Managed IT Services for Nonprofits: Is it Worth it?

No matter the type of business or size of your company, every organization can benefit from investing in IT—including nonprofits. Whether you realize it or not, someone at your organization has become the go-to person for all IT needs, and it's taking away time from the job they were hired to do. Not only are IT services for nonprofits essential for productivity, but they’re also crucial to supporting your organization’s people so they can focus on doing their best work and driving your mission forward.

IT services, specifically managed IT services for nonprofits, are something every nonprofit should consider investing in. Managing things such as network security, onboarding, and digital assets can be a lot of responsibility, especially for smaller organizations with fewer resources. That’s why managed IT services for nonprofits are a good investment; they’re more budget-friendly, more secure, better for employees, and better for your business overall.

Why Should Nonprofits Consider Managed IT Services?

For a lot of nonprofits, managing IT in-house can be overwhelming. Managed IT services for nonprofits can lighten the load, helping them keep their tech running with relatively limited resources.

Plus, managed IT services for nonprofits are usually more budget-friendly when compared to a fully in-house IT team—you get the same IT support without all the overhead costs. This also usually comes with a team of dedicated IT support experts who can boost security, keep you up and running, and scale as your team or mission expands.

What are the Benefits of IT Support for Nonprofit Organizations?

Streamlined Operations

The beauty of a managed service provider is that they are seasoned experts in technology and often work ahead of the curve to avoid any downtime, bugs, or other issues. By avoiding fixing problems once they’ve occurred and slowing down your business’s operations, MSPs can end up saving nonprofits a lot of time. 

MSPs can also streamline operations by developing clear strategies that outline the IT goals of the organization and how best to achieve them. Then, they can establish the right infrastructure for the organization to use its IT systems effectively. This includes building a secure network to protect the organization from potential threats, implementing user access policies, training employees to use the systems correctly, and regularly evaluating those systems to keep them efficient.

Improved Cybersecurity Measures

Most businesses deal with sensitive data, and nonprofits are no different. With data such as donor information, employee information, and payment data in servers or the cloud, no nonprofit wants to be the target of a cyber attack. It could lead to the loss of hard-earned trust from donors and partners.

Good MSPs, fortunately, are always on the cusp of cybersecurity solutions. You can rest assured your security is being monitored by experts. MSPs can also keep IT systems up-to-date and compliant with all laws and regulations so you can trust that your systems are safe and compliant.

Cost Savings

Managed IT services for nonprofits are often less expensive than building an entire in-house IT service team. Plus, depending on the MSP’s pricing model, nonprofits can pay only for the services they use, avoiding the costs of training new employees and buying IT equipment and software. You can usually get discounted access to software and hardware through an MSP. 

If you view IT as an investment, your return will be much greater with an MSP, as a good MSP means getting a team of experts that you can trust will support your team and their IT needs. This is an invaluable asset to any organization, but especially human-centric organizations like nonprofits.

Increased Adaptability

Instead of having to stay up-to-date with the newest IT technology and cybersecurity solutions, managed IT services for nonprofits do the updating for you. Through them, you can access the latest IT solutions and never worry about doing the research yourself. Boom, instant time saver.

Keep Compliant

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and other government agencies are constantly introducing new regulations and updating existing ones (even HIPAA and PCI-DSS), which means that privacy regulations for companies in the United States change often. Fun! 

In addition to federal law, some states have passed their own privacy laws, which nonprofits need to be aware of, too. Implementing these changes could easily be someone's full-time job—but that can be costly. Managed IT services for nonprofits should be able to provide you with the best security practices that fit your specific organization's needs. If your MSP is SOC 2 certified, then that is even better! That proves they can be trusted to keep you and your donors' information secure.

Reaching Potential Donors

Okay, we admit that this one could be considered more of an indirect than a direct benefit. 

However, proper IT support for nonprofit organizations can help you reach more donors by keeping your tech running smoothly. Think about it! Your website is a major point of visibility and is designed to attract potential donors. But for that site to be visible and functioning, you need enough bandwidth to handle visitors and potential transactions. Let's not forget about making sure you renew your domain name. 

