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Slide 1: Choosing Software for Your Foundation Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004 Henry A. Bromelkamp, President Bromelkamp Company
Slide 2: Software Tasks     contacts tracking grants management fundraising accounting/fund accounting Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004       matching contributions volunteer tracking scholarship management event registration timesheets document management
Slide 3: Why?         speed accuracy public accountability service to constituents ease of use reliability adaptability integration Never type the same thing twice. Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 4: Contacts Tracking             make labels record seasonal addresses compose single and group emails generate single letters generate form letters dial the phone look up geographic information record relationship management events store documents, images, media prevent duplicate entries allow for multiple salutations connect to email/Outlook and your PDA Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 5: Grants Management           automate acknowledgements, reminders connect to accounting store documents/images keep track of when we’ve talked to them integrate with mapping connect to Guidestar.org check antiterrorism lists show applicant history prevent grants when reports overdue print checks or do direct deposit Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 6: Accounting/ Fund Accounting            Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004 print ledger, balance sheet, income statement print checks direct deposit accrue payables and receivables keep funds distinct (fund accounting) payroll budget/actual comparison assess fund administrative fees calculate spendable allotment allocate joint investment income integrate with grants management and fundraising
Slide 7: Fundraising      donor prospects record gifts thanks donors, remind of pledges acknowledge memorials/honorary gifts record appeals Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 8: Shopping      locate options view demonstrations get estimates talk to references negotiate Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 9: Software Vendors Installed Software  MicroEdge (Gifts, FIMS, FoundationPower)  Bromelkamp (Pearl, First Pearl, Community Pearl)  do-it-yourself Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004 ASP (Application Service Providers) on the web  CyberGrants  Collaborative Standards  Stellar Financial  FoundationSource  Dyna-Quest Technologies (Grants Administrator)  Arlington Group (Easygrants)
Slide 10: Vendor Evaluation      availability of product reputation & references support expertise ability to understand and communicate Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 11: Costs one time & ongoing:  software licenses  customizations  data conversion  add-ons: bridge to accounting, Outlook, guidestar, antiterrorism, online application, other databases  training  travel or other expenses Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 12: Finance  rent/lease  phase in your project  share costs in group training Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 13: Twists  Integration – how connected is the software within itself and to other data?  Flexibility – how will the software fit your process, now and in the future? Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 14: Justification     lower printing costs less staff time more accurate reports faster reports Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 15: Installation Cycle  order  customizations  data conversion (you can’t edit your data for a few days or weeks while the vendor works on it)  training  testing (verify the data matches the old system, and that the software works)  warranty (what happens when something doesn’t work?)  adjusting (give yourself more time and leeway to make a few mistakes and learn)  long-term support  re-evaluation every few years Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 16: Support Services       help line training data conversion/importing customization data cleaning (removing duplicates, unused codes, etc.) internal procedures and customs (abbreviations, etc.) Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 17: Marriage You are not purchasing a file cabinet. You’re beginning a long-term relationship with a business partner. Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 18: Don’t       don’t hire a consultant to choose your software don’t expect you’ll cut staff don’t be the guinea pig for untested technology don’t shortchange training don’t shortchange long-term support don’t think software makes bad processes good Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 19: Do  check out all your options  talk to colleagues  plan well  expect change Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 20: You Have Choices Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004
Slide 21: Questions? Thank you. Henry A. Bromelkamp, President Bromelkamp Company 106 E 24 St, Minneapolis MN 55404 USA 888-290-9087 www.bromelkamp.com Conference of Southwest Foundations October 2004