Announcing Apparo’s Bank of America Technology Foundations Cohort
Sponsored by Bank of America
Apparo, in partnership with Bank of America, facilitated an 8-week nonprofit Technology Foundations cohort program designed to equip and empower nonprofits with the necessary knowledge and tools to keep pace with the rapidly evolving technology landscape and steer them toward achieving valuable outcomes.
The Technology Foundations program featured a 4-part educational workshop series helping nonprofit teams overcome their tech-related and business process challenges. In addition to the workshops, nonprofits were matched with a skilled Technology Mentor who provided ongoing support and guidance throughout the program.
Key workshop topics included:
- Tech Essentials Workshop: An Overview of Key Concepts and Tools
- This workshop was designed to provide nonprofit participants with a broad understanding of essential concepts and tools in technology. Participants gained a foundational understanding of essential technology concepts and tools necessary to navigate the modern digital landscape with confidence.
- Office 365 and Google Workshop: A Comparison of Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace
- This workshop was designed to inform nonprofit organizations of the features, capabilities, and nonprofit offerings of the two most popular productivity suites. Participants gained a comprehensive understanding of these productivity suites so they can apply findings to streamline their team’s workflow and improve productivity.
- Digital Marketing Workshop: A Primer for Start-Up Nonprofits
- This workshop provided nonprofits with best practices to build their online presence and effectively reach their target audience. Participants gained practical knowledge and skills to build their online presence and effectively engage their target audience.
- Cyber Security Foundations Workshop: Key Principles
- This workshop offered nonprofit professionals a concise introduction to essential cybersecurity principles. Participants gained foundational knowledge and practical skills to help safeguard their organizations from threats. This workshop empowered organizations to protect sensitive data and maintain donor trust in an increasingly digital world.
Following each workshop, nonprofits met with their Technology Mentor to discuss how best to apply workshop findings to their specific organizational needs.
Participating nonprofits: BraveWorks, Brookstone Schools, Community Building Initiative, Core Family Services, Eagle Rock Camp, Freedom Fighting Missionaries, House of Mercy, La Escuelita Bilingual Preschool, Leadership Charlotte, Magnolia Memory Care, Potions & Pixels, Promising Pages, RyZAb0ve Fitness, Thrive Global Project
Bank of America volunteers: Mary Beth Ledet, Bala Velayutham, Pankaj Gore, Lokesh Devanapalyam, Dave Tyson, Subbu Kathiresan, Megan Desch, Messay Abebe, Chris Butler, Nadeem Panjwani, Michael-Jon (MJ) Tehini, Tarun Bansal, Rahul Kumar, Sanjay Dua, Norm Salas, John McGraw, Deepalakshmi Govindraj
Nonprofits shared their feedback on the positive impact of the cohort.
“One of the things I really appreciated was how our mentor, Lokesh, just rolled up his sleeves and jumped in. He helped us start figuring things out to secure our emails,” Christi Lee of Community Building Initiative shared.
“I really resonated with what you said about nonprofit leaders struggling with the feeling of not knowing what we don’t know. This process was very helpful in that regard. Exploring the options available gave me peace of mind that I know what’s out there, what we need, and what we don’t need. I appreciated the mentors explaining to us that we don’t always need every new shiny piece of technology,” Michael Zytkow of Potions & Pixels shared.
Bank of America volunteers felt this experience increased their job satisfaction. They made a meaningful contribution to nonprofits in their community.
“This is my first time volunteering and definitely not my last! I love helping out and being able to utilize my skills and experience to help out others. I think it’s fantastic,” Norman Salas of Bank of America shared.
“Something I enjoyed about the experience was the people. Lakisha and Elizabeth were fantastic. Something unexpected I discovered were the breadth of tools available to nonprofits which is something they were struggling with. They’re given these really fantastic, complicated tools, but then how do you use them? Shout out to Apparo–it was amazing to find out there was a resource like this in town–thank you Apparo,” John McGraw of Bank of America said.
