to how your organization uses and manages systems that contain constituent information?

The presentation is approximately 30 minutes long, with 30 minutes facilitated Q&A at the conclusion of the webinar in Part 2 of this podcast.

Kyle has over two decades of experience in nonprofit development and constituent relationship management operations, including making use of Blackbaud technologies to meet various needs—particularly the Raiser's Edge. He is also an experienced nonprofit technology strategist and CIO.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. And Build is scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so you will benefit from Kyle's candid insight into this incident—including what it means for your nonprofit organization in the short-term, and for the nonprofit technology community at large.

Disclaimer: Build Consulting partners are not lawyers and this webinar should not be considered legal advice. You should seek appropriate counsel for your own situation and in the jurisdiction where you do business. We highly encourage you to understand your legal rights and liabilities regarding any cybersecurity incident your organization faces.

Kyle Haines co-founded Build Consulting in 2015, after working in and with nonprofit organizations to improve their development operations and technology for over 20 years. Kyle's consulting work at Build touches all nonprofit operational areas—but has a strong focus on using technology to enhance constituent experiences, which leads to improved fundraising and greater mission impact

Making the move to a platform like Microsoft Dynamics or Salesforce can fuel your nonprofit's digital transformation. These platforms allow you to manage and engage with constituents in new ways, create more unified experiences for them, and transform how your organization works.

But do you know where your organization should start when choosing a technology platform?

Kyle Haines, Partner at Build Consulting, shares some of the questions your organization should answer before making significant investments in a platform like Microsoft Dynamics or Salesforce.

In this webinar, he covers

• What is Microsoft Dynamics? How does it compare to Salesforce?
• How do you analyze your business needs and stakeholder needs when considering a new platform or upgrade that will have a broad impact on your entire organization?
• How will a new platform change your organization? Are you ready to capitalize on the potential for change?

Additionally, he shares his experience on what makes platform selections and implementations successful, and how to position your organization to take advantage of the opportunities a new platform brings.

We know our nonprofits will be called on over the next few years to provide more support to our communities than ever before. Put your best foot forward now with tech projects that position your organization to deliver on your mission at this critical time.

Kyle spent over 15 minutes on audience Q&A after the webinar, discussing with your nonprofit colleagues the real life advantages to consider when moving forward with either the Microsoft Dynamics or Salesforce platforms.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. And Build is scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so you can be sure this webinar will explore the pros and also the cons of both platforms for nonprofits.

Making the move to a platform like Microsoft Dynamics or Salesforce can fuel your nonprofit's digital transformation. These platforms allow you to manage and engage with constituents in new ways, create more unified experiences for them, and transform how your organization works.

But do you know where your organization should start when choosing a technology platform?

Kyle Haines, Partner at Build Consulting, shares some of the questions your organization should answer before making significant investments in a platform like Microsoft Dynamics or Salesforce.

In this webinar, he covers

• What is Microsoft Dynamics? How does it compare to Salesforce?
• How do you analyze your business needs and stakeholder needs when considering a new platform or upgrade that will have a broad impact on your entire organization?
• How will a new platform change your organization? Are you ready to capitalize on the potential for change?

Additionally, he shares his experience on what makes platform selections and implementations successful, and how to position your organization to take advantage of the opportunities a new platform brings.

We know our nonprofits will be called on over the next few years to provide more support to our communities than ever before. Put your best foot forward now with tech projects that position your organization to deliver on your mission at this critical time.

Kyle spent over 15 minutes on audience Q&A after the webinar, discussing with your nonprofit colleagues the real life advantages to consider when moving forward with either the Microsoft Dynamics or Salesforce platforms.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. And Build is scrupulously vendor-agnostic, so you can be sure this webinar will explore the pros and also the cons of both platforms for nonprofits.

Part 2:

Understanding the relationships we have, and what journeys constituents walk with our organizations, is critical to nonprofit strategy—including technology strategy.

Peter Mirus (Partner) leads a discussion about how to analyze your organization's relationships and create constituent journey maps that help inform everything from branding and marketing to information system requirements.

At the heart of this conversation was the idea that business process, data, and technology initiatives at nonprofits need to be relationship-oriented in order to produce the best results.

Before co-founding Build Consulting in 2015, Peter spent 15 years working as a creative director, brand strategist, digital communications expert, and data/technology strategist for organizations ranging in size from small/local organizations to Fortune 1000-sized organizations in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors. His breadth of experience results in a set of relationship and constituent journey mapping techniques and tools that can be scaled to the needs of any organization.

As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied business, data, and technology experience.