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"...we have been collecting HUD client data by hand for five years."
Information Management
Nonprofit organizations face an incredibly demanding information management task, as they are required to track a significant amount of qualitative data and present that data in a quantitative form. Nonprofits with multiple programs and funding streams have a further complicated information management task. Often, each program requires a completely different database system. The information that the system tracks is dictated by external demands, such as a funder's reporting requirements, as well as internal requirements for the organization's evaluation. However, nonprofits typically do not possess adequate resources to meet this challenge.
The majority of nonprofits approach information management in terms of funding requirements. This point of view, however, skews technology procedures away from accurately modeling the situation. Instead of organizing information gathering procedures alongside a database, individual metrics are gathered piecemeal and stored in paper or spreadsheet format. If an organization were to accurately model an activity in a database from which statistics are required, meeting the reporting requirements of funders would become trivial.
Accurately modeling real-world activities in databases and software is not the job of nonprofit organizations, so software or database developers are typically called upon to complete the task. However, the software development community has primarily modeled its solutions on forprofit business environments; as a result, nonprofit software packages such as donor management, client tracking and case-management software, are expensive due to relatively limited size of the market.
Challenge Statement: Nonprofits need to efficiently track program information.
Strategy 1: Develop database applications for tracking program data. Creating Web-based software packages for nonprofit use will address the needs present.
Strategy 2: Collect and distribute custom software solutions. Nonprofits may be willing to share or sell custom, developed systems with other nonprofits. This would reduce those expenditures typically incurred when starting from scratch.
Strategy 3: Promote the use of existing systems. Recently, a number of tools have emerged to address major nonprofit data tracking needs including client, donor and member information. For example, Ebase is a free member and donor system, however, local training and customization services are sparse.
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Introduction
Organizational Summary
Future Directions
Technology Planning
Training
Networking
Information Management
Hardware
Protection & Security
Internet Use
Technology Policies
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