Apr
9
Working With TechSoup
Tagged school
As part of the final assignment in my Computer Science degree, I had to work with a non-profit in Toronto to help them with a technology issue they faced. I chose to work with TechSoup Canada, an organization which acts as a clearing house for large companies to donate copies of their software to the non-profit sector, saving those charities up to 95% of the cost of that software. It was a great experience and gave me an opportunity to see what issues are faced when working in the non-profit sector.
TechSoup is a very small organization, with only two employees. To help with their marketing, they wanted to be able to showcase the work they’ve done with some of their clients. However, with so few people, it was hard for them to find time to travel to the organizations, conduct interviews and turn the information into something useful; that’s where we came in. As a group of four, we were tasked with visiting three non-profits in Toronto to conduct video interviews with their directors and IT managers. In groups of two, we asked the interview subjects a series of five questions designed to showcase their use of TechSoup’s services. After the initial five questions, we would often ask the subject some follow up questions to lead them towards interesting or useful stories about what they were able to do with the software they received.
Once the interviews were completed, TechSoup asked us to provide both a transcription of the unedited interview and a summary of the subject’s answers to the questions. Finally, we were asked to edit together a short video showcasing the work TechSoup has done for them, and how the organization was able to use the software they received to better serve their clients. With this video and information in hand, TechSoup will be able to update their website with testimonials from real clients to showcase the work they do and how important it is to the communities they serve.
In talking to the non-profits who use TechSoup’s services, I discovered just how expensive it can be to run a charitable organization. Microsoft Office alone can cost $400 per user, which gets very expensive very quickly in an organization with 15 employees. These organizations can purchase expensive video editing software, which can cost thousands of dollars, for only $20 from TechSoup. With TechSoup’s prices, they spend less money on software and more money on what matters, helping their clients. Unfortunately, there are many non-profits who don’t know that a place like TechSoup exists, and waste their resources paying retail prices.
Over the weeks we were working with TechSoup, we had several tasks to perform. First and foremost were the interviews. It was not easy scheduling interviews with three different organizations and four busy university students. There were several proposed times where none of our group members were available and only certain days on which the non-profits were. However, we were eventually able to find times that worked for the clients and two group members, and the interviews could take place. Once there, with a borrowed video camera, one of the two group members present would ask a series of questions about their organization, the services they use from TechSoup, how the services have affected the organization and ways in which TechSoup could improve. With the interview completed, each one had to be transcribed completely. TechSoup also requested summaries of the interview subjects’ responses to the questions. Finally, they wanted an edited version of the interviews showcasing TechSoup’s services and impact on the clients.
With four group members, dividing the duties was rather straight forward. We were initially asked to perform four interviews, but due to time constraints and scheduling issues, that was reduced to three. Under the initial plan, we decided that two group members would attend each interview, one to ask questions and one to film. We decided this needed no modification given the reduced number of interviews, so two people went to interviews twice. Once the interviews were filmed, there were four tasks left: three transcriptions and editing the video. These were divided in the simplest way possible, with three people transcribing one video each and the fourth editing the interviews. While at times it seemed like there were disparities in the division of work due to the scheduling issues, overall things evened out.
The experience working with TechSoup was very rewarding. It’s a great organization with interesting and knowledgeable employees and clients, which can make have a huge impact on the budget of a non-profit.