BridgeTECH Preview: Selecting Your Nonprofit Technology

Mark Becker

Mark Becker has supported the online fundraising efforts of hundreds of nonprofit organizations for more than 20 years. Since founding Cathexis Partners in 2008, Becker has provided technical and consultative services to nonprofits of all sizes and all verticals. Before founding Cathexis Partners, he served as director of IT consulting at a fundraising event production company focused on nonprofits.

Becker first became interested in nonprofit technology because of his work with corporate IT project management at the same time he was volunteering for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day in the ’90s. He was curious about the softwares nonprofits used to facilitate the peer-to-peer fundraising process.

“I started going to nonprofit conferences in the early 2000s and hearing all of the pain points and issues folks were having with their technology and I thought, ‘I can help with that,’” he said. “That [was] the seed of the plan to start my own consulting firm.”

Becker will present at this year’s inaugural BridgeTECH, a tech-focused event for nonprofit executives, fundraisers and marketers on Aug. 2 at the 18th annual Bridge to Integrated Marketing & Fundraising Conference. In the session, “Selecting your Nonprofit Technology: A Checklist for Success,” Becker will discuss the steps to help nonprofits find and implement software that works for them. 

NonProfit PRO caught up with Becker to learn more about his work in nonprofit technology and why he’s so passionate about guiding nonprofit organizations through the software selection process.

What impact has technology had on nonprofits you’ve worked with?

I have seen many organizations transform their fundraising processes and efforts through the adoption of nonprofit technology. Nonprofits that adopt and promote technology have seen substantial time savings to focus on the core of their mission and not the tedious tasks that they previously wasted hours on.

What is the most common misconception nonprofits have about technology?

It will be a huge cost and hurt the amount that goes towards the mission. Time and money can be saved by selecting and using the proper technology.

Why is it so important for nonprofits to embrace technology regardless of staff size, revenue, overhead misconceptions, etc.?

From removing the rote tasks to integrating siloed systems, technology can help organizations of any size and budget.

What will you be presenting at BridgeTECH and why are you passionate about the subject?

I will be talking about selecting nonprofit technology, the process, and the things to be sure to consider before doing a Google search on “what is the best x” and getting sucked into demos that you are not prepared for. I will also be chatting with nonprofit professionals that have recently gone through the selection process [in a separate session], and they will be sharing their lessons from the trenches. Both of my sessions will be interactive conversations involving everyone in the room to get the full perspective of the industry at large.

Join Us at BridgeTECH

Learn more about Becker’s checklist to help nonprofits find and implement software at BridgeTECH on Aug. 2 at the Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland. Sign up for BridgeTECH and the Bridge Conference by selecting the "BridgeTECH + Bridge" option.