Small nonprofits can benefit from free or heavily discounted software offered by large organizations such as Google or Microsoft. In addition to crib notes on how to access these resources, considerations for the hard implementation and challenges to maintain the software are considered.
- You Had Me at Free Software
- Proving Your Worth(iness)
- No Free Techsoup for Lunch
- SAPAA’s Decision Time
- What is Next?
- Notes and Further Reading
A good corporate citizen helps the nonprofit community by giving free or discounted access to its products. Microsoft and Google are two such companies offering their productivity suites (aka Office 365 and Google Workspace).
These are generous offers, and it is good business on their part. It exposes a larger segment of the population to their products. In addition, the volunteer bookkeeper for a small nonprofit (SNP) may also be the CFO of an organization thinking of switching from one product to another. Experience in the nonprofit context may help to inform that decision.
You Had Me at Free Software
This blog sets the context for the effort and reasons why one organization selected and implemented Google Workspace. A follow up blog will discuss the specific steps and actions. The ‘use-case’ is: “Stewards of Alberta’s Protected Areas Association (SAPAA). It is a non-profit society whose purpose is to support stewards of Alberta’s protected areas.”
SAPAA had to first prove its worthiness to Google (or at least its eligibility), decide which product to adopt (Microsoft or Google), and how its business functions will benefit from the selected software.
Proving Your Worth(iness)
Not every organization is worthy of discounted software, proof is required. In Alberta that means being a provincially or federally registered society. Being a registered Charity for tax purposes is not a requirement.
A copy of your certificate of incorporation is needed. If it has been lost, a new one can be issued at a registry office. While some organizations evaluate eligibility themselves, others have outsourced this function. For example, Microsoft uses Techsoup, Google uses Goodstack to validate applicant eligibility.
Either Techsoup or Goodstack will require:
- Your incorporation certificate,
- Your own website, and
- An email from the website (if possible).
Processing time is about 2-weeks and is mostly painless. Registration is free for both Techsoup and Goodstack and SAPAA is registered with both organizations. SAPAA has licenses, via Goodstack, for the following software:
- Google Workspace (free) – the subject of this and the next blog
- Monday.com (free, 10 users) – not quite sure what to do with this tool, still experimenting
- Canva (discounted) – graphic design and video editing, a tool for future use
No Free Techsoup for Lunch
Registration for either program is free – but this is where Microsoft and Google offers diverge. Under Goodstack, there are no further fees. It seems the organization is funded by US venture capitalists. I am not quite sure of the eventual business model or end game. But for the moment, I will enjoy the free software!
Techsoup charges an administration fee to access software. For example, there is a $179 cost to access the otherwise free Microsoft Office licenses. Given the non-existent budgets of most SNPs, this may encourage most organizations to give the Google product a whirl. Hmmm, perhaps I understand the Goodstack business model a bit better now. Totally free software will increase the uptake of Google Workspace!
SAPAA’s Decision Time
Until recently, SAPAA has been using three GMail accounts; one for administration, one for its website, and one containing its Google Map of protected areas.
For SNPs that are not digitally intense, a simple GMail account is sufficient. GMail is generous with 15GB of space, access to the Google Workspace tools, and of course Google Maps. This is discussed in prior blogs including GMailing a SNP and The SNP’s Technology Shopping Cart.
Unfortunately a shared GMail does not scale well. For 2-5 people who communicate with each other frequently, it is great. SAPAA’s board now has six individuals and has grown beyond shared GMails – time to look at Google Workspace. In addition, it may need to improve how it uses Google Maps to tell the story of protected areas.
Because SAPAA is a map focused organization, building around its Google map made the most sense. Google-Maps is the industry standard. Given how pervasive it has become, it is not likely to change as fast as other potential products.
What is Next?
This blog presented the context for adopting Google Workspace. Getting the license is the easy part. Implementing, training, and making the best use of the tool is the hard part. Fortunately, most of the SAPAA volunteers have a basic knowledge of Google products which will help with the transition.
The next post will discuss how it was implemented and any lessons learned to date. Feel free to comment on your experiences with acquiring free or donated resources from a corporate citizen (digital, services, or physical).
Notes and Further Reading
Slightly dated but still worth a read: Ultimate List Of Nonprofit Software Discounts: 2023 Update
Organizational Biology 