6 Ways the Cloud Has Revolutionized the Way Nonprofits Work

Millions of people have already adopted cloud computing, and if you are one of them, you’ll probably need no introduction to cloud technology or to the immense benefits that this revolutionary innovation brings. We could start with the massive facilitation of collaboration among teams and increased efficiency but that’s just but scratching the surface.

In a recent poll reported by NetSuite, 81% of businesses feel cloud computing has given them a competitive advantage over their rivals. These benefits stretch beyond for-profit organizations as well.

Nonprofit organizations have reported thorough transformations made by leveraging cloud computing. Back in 2012, TechSoup conducted a survey involving 10,000 nonprofits, from which 90% were reported to have adopted cloud computing to some extent. These include file sharing and storage, emails, Salesforce, and productivity applications.

Of course, adopting the cloud doesn’t mean everything will be all sunshine and rainbows. Across a variety of businesses, decision-makers often assume that cloud data is 100% safe. That’s not always the case.

Benefits of cloud technology to non-profit organizations

Nonetheless, here are 5 ways nonprofits have utilized cloud technology to revolutionize their operations.

1. Remote access

Nonprofits are comprised of different groups of people including stakeholders, grant writers, board members, and more. For these people to collaborate effectively from their different locations, data access is key. Remote access allows access to data by members regardless of their locations across the world.

Cloud data access facilitates this collaboration by allowing all teams who need access to the data to have it, irrespective of where they are on the globe. As a result of this remote access, productivity is enhanced because data can be shared safely and more effectively.

JMT Consulting reports that 42% of nonprofits actually cite “remote access” as one of the most useful benefits of cloud technology.

2. Carbon Footprint Reduction

Nonprofits operate to address various issues, but one thing that cuts across almost all nonprofit organizations is their vested interest in minimizing their carbon footprint to help save our planet. The cloud helps nonprofits reduce their carbon footprint.

Using cloud technology means installing data centers to host cloud services rather than maintaining IT infrastructure on-premise. Data centers are clearly more energy efficient because you only need a few servers to be built and maintained, which is less costly than if you were to install IT infrastructure on-premise to handle the same amount of service and resources.

Based on a recent survey by Google Apps, this is extremely relevant, as the survey revealed that a typical organization could lower their energy costs and reduce carbon emissions by between 68-87% if they migrated to the cloud.

3. Software and hardware cost reduction

If anything is of great concern to nonprofits, it’s saving as much money as possible so funds can be channeled into achieving core objectives. If there’s a way to do so, they will do whatever possible to achieve it.

The cloud offers nonprofits one sure way to do so by eliminating software and hardware that normally comes with expensive installations, upgrades, and servicing. This cost-saving technique normally targets the expenditure on electricity of on-site hardware and their IT personnel responsible for their maintenance.

Furthermore, the cloud has transformed how nonprofits work by putting them on the path to reap big on all the benefits of enterprise-class security, disaster recovery, and backup services, at a fraction of the cost. Nonprofits can enjoy enterprise-class security, whilst at the same time reducing costs.

4. Unmatched scalability

Nonprofits are naturally unpredictable, with continuous fluctuations in donations, volunteer numbers, etc.

With cloud technology, nonprofits have an opportunity to manage current needs more effectively as they scale up or down, rather than constantly predicting the amount of resources needed. With this kind of control available, nonprofits can comfortably scale up if there’s a need for more storage space to accommodate large fundraising events, or if need be, scale down when activities are much quieter and thus save money. Unmatched scalability makes it easy to efficiently and successfully manage growth.

The cloud’s scalable infrastructure allows more fundraising opportunities than ever before. Also, Software as a Service and Platform as a Service are allowing nonprofits to achieve milestones on smaller budgets that would otherwise be practically impossible. Furthermore, taking advantage of the cloud’s scalability allows nonprofits to comfortably handle peaks in demand during big charity drives. Because more and more people are connecting to their favorite causes via their mobile phones, web-based fundraising is the way to go for nonprofits.

5. Time Savings

One distinct characteristic of nonprofits is that they tend to be limited in most resources, time being no exception. Actually, time is of the most valuable assets nonprofits have. The cloud seeks to offer them more of it.

Nonprofit organizations can save countless hours by just adopting and sticking to the cloud. For example, the cloud could save lots of administration time through its quick deployment. The same goes for tedious, office-based tasks whose automation, through advanced cloud applications, yield more time for other activities so they can refocus on mission-centric productivity.

While some may argue about the automation of tasks may also be achieved through on-premise apps, cloud apps require less IT maintenance compared to on-premise apps. The absence of constant IT maintenance on cloud apps saves nonprofits not only time, but money, too.

Achieving real success is a hard enough task as it is for nonprofits, so allocating time to their goals rather than monotonous administrative tasks can be incredibly valuable. The adoption of the cloud technology gives them this ability.

Wrap up

Nonprofits have historically been viewed as behind the curve in adopting innovative approaches to tackle their challenges. However, with the advancement in technology and with new revelations of industry-changing innovations such as the cloud, things are beginning to change for the better.

Cloud technology adoption for nonprofits is no longer a suggestion but a necessity for nonprofits looking to advance to the next level of service delivery and organizational efficiency. Plumlogix is ready to walk the digital transformation path with you. All you have to do is reach out here.