Over the past few months not-for-profit organisations across Australia have claimed over $100,000 worth of budgeting software through Connecting Up’s DonorTec technology donation program. So far, the Calxa software donations have gone to a wide variety of organisations. Some, like the White Ribbon Foundation and Glaucoma Australia are national organisations with a high profile; some are sporting organisations and arts centres; some are day care centres and indigenous corporations. The majority though, are grassroots organisations, dedicated to providing support to the communities in which they work.
The DonorTec program channels donated and discounted technology products from companies such as Microsoft, Cisco and Symantec to eligible not-for-profits. Now DonorTec have partnered with Calxa Australia to provide budgeting and reporting software to improve governance and transparency in the sector. Connecting Up CEO Doug Jacquier says “Calxa is the first Australian company to join our donation program and we are excited to partner with them in bringing important management tools to the sector.”
Budget and cashflow reporting has traditionally been a time-consuming but necessary process for not-for-profits. Reports are required on a regular basis for board members, program managers and grant providers. Lynda Little, Manager of Charlestown Community Centre was one early recipient of the donated software and she says “Calxa allows us to produce a variety of easy to read reports that show several different factors at the same time. This makes it easy when presenting to the board and people who may not be familiar with reading financial reports.”
Mick Devine, CEO of Calxa, says “When we started Calxa it was very important to us to meet one of our goals of making a contribution to the not-for-profit sector. We do that by providing tools that save time, increase transparency and improve governance. However, we were also aware that no matter what good value these tools were, some organisations just wouldn’t be able to afford them. We had worked with Connecting Up before, getting donations for other organisations we worked with and it seemed the natural fit for Calxa. Their DonorTec program has provided us with a way of helping smaller community organisations to access the technology that bigger organisations take for granted.”
La Trobe Lifeskills was the recipient of the $100,000 milestone-breaking software donation. In providing training programs for 70 disabled adults each day, teaching them the skills necessary for self-management and independence, the organisation welcomes the ability to redirect their resources to service delivery. Penny Waterson uses the software at the Motor Neurone Disease Association NSW and she encourages any small not-for-profit organisation to apply through Connecting Up. “The process of applying is simple and you’ll improve your reporting in only a few steps. The program itself is simple to implement,” said Penny. Interested organisations should contact Connecting Up’s Donation program on 08 8122 2701.
About the Connecting Up program…
Calxa Australia has partnered with Connecting Up and TechSoup New Zealand to provide $1,000,000 worth of budgeting software to grassroots Not-for-Profit organisations across Australia and New Zealand. Through the alliance, Calxa donates its Calxa Premier budgeting and cashflow forecasting software to smaller Not-for-Profit organisations that meet the Connecting Up eligibility criteria. This will allow grassroots organisations to achieve the same productivity increases as their larger counterparts – freeing up resources to be directed towards core services. Everyone expects NFPs to spend more of their resources on service delivery and less on administration. This is Calxa’s way of helping them realise this goal while still providing the reporting needed to achieve good governance. NFP organisations with turnover under $1m are encouraged to apply.
For more information please contact:
Mick Devine, CEO Calxa Australia Pty Ltd Email: mick@calxa.com Phone: 0433 77 88 05