Nonprofits And Technology

Managing Technology to Meet Your Mission Managing Technology to Meet Your Mission is a practical resource that will help nonprofit professionals make smart, strategic decisions about technology. The book shows how to effectively manage technology and offers practical advice for decision makers and staff alike who often have little or no experience with technology. With contributions from the top experts in the nonprofit technology field, this must-have guide addresses technology planning and people. It includes the tools you need to get the work done, and the knowledge that will help you communicate better, evaluate technology investments, raise money, and more. Written in nontechnical language the book covers a broad spectrum of topics including: Achieving IT Alignment with Your Mission STEVE HEYE, YMCA of the USA Managing Technology Change DAHNA GOLDSTEIN, PhilanTech Measuring the Return on Investment of Technology BETH KANTER, trainer, blogger and consultant IT Planning and Prioritizing PETER CAMPBELL, Earthjustice Finding and Keeping the Right People JAMES L. WEINBERG and CASSIE SCARANO, Commongood Careers Budgeting For and Funding Technology SCOTT MCCALLUM and KEITH R. THODE, Aidmatrix Foundation Introduction to IT and Systems KEVIN LO and WILLOW COOK, TechSoup Global Where Are Your Stakeholders, and What Are They Doing Online? MICHAEL CERVINO, Beaconfire Consulting Effective Online Communications JOHN KENYON, nonprofit technology strategist Effective Online Fundraising MADELINE STANIONIS, Watershed The Future of IT in Nonprofits EDWARD GRANGER-HAPP, Save the Children Praise for Managing Technology to Meet Your Mission “This invaluable guide for nonprofit leaders proves that nonprofit organizations can and should embrace technology, rather than being scared of or intimidated by it!” —KRISTIE FERKETICH, SENIOR STRATEGIST, GOOGLE GRANTS, GOOGLE INC. “NTEN’s Managing Technology to Meet Your Mission can help leaders craft a technology strategy that makes sense and builds ROI while also providing inspiration for their staff and supporters!” —JONATHON D. COLMAN, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR AND WEB EVANGELISTA, DIGITAL MARKETING, THE NATURE CONSERVANCY

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are major forces shaping our current age. ICT affects many areas of human existence and influences the both human wellbeing and human evil. The nonprofit sector is already heavily involved in technology both as a way to pursue its mission and as an influential factor in the evolution of the sector. This article examines how technology affects the sector and how the sector uses technology in its work. The article begins with a discussion of how the emerging information society will change the nonprofit sector. The sector that we know is grounded on our experience in the agrarian and industrial periods in the United States and Europe. We then explore how technology evolved in the sector. This is followed by an examination of technology and nonprofit organizational behavior. Technology changes the organizations that make use of its capacities. Next is a discussion of the types of technology that nonprofit organizations use. The final three sections deal with technology and social change, technology in nonprofit settings, and issues and trends. This article provides the reader with a current appreciation of the scholarly and professional literature on ICT in the nonprofit sector.

Due to the increased global political importance of the nonprofit sector, its technological support and organizational characteristics have become important fields of research. In order to conduct effective work, nonprofits need to communicate and coordinate effectively. However, such settings are generally characterized by a lack of resources, an absence of formal hierarchical structures and differences in languages and culture among the activists. Modern technologies could help nonprofit networks in improving their working. In order to design appropriate technological support for such settings, it is important to understand their work practices, which widely differ from traditional business organizations. This book aims to strengthen the body of knowledge by providing user studies and concepts related to user centered technology design process for nonprofit settings. The examination of ethnographic studies and user centered evaluation of IT artifacts in practice will further the understanding of design requirements of these systems. This book includes chapters from leading scholars and practitioners on the technology design process examining human centered factors. The chapters will focus on developed and developing countries as they both have unique issues in technology design. The book will be useful or of interest to academics from a range of fields including information systems, human computer interaction, computer supported cooperative work and organizational science as well as for government officials and governmental organizations.

