NetSuite makes saving the world easier for NGOs

Nonprofit organizations and social enterprises, just like a business concern, face complexities and operational challenges, regardless of whether they are focused on local communities or are advocating international causes.

Data gathering and recording, accounting, reporting (internally and, more importantly, to donors), grant management and resource planning, and other processes that are deemed critical in the operations of nonprofit organizations usually take so much time, attention and resources that translate to lesser focus on their core missions.

With tightening budgets, limited resources, rising demand and increasing competition for funding, tapping the cloud for computing solutions seems to be the only way for nonprofit groups and social enterprises to ensure efficient and focused operations, maximize their resources, make better use of their volunteers’ time and efforts, strengthen links with existing donors and reach prospective supporters, according to NetSuite, a global cloud-based business computing solutions provider.

NetSuite took it upon itself to help nonprofit groups and social enterprises address these needs. It made available to them its suite of business solutions with features designed to address their specific requirements, to enable them to manage their entire end-to-end operations with a single but flexible business application.

The suite integrates nonprofit accounting, fundraising, constituent relationship management (CRM), enterprise resource planning (ERP), spending management, financial planning, inventory management and e-commerce.

Through NetSuite’s corporate citizen arm, NetSuite.org, these offerings are extended to qualified beneficiaries, now numbering more than 600, including several in the Philippines, through outright software grants or discounted rates. These also come with pro bono services from NetSuite.

Some of NetSuite’s partner nonprofit organizations in the Philippines are Cartwheel Foundation, Virlanie Foundation and Microventures Foundation. Social enterprise Rags2Riches was among the first beneficiaries of NetSuite’s discounted software in the Philippines.

New products, features

As nonprofit organizations face a rapidly changing and unpredictable operating environment and, adding to that, increasing donor expectations, NetSuite recently stepped up its support for them by making available its new product innovations—including NetSuite OneWorld 16, launched during the recent 2016 SuiteWorld in San Jose, California.

New features, according to NetSuite, allow the target beneficiaries run their core operations and their capabilities while providing the functionality, agility and scalability that they need to adapt to shifts in modern giving.

During the 2016 SuiteWorld, NetSuite announced the following product innovations targeted at nonprofit organizations:

NetSuite OneWorld: With multiple organization support and transaction and currency consolidation, NetSuite OneWorld provides international nonprofit and nongovernment organizations the ability to maintain robust and real-time transparency in their projects and programs across the globe.

NetSuite Advanced Financials: Enhanced billing, statistical accounting and allocation schedules give nonprofit groups the ability to build efficiency and transparency into their expense control processes and ensure a holistic view of outcome measures in reporting.

NetSuite Advance Revenue Management: Association and membership organizations can seamlessly track and manage multiple revenue sources and develop recognition schedules for subscription management. The Revenue Recognition Dashboard Portlets, with real-time analytics, provides powerful insights into member management.

Custom Records: Allow nonprofit organizations to easily create, track and manage funding sources, offering development and management real-time visibility into donor and contribution strategies.

SuiteGL: Custom GL Segments simplifies the process of managing complex nonprofit reporting across restrictions, geographies, funds, grants and other dimensions.

Advanced Approvals: Provides nonprofit controllers a configuration-driven rules framework to define and apply approvals consistently across a wide range of transactions, resulting in increased accuracy and reduced time to close.

SuiteCommerce Advanced: Nonprofits with multi-faceted fundraising strategies can easily manage engagement, cross-selling and online donation initiatives using SuiteCommerce Advanced’s unifying e-commerce platform.

Hackaton 4Good

On top of this long list of solutions, NetSuite continuously searches for specific solutions to peculiar concerns of nonprofit organizations. For instance, NetSuite.org holds what it calls the “Hackaton 4Good” charity competitions during its yearly Netsuite customers’ conference, SuiteWorld.

NetSuite developers, employees and partners participate in this event and are expected to develop and prototype within one day innovative NetSuite solutions to specific challenges facing at least two pre-selected nonprofit organizations. It is on its third year now and has so far helped six nonprofit beneficiaries.

“Hackaton 4Good is a creative way for SuiteWorld attendees to help out two worthwhile charities dedicated to social good while having fun, and networking with others,” David Geilhufe, senior director of NetSuite.org., said in an earlier statement.

“Between our deep roster of nonprofit customers and the close, pro bono work we’ve done with many of these organizations, NetSuite has a deep understanding of the challenges nonprofits face today,” said Geilhufe. “We’ve built out functionality to meet those challenges today, with flexibility to meet the challenges of tomorrow and we will continue to share leading practices to help them fulfill their mission.”