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Information Management/Information Technology and the Voluntary Sector - Environmental Scan

(Adobe Acrobat PDF)

An environmental scan of trends, opportunities and gaps in the information and communications technologies in the voluntary sector. The scan raises important issues about the sector's access to and use of information technology in its communications and fundraising activities.

The authors prepared a high-level literature review to understand the broad trends on IM/IT use in the voluntary sector and interviewed key informants who could comment broadly on the state of information technology and information management in the voluntary sector.

Key findings include:

• Non-profit organizations often have difficulty finding the time to devote to IT projects. They often underestimate the time and costs associated with adopting new technologies and find it hard to allocate funding to IT issues.

• Keeping abreast of new technologies presents an ongoing challenge for many organizations in the sector. However, one positive trend is the emergence of specialized service organizations that provide volunteer or low-cost IT support and expertise.

• People working in the sector have a wide range of IT needs, ranging from basic computer training to installing large networks. This suggests potential roles or government in aiding non-profit organizations.

Format - This report is available for download in Adobe Acrobat format [321K].

Language - English

Additional Information

Voluntary Sector Initiative