Wired for Good is a nuts-and-bolts guide to strategic technology planning for nonprofit organizations—no matter how large or small. This book leads nonprofits through a planning process that will help them align their technology use with their mission and strategic goals, determine what the appropriate technology tools are to meet those goals, and how the technology will be implemented and supported over time. This essential guide also shows how to win support for a strategic technology plan within an organization, evaluate a plan's effectiveness, and help staff and other stakeholders adapt to the changes new technology will bring about. Wired for Good shows nonprofit professionals how to Get their organization ready for the strategic technology planning process Dispel the myths surrounding technology planning Understand the benefits of strategic technology planning Overcome organizational resistance to strategic technology planning Define the roles and responsibilities of staff and other key stakeholders in creating a successful plan Make the best use of volunteers and consultants Find the funds to support technology implementation

A pragmatic framework for nonprofit digital transformation that embraces the human-centered nature of your organization The Smart Nonprofit turns the page on an era of frantic busyness and scarcity mindsets to one in which nonprofit organizations have the time to think and plan — and even dream. The Smart Nonprofit offers a roadmap for the once-in-a-generation opportunity to remake work and accelerate positive social change. It comes from understanding how to use smart tech strategically, ethically and well. Smart tech does rote tasks like filling out expense reports and identifying prospective donors. However, it is also beginning to do very human things like screening applicants for jobs and social services, while paying forward historic biases. Beth Kanter and Allison Fine elegantly outline the ways smart nonprofits must stay human-centered and root out embedded bias in order to success at the compassionate and creative work that only humans can and should do.

“Worth a read for anyone who cares about making change happen.”—Barack Obama A powerful new blueprint for how governments and nonprofits can harness the power of digital technology to help solve the most serious problems of the twenty-first century As the speed and complexity of the world increases, governments and nonprofit organizations need new ways to effectively tackle the critical challenges of our time—from pandemics and global warming to social media warfare. In Power to the Public, Tara Dawson McGuinness and Hana Schank describe a revolutionary new approach—public interest technology—that has the potential to transform the way governments and nonprofits around the world solve problems. Through inspiring stories about successful projects ranging from a texting service for teenagers in crisis to a streamlined foster care system, the authors show how public interest technology can make the delivery of services to the public more effective and efficient. At its heart, public interest technology means putting users at the center of the policymaking process, using data and metrics in a smart way, and running small experiments and pilot programs before scaling up. And while this approach may well involve the innovative use of digital technology, technology alone is no panacea—and some of the best solutions may even be decidedly low-tech. Clear-eyed yet profoundly optimistic, Power to the Public presents a powerful blueprint for how government and nonprofits can help solve society’s most serious problems.

"[This book] shows you how to create a support system that will help your organization use technology more effectively and make your day-to-day life less hectic. This hands-on guide walks you through five projects that, when completed, will give you a comprehensive and usable support system: Conducting a technology inventory; Assessing and supporting staff; Assessing and buying technology; Protecting your organization from diasters and data loss; Managing your role."--Book cover.

Changing the way we use, develop, and fund technology for social change is possible, and it starts with you. The Tech That Comes Next: How Changemakers, Philanthropists, and Technologists Can Build an Equitable World outlines a vision of a more equitable and just world along with practical steps to creating it, appropriately leveraging technology along the way. In the book, you'll find: Strategies for changing culture and investments inside social impact organizations Ways to change technology development so it incorporates more of society Examples of data, security, and privacy laws and policies that need to change to protect vulnerable populations and advance positive change Ideal for nonprofit leaders, social activists, policymakers, technologists, entrepreneurs, founders, managers, and other business leaders, The Tech That Comes Next belongs in the libraries of anyone who envisions a world in which technology helps advance, rather than hinders, positive social change.

Technology is often relegated by nonprofits to the "if we have extra money" priority category. This book for the non-techie provides step-by-step directions on how any nonprofit can move modern technology front and center, thus improving their brand identity, resource development strategies and internal operations. The authors come from two perspectives: one a techie and one a non-techie. Included is a sample technology budget, a job description for a technology committee, a list of resources and so much more.