GroundWork group

Background

GroundWork group (GWg) was organized in 2003 in response to research, conducted by United Way of Central Ohio (UWCO), that indicated the top barrier to capacity building by nonprofit organizations was "technology." United Way convened a group of community representatives from diverse backgrounds to study the data management capabilities and needs of Central Ohio nonprofits. The work of this committee led to the formation of GWg.

GroundWork group incorporated in 2005 as an independent 501(c)(3) organization with the vision to be the community solutions center bringing together nonprofit organizations, funders, IT professionals and businesses to provide affordable and sustainable information technology solutions which serve as a strategic enabler of nonprofit business success.

January 1, 2008, GroundWork group merged with CIVIC (Columbus Information Via Computer). CIVIC was established in 1984 as a collaborative project by The Columbus Foundation and CompuServe (later America Online/AOL). CIVIC specialized in nonprofit data management systems specially tailored to the individual needs of organizations and available in a shared services environment to bring costs down for all users and increasing their data management capacity.

July 1, 2010, GroundWork group launched the affiliate GroundWork group Orange County in southern California. A collaboration of nonprofit organizations and funders in Orange County sought out GroundWork group's line of services to fulfill the unmet technology needs of their charitable organizations.

The opening of the GWg office in California is the first in a series of steps for us to realize our expansion goals, as we are investigating possible moves into additional communities. This level of expansion means an increased ability to enhance our current technology offerings and to develop new solutions for all GroundWork group Members, in Central Ohio and in Orange County.

The GroundWork group 2014 Vision is to extend our business model beyond Central Ohio and leverage its capability to increase our impact and become a national presence in the nonprofit technology space.

Accomplishments

GroundWork group has been a tremendous success, growing from a new organization with zero Members the first year to more than 230 nonprofit organization Members today in Central Ohio, California, Michigan and Virginia. GWg engages hundreds of IT professionals, business leaders, funding representatives and community volunteers locally, regionally and nationwide to drive our mission "To strengthen the impact of nonprofit organizations by enhancing their ability to manage their business operations and achieve their missions through sustainable and affordable information management, education and technology solutions."

We have developed many unique qualities for GWg, and all have contributed to our success.

• Funding strategy combining contributed support with earned revenues to achieve financial self-sustainability
• As a nonprofit ourselves, we understand how critical it is to make sure that operational challenges are minimized in the most cost-effective manner so that our nonprofit customers can focus on serving their core missions.
• Shared services model to drive costs down for users.
• Unique line of services – affordable and sustainable technology, information management, educational, web and event management services – to help increase the capacity of nonprofit organizations to serve their clients.
• We help many. GWg is working with more nonprofits in Central Ohio than any other organization.
• Our Service Delivery model aims to improve the operational success of nonprofits by identifying how they can use technology more effectively to support all of their core business functions.

GroundWork group's Positive Impact on Nonprofit Technology

GroundWork group has successfully expanded the capacity of Central Ohio nonprofit organizations to serve the community through affordable technology solutions specially targeted at each nonprofit's unique needs.

Our Business Model is replicable and scalable. We will deliver solid results in new locations as we expand into additional markets.

Five years ago, Central Ohio's nonprofits were managing their data using simple spreadsheets – Today nonprofits are using sophisticated tools to manage constituent relationships, and they have high quality data.

• A major improvement over recent years, nonprofits now have reliable networks and have centralized data.
• System security was an immense challenge to nonprofits just a few years ago, but security is a high priority today.
• Nonprofits across the region are protecting client data with advanced security tools.
• Nonprofits in Central Ohio are now technology savvy in the area of marketing.
• They have marketing plans and are using the web as an effective marketing tool to reach their audiences.
• Nonprofits have dramatically increased their electronic communications, and we continue to see growth in the usage of advanced email devices and social media.
• Many sectors of the local nonprofit industry are doing a better job of leveraging technology tools to build their fundraising capabilities.
• Most nonprofits are no longer dependent on donated or refurbished equipment and use IT professionals for day-to-day operations, rather than relying on volunteer IT support.

While we still have work to do to encourage nonprofits to view technology as a strategic investment, we see progress as more and more nonprofits budget for IT support, equipment and training.

For more information on how GroundWork group has strengthened the ability of nonprofits to achieve their missions, please read our Report to the Central Ohio Community: The Impact of Technology on Nonprofit Organizational Effectiveness.