The buzz word of the day is “capacity building.”  Are you doing it?  From a technology perspective, GroundWork group is poised to guide nonprofit organizations through an exercise that will expand the capacity of nonprofits to serve their core missions. We call it our Continuum of Technology Maturity, and we designed this tool to help nonprofits identify ALL of their business functions that can be improved through better use of technology.

• Communications.  eNewsletters, blast email and social media
• Constituent Management. Management of client/constituent information and relationships
• Day-to-Day Operations. Software applications, automated processes, network reliability & security, disaster recovery, upgrades, data back-ups, and policies, procedures & documentation
• Fundraising. Automated, integrated fundraising applications
• Marketing. Interactive & updated websites and consistent messages among web & print communications
• Reporting. Organizational, financial and management reporting with advanced tools
• Service Delivery. Technology integrated into service delivery, mobile computing, advanced data security and service delivery continuity planning
• Strategic Planning. Technology as part of strategic plan and regularly updated
• Training and Education. Technology training and education plan for staff

The process begins with our Continuum of Technology Maturity questionnaire consisting of just 37 questions.  Thoughtful consideration and honest answers will generate a report identifying your nonprofit’s “Technology Maturity.”  Once we know where you are with your technology we can begin your ADVANCEMENT.  A GroundWork group representative will map a systemic path of improvement, consulting with you about applying GroundWork group’s Technology, Education and Information Management services across your business functions to make better use of your technology tools.  You will discover new, more efficient and more secure methods of managing your information.  With our strategic approach to technology, your nonprofit will increase your effectiveness at fulfilling the goals of your mission, meeting the needs of clients, reporting back to your board and the community, and requesting grant dollars.

Find out how you can enhance to work of your core mission by improving your technology.  Contact GroundWork group today, info@groundworkgroup.org or 614-884-7780, ext. 125.

Looking for ways to reduce your organization’s expenses?  We have cost-saving tips that are energy efficient and reduce waste, so they benefit not only your bottom line but also the environment.  Back in December, we put together a short-list of fairly quick and easy ideas for immediate and long-term savings for nonprofit organizations.   We have updated this list, and we are resending it because we want to spread the word as everyone is more cautious with spending in these very tough economic times. 

Save power with sleep mode.    Through your computer’s control panel, set the power schemes to initiate standby (sleep mode) after a certain length of inactivity. 

Turn off or unplug power to electronics.  Sleep mode saves energy, but powering the device down during longer periods can increase savings.  Set your computer’s power schemes to shut down your monitor and/or hard disk after a certain length of inactivity.  When employees are out of the office or your organization is closed, turn off your computer and monitor or laptop and unplug the power cord. As long as a power cord is plugged into an outlet, electricity continues to flow.  Completely turn off all of your printers and copy machines.  Unplug those cell phone/PDA/MP3 player/smart phone and other chargers while not in use.  Power is still being used while those are plugged in, even after the device is fully charged.

Run server scripts to shut down computers automatically.  Have all of the organization employees shut down their computers at least over the weekend.  A sure-fire way of turning off computers – have a script added to your server that will automatically shut down computers prior to the weekend.

GroundWork group’s equipment procurement program.  Yes, this sounds like an advertisement for GroundWork group; however, old computers can be turned into new workstations for cash-strapped nonprofits, and you keep that old machine out of the landfill.

Change the way you print documents.  Optimize your printer settings for maximum energy efficiency; make two-sided copies whenever possible; and, keep a bin of scrap paper for printing rough drafts and taking notes.  Consider document management services to reduce your organization’s paper output.

Consider an off-site data center.  A data center can house servers for multiple organizations.  Power is conserved by keeping the servers cool at one location rather than expending energy at each of the organizations’ locations.

Increase the efficiency of the water heater.  If you own your own building, take a look at your water heater. First, turn the temperature down to 120 degrees, or less if the office will be closed more than a few days.  Consider getting an insulation sweater to put around your water heater – this will reduce the amount of energy needed to keep the water hot. (We would suggest getting some more specific advice from a qualified plumber.)  Another thought – install a tankless water heater, so that you only heat water on demand, rather than spending energy to keep water hot.

Save power with energy-efficient lighting.  Lighting is one of the largest uses of power. Use natural lighting where you can or replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent lighting. Fluorescent lights use 1/3 the electricity of incandescent bulbs and last up to 10 times longer. LED lights are even more efficient than fluorescent lights, improvements have made LED lights more appealing, and estimates show that they can pay for themselves in energy savings in a year!

Install a water cooler in the office.  Stop purchasing water bottles for employees and visitors, and set up a water cooler system with reusable tanks, reducing costs and waste.

Use rechargeable batteries.  They cost less in the long-term plus they reduce waste.

