Wrapping up the NTC
March 31, 2008 09:10 AM
A couple weeks ago, I had the chance to travel to New Orleans for NTEN's NTC (Nonprofit Technology Conference). It was an excellent opportunity to meet people outside of their 100x100 pixel selves and for spontaneous, interesting conversations.
I attended sessions, heard some great plenary presentations, and even got to see a bit of the work local nonprofits are doing for the post-storm rebuild. Here are a couple interesting and compelling ideas shared in sessions and conversations that I will expand on in the coming days:
- Many "techies" in nonprofit organizations don't have an extensive background, or training in technology. Instead, we/they/you are called "accidental techies," meaning that the circumstances were such that it was necessary to have a tech person fix something or help someone and that person, for whatever reason the universe held, was us/them/you. And thus began our/their/your career as a NP techie. BUT, the "accidental"-ness of the position, in no way lessens the legitimacy of the position!
- Adopting new technologies in your organization is difficult, granted. But it is still necessary! One thing to keep in mind as individual staff and the organization adapts to new technologies is that you shouldn't be a cheerleader for the specific accomplishments, but try to consistently cheer on the people and their work and the tools they are using!
- At the end of the day, everyone in the nonprofit wants to accomplish the mission of the organization and service the need or population addressed, regardless of our job title. So, too, should all of our goals and strategies within departments, even the tech department. This means designing benchmarks for Return On Investment in your tech strategies that help you evaluate if you are meeting the organization's mission!
I will be covering these three areas in more detail in the coming days, so leave a comment with questions or ideas and I'll be sure to address those as well!
I covered three of the sessions I attended with CoverItLive. You can read the transcripts here:
- Building, Growing, and Sustaining a Vibrant Online Community: How to Reach Beyond Traditional Tools into the Web 2.0 Sphere (with Beth Kanter, Susan Tenby, Keith Morris and Abby Sandlin presenting)
- Targeting Your Message: Values-Based Segmentation and Communication Strategies for Nonprofits (with representatives from McQueen Morrow Associates presenting)
- E-Advocacy: Mission over Membership (with Charles Lenchner, Colin Delany, Jonan Compitello, and Farra Trompeter presenting)
