Since making the decision to migrate to cloud-based Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT® and Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT® software, Wake Tech completely integrated the Foundation’s finance and development departments. This integration helped the team streamline its processes, including donor management; donor segmentation; the ability to look at trends; the ability to compare previous years and forecast for the future; and the ability to easily review retention rates.

Matt Smith, Wake Tech Foundation’s executive director, shared this about how Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT has impacted his work:

“The software makes me more efficient and better at what I do. That’s the main result that I care about. I am not a technology guy. For a guy like me who is out on the road constantly and always trying to hustle, I need something simple, user friendly, and intuitive. And I love the fact that the Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT is very easy to understand and very robust—so staff members that really enjoy the technology can use it to help me do a better job with my major gift fundraising.”

Foundation Finance Director Heather Buck added, “With Blackbaud’s NXT solutions, we’re able to make sure we provide the most current, updated information for our donors, students, and our faculty. At the end of the day, we all sleep well knowing we’re doing the best we can and doing a great job.”

The Results

Prior to migrating to Blackbaud solutions, Wake Tech Foundation used two different fundraising technologies that were not integrated and caused challenges between departments. When the Foundation made the move to Blackbaud several years ago, none of those problems persisted. And when it came time to evaluate a potential move to Blackbaud’s NXT solutions, the choice was clear. “Having the support from a technology provider that really understands our line of work and is constantly learning about our industry really helps us do our jobs better,” Smith said.

“The entire process was extremely simple,” he added, referring to the migration and implementation of Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT and Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT at the Foundation. Staff members provided recommendations, which were weighed heavily, as was involvement by the board of directors. After several demonstrations, it was clear to Smith that Blackbaud’s NXT solutions were intuitive and easy to use. The ability to access pull-down reports in the blink of an eye was truly a game changer.

Wake Tech Foundation staff members now have peace of mind knowing that all their data is updated and accessible on the go, which allows them the flexibility to leave their offices and see firsthand the impact their school is making on its community.