The use of “open source” software has gained popularity among nonprofit organizations, largely due to potential cost-savings.   While the use of open source software can save nonprofits money by providing software free of charge, use of these types of products also can incur unexpected expenses. 

Downloading, installation and deployment may be free, but many open source products charge fees for technical support and some charge for licensing, potentially making usage more costly than anticipated.  Cost is not the only issue, functionality should also be considered.  Open source software users can run into difficulties such as:

• Lack of automatic updates and security patches.
• Necessity for additional hardware.
• Difficulty exchanging documents with offices running different software applications.
• Some users have felt more vulnerable to security breaches.
• Some open source software does have a purchase price.
• Some products offer tech support for free, others have surprisingly high fees.
• Limited availability of tech support.
• Issues with the methods, speed and accuracy of porting data.
• If you have no IT staff or your IT staff is unfamiliar with the product, you may have to hire IT consultants (at a cost to your organization) to modify the code for your purposes.

A thorough review of the features and a cost-benefit analysis will help determine which solution is right for your organization.  While we address some concerns, there is a great amount of effective open source software that can save your organization money, so your solution very well may include open source products.  Currently, GroundWork group is using open source software for our internal work order management and within our CIVIC Solution information management tool set.  We recommend careful consideration and comparison of multiple software resources before making a decision.  GroundWork group IT Specialists are always willing to help nonprofits identify the appropriate Information Technology tools for your organization’s unique needs.  Please contact us at info@groundworkgroup.org or 614-884-7780, ext. 125 with your IT questions or concerns.

Business Productivity Classes – Microsoft Office
Platform Labs, 1275 Kinnear Rd., Columbus, 43212

Monday, May 4
Microsoft Outlook 2007 Level 1, 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Microsoft PowerPoint  2007 Level 1, 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Microsoft Outlook 2007 Level 1, 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
This course is designed for people with a basic understanding of Microsoft Windows who need to learn how to use Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 to compose and send email, schedule appointments and meetings, manage contact information and work with tasks and notes.

Microsoft PowerPoint  2007 Level 1, 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
This course is designed for students who are interested in learning the fundamentals needed to create and modify basic Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 presentations.  Learn all the basics of PowerPoint design; how to effectively use PowerPoint to enhance presentations or stand alone; how to create strong PowerPoint slides; use design templates, graphics, voice and animation; insert charts; add WordArt; set timing and slide transitions; and, pack PowerPoint to go.

Monday, June 8
Microsoft Excel 2007 Level 1, 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Microsoft Word 2007 Level 1, 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Microsoft Excel 2007 Level 1, 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.  Does using Excel give you butterflies?  Not anymore.  Our beginner Excel 2007 course is a simple, hands-on approach to learning all the Excel basics.  Learn how to manipulate worksheets; work with data; create simple formulas; format worksheets; use relative, absolute, mixed and 3D references; sort data effectively; create basic charts; and, save and print Excel workbooks.

Microsoft Word 2007 Level 1, 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.  Most of us are self-taught and only use 1/10 the capability.  In this course, learn the most common, efficient ways to make Word work for you.  Learn how to set up Word; work with text; create, remove and modify bulleted/numbered text; use headers and footers effectively; create and format tables; convert tables; use readability statistics; insert graphics; and, use special features of Word 2007.

Cost for each session: $30 for Full Members; $40 for Associate Members; $50 for Non-Members.
Please RSVP to Brenda Grosse: bgrosse@groundworkgroup.org or 614-884-7780, ext. 101.

Nonprofit IT Forum – Topics: Social Networking and Wireless Networking & Security
Tuesday, May 12 – Noon to 1:30 p.m.
Jewish Family Services, 1070 College Ave., Columbus, 43209

Based upon your survey responses, the number 1 & 2 items of concern are Social Networking (…still) and Wireless Networking & Security.  We will cover both topics in the upcoming Nonprofit IT Forum.

Who should attend?

• Anyone who thinks social networking is just wireless networking with the encryption turned off.
• Anyone still struggling with the how’s and why’s of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.
• Definitely anyone who has Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn all figured out.
• Anyone considering, or currently running, a wireless LAN who has concerns about its security.
• Definitely anyone running a wireless LAN who has absolute confidence in its security.
• Anyone who like free pizza, salad and pop.

Even if these aren’t your favorite issues, please come anyway.  We are likely to discuss more than two topics in our 90 minutes, and we look forward to your suggestions to help drive our discussions.

Lunch will be provided courtesy of the Tony R. Wells Foundation.
Please RSVP to Brenda Grosse: bgrosse@groundworkgroup.org or 614-884-7780, ext. 101.

SAVE THE DATE! GroundWork group fourth Annual Conference, Friday, October 2, 2009 at the Fawcett Center on The Ohio State University campus.  More details to follow.