Grassroots Technology: Are you succeeding?

I posted on my work blog about The Institute for Nonprofit Organization Management‘s new report “Successful Technology Use in Small Grassroots Nonprofits.”

Grassroots nonprofit organizations are often overwhelmed by the underpaid and overworked lifestyle. Technology is available in abundance to help save time and money and better tool volunteers and staff to do the work they are passionate about. BUT, one problem that surfaces time and again is getting the right technology into the organizations and learning to use it so time, money and resources CAN be saved. The most compelling piece of the puzzle, though, for small nonprofits working in the field is that technology can really make or brake success.

The report covers innovative uses of technology, indicators of success, and factors that foster success. Organizations were compared by field, organization type, location, and more.

Complimentary to the event we conducted on the 19th on distributing content for nonprofits, in which I lead a breakout session on video, organizations included in the report are using video cameras to film events and demonstrations to use in future outreach efforts. Some are even leveraging youth in the community with technology affinity to help produce the videos, providing educational opportunities for the youth involved as well as producing quality video media to use as an organization.

Let’s cut to the chase though.

Here are the highlighted factors for success for internal and external technology use:

Internal:

• At least one technologically knowledgeable staff person
• Creativity in thinking of ways to use the technology and research the possibilities
• Allocation of sufficient time and money for training, adoption, and maintenance of the technology
• Staff receptivity to technology
• Understanding of and willingness to listen to the communities served

External:

• Availability of knowledgeable and affordable support personnel
• Start-up funding
• Reliable technological infrastructure

If you haven’t yet, you should definitely check it out, as all organizations can learn something from the grassroots stories in the report.