I was interviewed for two articles that were published recently. The NonProfit Times ran the story The Evolution of Donor Management And Its Fundraising Future, which deals with how technology is transforming the way nonprofits interact with donors, particularly online. And the … [Read more...]
Important changes for GiftWorks users
FrontStream, the current owner of GiftWorks, sent me the following notice this week: Hey there Robert, As in the past, we are preparing to upgrade FrontStream CRM (previously GiftWorks 2013) users to the newest version of CRM. This change is in-line with our transition to a subscription-based … [Read more...]
On the value of donor database ratings
A colleague forwarded the following email from a vendor and asked how I think a potential buyer should respond. I've redacted the message to anonymize the vendor: Dear ____, I thought you might be interested in a recent analysis of low cost fundraising software, conducted jointly by … [Read more...]
More nonprofit software mergers and acquisitions
Last year the big news in my industry was Blackbaud's acquisition of Convio and the merger/acquisition of Datatel and Sungard Higher Education (now called Ellucian). 2013 is off to a bang with Accel-KKR's acquisition of Sage's Nonprofit Solutions Group and iModules acquisition of Harris … [Read more...]
Finding a replacement for Tungle.me
I've been using Tungle for years to share my calendar with colleagues and clients. It allowed them to view my availability online and propose meetings as if we were all on the same calendaring system. Unfortunately, RIM bought Tungle in 2011 and it started to decline. Appointments … [Read more...]
Blackbaud kills Common Ground: So What?
According to the Foundation Center’s analysis of data from the National Center for Charitable Statistics, there are approximately 1.5 million nonprofits in the U.S. According to the Q&A that Idealware conducted with Blackbaud, approximately 400 nonprofits are using the version of Common Ground … [Read more...]
Blackbaud kills off Common Ground
Yesterday the news was that Blackbaud had laid off 50 employees it acquired when it bought Convio in May. In what was said to be an unrelated development, they also announced the departure of Gene Austin, the former CEO of Convio. Today the news is that Blackbaud is killing off Common Ground, … [Read more...]
Blackbaud’s acquisition of Convio is a done deal
Blackbaud completed its purchase of Convio. The next adventure starts today, as we wait to see what the future holds for their various systems. … [Read more...]
Blackbaud – Convio merger expected to close this week
The Department of Justice signed off on Blackbaud's acquisition of Convio last week, and it looks like the deal will close this week. This is just the beginning of the story. I expect that it will take at least several months, and probably several years, before the dust settles and we … [Read more...]
Defunct Google Products
Google: It's great that they keep innovating, and of course not every idea will work out. But Google's record of killing off products makes me nervous about my reliance on them. Here are some defunct products I remember (and here are some I never tried. Even more. Still more.): … [Read more...]