Also, IT support for nonprofit organizations can help you leverage various online tools such as social media and email marketing by making sure only the necessary people have access to sites that could otherwise create a compliance issue.

What Types of IT Support are Available for Nonprofits?

There are many different providers out there that offer a whole host of different managed IT services for nonprofits, but here is a list of the types of IT services and support that would be available for nonprofits at any MSP.

• IT strategy consulting
• Cybersecurity measures
• Cloud solutions and services
• Regulatory IT compliance 
• Employee and client onboarding assistance
• Overall IT support

How Do I Choose the Right Managed IT Provider for My Nonprofit?

Here are some key steps to help you make the right decision about which managed IT provider to partner with:

• Understand Your Needs: Assess your nonprofit's specific IT needs. Do you need cybersecurity, cloud services, compliance, or overall nonprofit IT support? This will tell you whether you require a general provider or a specialist in one or two areas.
• Check Experience with Nonprofits: Look for an MSP with experience in managed IT services for nonprofits. They’ll better understand the challenges and budget constraints of your nonprofit and can offer more tailored solutions.
• Request References and Reviews: Ask for references or examples of work from other nonprofit clients and check in on their online reviews.
• Verify Certifications and Compliance: Does your nonprofit have sensitive data? Make sure the MSP you are working with has the right certifications and nonprofit compliance measures in place (GDPR, HIPAA, SOC II, etc.).
• Discuss Pricing Models: Nonprofits are usually on a tighter budget than other organizations. Be sure to ask about your provider’s pricing structure. Look for transparent pricing, hidden fees, or flexible payment plans too.
• Test Their Compatibility: Finally, think about the cultural fit. You want an MSP that aligns with your nonprofit’s values and mission. But, you also want to work with an MSP where you don’t dread asking them for help. The best managed IT services for nonprofits are the ones that you enjoy working with day in and day out. 

What Are Some Common Questions to Ask Potential Managed IT Providers?

Below is a list of questions you should consider asking when looking at providers of managed IT services for nonprofits: 

• What experience do you have working with nonprofits?
• What managed IT services do you offer for nonprofits?
• Can you provide any references or case studies from other nonprofit clients?
• How do you comply with relevant regulations (e.g., HIPAA, PCI-DSS, SOC II)?
• What compliance certifications do you hold?
• What is your pricing structure? Are there any discounts for nonprofits?
• What level of involvement will we have in managing our IT?
• If our nonprofit grows, what’s your strategy for scaling?

Consider Ripple’s Managed IT Services for Nonprofits

Ripple offers managed IT services to a wide range of organizations, including services for nonprofits of all sizes and needs. We can supply additional support by providing corporate sponsorships, helping nonprofits receive discounts for their IT products and solutions, and developing an IT roadmap so your team knows where their dollar is going. 

Above all, Ripple provides IT support for nonprofit organizations that are run by people, and for people. We know that your team is the reason you even need top-notch tech, so we create solutions and solve problems in ways that put humans back at the center of IT solutions and strategy. We focus on the quality of the service and support we give to our clients and their employees because we know that happy people are the key to a thriving business.

If you have any questions about our managed IT services for nonprofits or want to contact us about potentially working together, feel free to schedule a free Zoom consultation. We look forward to talking with you!

FAQs

What are the cost considerations for nonprofit IT services?

According to NTEN’s annual Nonprofit Technology Staffing and Investments Report, the average IT spend for a small nonprofit is about 13.2% of the total budget. For a bigger nonprofit, it’s around 2.8%.

Every nonprofit’s IT cost considerations will look different, but these give some averages that may help you decide how much your organization should be spending.

How can nonprofit tech support enhance organizational efficiency?

By improving things that can cause time-consuming problems such as employee onboarding, security, and IT compliance, MSPs and nonprofit tech support can be one of the most effective ways to enhance organizational efficiency.

What specific IT services are essential for nonprofit organizations?

The essential IT services for nonprofits will vary from organization to organization. However, it is hard to argue the importance of cybersecurity, so we would put security measures at the top of our list of essential nonprofit IT services.