%0 Generic %1 nonprofittechgap %A Geller, Stephanie L. %A Abramson, Alan J. %A de Leon, Erwin %D 2010 %K NGOs activism civic hacktivism society technology %T The Nonprofit Technology Gap: Myth or Reality? %U http://www.ccss.jhu.edu/pdfs/LP_Communiques/LP_Communique20_IT.pdf %X Nonprofit organizations are widely assumed to be technologically challenged, largely bereft of the cutting-edge hardware and software needed to function effectively in the new information era. “From antiquated technology to bureaucratic red tape, working at a nonprofit can be downright exasperating,” 1 is how one foundation’s website describes the nonprofit workplace. Similarly, a page describing nonprofit work on the popular website, Idealist, warns, “If you prize…the latest in office technology, many nonprofit organizations will disappoint, frustrate, and discourage you.” 2 How well do these impressions of the nonprofit sector reflect reality? Have nonprofits been able to integrate sophisticated technologies into their operations and use them to their full potential? Perhaps most importantly, have nonprofits been able to use such technologies to support and enhance their delivery of mission-critical programs and services—the core reason behind nonprofits’ existence? What variations, if any, exist by organizational size, age, service area, and field? Finally, what challenges are limiting nonprofits’ use of information technologies and preventing them from using such technologies as effectively and as comprehensively as possible? To answer these important questions, the Johns Hopkins Nonprofit Listening Post Project conducted a Sounding, or survey, of its nationwide sample of roughly 1,100 nonprofit organizations in four key fields (children and family services, elderly housing and services, community and economic development, and the arts) in 2009. Altogether, 443 organizations responded to this survey, producing a response rate of 42 percent, which is quite respectable in this field, particularly at a time of economic hardship. 3 Three key findings resulted from this inquiry: 1. The majority of nonprofits are relying on a range of current information technologies for both administrative functions and program and service delivery. 2. However, most nonprofits are not content with the extent to which they have integrated technologies into program and service delivery and recognize that they could be doing more. 3. Lack of funding, time, and expertise are the major barriers preventing nonprofits from harnessing the full potential of information technologies. The balance of this Communiqué examines these and other important findings in more detail.

@misc{nonprofittechgap, abstract = {Nonprofit organizations are widely assumed to be technologically challenged, largely bereft of the cutting-edge hardware and software needed to function effectively in the new information era. “From antiquated technology to bureaucratic red tape, working at a nonprofit can be downright exasperating,” 1 is how one foundation’s website describes the nonprofit workplace. Similarly, a page describing nonprofit work on the popular website, Idealist, warns, “If you prize…the latest in office technology, many nonprofit organizations will disappoint, frustrate, and discourage you.” 2 How well do these impressions of the nonprofit sector reflect reality? Have nonprofits been able to integrate sophisticated technologies into their operations and use them to their full potential? Perhaps most importantly, have nonprofits been able to use such technologies to support and enhance their delivery of mission-critical programs and services—the core reason behind nonprofits’ existence? What variations, if any, exist by organizational size, age, service area, and field? Finally, what challenges are limiting nonprofits’ use of information technologies and preventing them from using such technologies as effectively and as comprehensively as possible? To answer these important questions, the Johns Hopkins Nonprofit Listening Post Project conducted a Sounding, or survey, of its nationwide sample of roughly 1,100 nonprofit organizations in four key fields (children and family services, elderly housing and services, community and economic development, and the arts) in 2009. Altogether, 443 organizations responded to this survey, producing a response rate of 42 percent, which is quite respectable in this field, particularly at a time of economic hardship. 3 Three key findings resulted from this inquiry: 1. The majority of nonprofits are relying on a range of current information technologies for both administrative functions and program and service delivery. 2. However, most nonprofits are not content with the extent to which they have integrated technologies into program and service delivery and recognize that they could be doing more. 3. Lack of funding, time, and expertise are the major barriers preventing nonprofits from harnessing the full potential of information technologies. The balance of this Communiqué examines these and other important findings in more detail.}, added-at = {2011-01-10T13:44:34.000+0100}, author = {Geller, Stephanie L. and Abramson, Alan J. and de Leon, Erwin}, biburl = {https://www.bibsonomy.org/bibtex/2d1d79b3631554e78ea38ee858d7b4ea8/yish}, howpublished = {Communique no. 20}, institution = {The Listining Post Project, The Center for Civil Society Studies, Johns Hopkins Universit}, interhash = {c1c5d5f76fbb2dd3206501bbab163ce5}, intrahash = {d1d79b3631554e78ea38ee858d7b4ea8}, keywords = {NGOs activism civic hacktivism society technology}, timestamp = {2011-01-10T13:44:34.000+0100}, title = {The Nonprofit Technology Gap: Myth or Reality?}, url = {http://www.ccss.jhu.edu/pdfs/LP_Communiques/LP_Communique20_IT.pdf}, year = 2010 }