Executive Know How: Know Your Non-Profit’s IT Structure

Why should busy executives know about the IT structure in their non-profit? While the reasons are

many, we will explore some of the key ones that directly impact the bottom line for non-profits. After all, as a non-profit you set out to do good in the world. Thus, anywhere in your charity you can have economies of scale and automation to minimize costs is good for the cause and the world, right? Well, let’s take a peek at some of the basics every executive should have a fundamental understanding. Here are the questions every executive should ask:

1.     How will this new technology fundamentally move us toward our mission? Carefully examine new technology to ensure it is a time saver, cost saver or somehow adds to the bottom line. Sometimes, we get very excited about the coolest, shiny new thing and forget to truly ask, is it necessary?

2.     Do we already have technology in our IT tech stack that does a similar function? Can we just use what we have? Sounds crazy right? Well, all too many times, there are companies with three project management platforms, two automation platforms and three pieces of donor management software. Make sure what you are looking to add to your stack doesn’t already exist.

3.     What problem is it solving? We have mentioned this one before, but it is worth repeating. Too often we are like raccoons going after the shiny object instead of taking a moment to consider the options. Remember, there are ten ways to Sunday to do anything in technology, thus, make sure to consider all options before making significant investments in IT.

4.     Do we have the right team to support the new investment? All too often the answer to this one is a big glaring NO. If this is true, don’t be afraid to hire some tech savvy outsourced IT muscle like that of Geekibo. It’s never a problem to at least have a conversation. Sometimes, you will save thousands in the long run by having the right team in place.

These are just some of the top questions you will want to be asking. For complete list of questions and a complementary consultation, reach out to us at Geekibo and we will be glad to help. Get your complete list and free consult here: www.geekibo.com/complementaryconsult .