How to save money on tech as a Non Profit
By Josh Hurley
As a Non Profit technology can fall on the backburner. That's understandable. Your goal is to serve your mission and the people or animals or places that need you.
So how do you save money, but also not lose money long term by not spending? At the Non Profit I worked at for a decade as the IT Director, I battled this problem first hand. Where I worked, I faced multiple issues.
The first thing I needed to do was assess the situation. In this case the infrastructure. Not necessarily just the physical infrastructure. Sound difficult? It really isn't. To find out how effective your IT infrastructure is, ask yourself and your colleagues the following questions:
Does my IT work?
Is my IT reliable?
Is my company's digital assets safe?
Do I have the resources I need to carry out my mission?
Does my IT work? This is a pretty simple question that is easily answered yes or no. Ask your staff and you will get an answer pretty quick.
Is my IT reliable? To determine this issue, ask yourself can I access the tools I have when I need them.
Is my company's digital assets safe? How comfortable are you against a potential attack? Do you have antivirus software? Do you have a firewall? These are critical questions.
Do I have the resources I need to carry out my mission? The software, the internet, the website, the staffing. This is probably the most important question. Everyone in your organization should be able to answer yes to this question.
If you answered no to any of these questions then it is probably time to look at investing in your organizations future. The next step is to figure out what you need. For this step, I'm going to use internet access as an example.
At my NP, internet access was a major issue. We used the local company's business internet. It wasn't reliable or what we needed. Unfortunately due to area we were in, we only had access to this one company. This company wasn't interested in improvements in the area. Our organization needed reliable internet. We sold tickets to our attraction, so we needed to be able to quickly run credit cards.
The third step is act. I started making calls. I called every internet provider in the area. Not just in our city but even companies close by. I found a company that was willing to fit the bill up front as long as we signed a multi year deal. Our internet speeds went from pitiful to the fastest in town.
How did this new internet provider save us money? The infrastructure cost upgrade was $125,000. We didn't pay any of that. Our internet was now reliable and open multiple new doors for us.
Maybe your issue isn't internet. It may be outdated PCs. It could be software you need to take the next step in your organization. There are affordable options and solutions out there within your reach. Invest in your future.
If you need assistance in assessing your IT infrastructure, 930 TECH can help. We understand the need for maximum return. Contact us for a free initial assessment.
