Global Good Network Adapts to Changing Industry Needs
Technology is amazing, but it can only take you so far. At YourCause, we see the value of forming rich and long-standing partnerships with our clients to help them be their best, rather than being just their technology provider. There are many different elements that makeup how we build a strong partnership, and one of those is the focus on the community that has formed between like-minded organizations all with an objective to do good. Today, our Global Good Network is made up of 423 organizations and hundreds of thousands of nonprofits actively engaging within their communities and has become the core driver in everything that we do here at YourCause, a Blackbaud solution.
We are CSR Leaders #1 Fans
Providing above-and-beyond expertise is something the YourCause team never puts on the backburner. By sharing product knowledge, demonstrating leadership, and consistently communicating with CSR leads, account managers, act as another member of the CSR team. The reoccurring meetings are dynamic – it’s more than just checking the boxes on administrative tasks, but also getting a read on the pulse of your clients and where they want to be to ensure everything is on track. Proactively checking in both the current programs being run and desired programs to be run in the future ensures our account managers can align their guidance to make it happen and maximize impact.
The Power of Networking
Collaboration is a key ingredient of the Global Good Network. Account managers are always sharing best practices and connecting to see which organization has done a certain kind of program initiative to learn the benefits or potential roadblocks that their own client could encounter. Our internal client support library is full of examples and references, as well as specific user guides to allow for a quick turnaround of any need. As peers in the community, CSR leads within our network are empowered to leverage relationships with one another, and it’s been really incredible to see them run with it. ‘Guru Sessions’ take place regularly, set on their own agendas, and serve as a way for everyone to learn from each other, and communicate back to the YourCause team any focus areas or needs we need to prioritize to help them best succeed.
Endless Growth and Learning Opportunities
Getting the most out of the Global Good Network includes ongoing learning. Monthly client admin workshops are structured into three sections – a demo of a product feature, an external show and tell featuring a recent release, and a deep-dive on reporting tips and tricks. Designed in a super approachable atmosphere, workshops encourage admins to drop-in for topics of value for continuous learning beyond check-ins. Training isn’t just for new product releases or new program launch, it is part of the partnership and allows our CSR leaders continual growth and the chance to achieve even more greatness through our platform!
Alongside workshops, sharing marketing content that is individualized for each client’s scope is another way we try to get our leads excited and amplify their social impact learning. Our marketing library is full of resources that cover a wide variety of topics, trends, and program-types, which is why staying aware of and proactively sharing resources that are specific to each client can ensure they stay up to speed and are always informed.
Always Adapting to Ever-changing Needs
It comes with a combination of actively listening to high demand requests of clients and responding to industry trends that keeps the Global Good Network constantly evolving and staying innovative. We encourage transparency – it allows us to adjust and improve on any best practices that result in paving the way for the rest of our community. But with that, any decision made to adjust the platform is determined by looking at the effects of the entire network to see if it really is in the best interest overall.
We ask ourselves: By making each change, which organizations will benefit, and which could face a roadblock? Developing a 6-month product roadmap allows our team to quickly and efficiently pivot based on what we are hearing from the market or within the Global Good Network. In addition to product developments, the topics of client workshops and trainings are mostly determined in response to the common requests and needs of our network.
Global Good Network Goes Virtual
Amidst the negative disruptions Covid-19 has made on organizations, the network has continued to collaborate and engage with one another. However, the impact has led to a vast majority of CSR teams to focus less on administrative tasks and more on acting as ‘sponges’, soaking up research and gathering ideas from what others are doing. It’s no wonder webinar attendance has spiked in the past few months – it’s a perfect opportunity to strategize and learn from each other. Many programs had to immediately change focus to relief efforts when the pandemic first escalated, making a need to update and refine programs a priority more than ever.
“Having a powerful network has never been more important. More than ever, companies are banding together to amplify shared purpose and the power of their influence. Through the Global Good Network, our customers create an immediate resource for collaboration, problem-solving, and thought leadership.” – Odessa Jenkins, VP of Client Support Services at Blackbaud Corporate Solutions. Navigating through a global pandemic is a new experience for us all, but the community and Global Good Network are really all in this together.