NYN Presents: Techcon
It’s hard to think of an element of nonprofit operations that hasn’t undergone a seismic shift due to recent technological innovations. From fundraising to social media outreach, volunteer management to program metrics, constantly developing technology has rapidly changed the way that nonprofits deliver services and thrive in a competitive environment.
This December, over 300 attendees gathered at Fordham University’s midtown campus for New York Nonprofit Media’s inaugural TechCon event to confront the challenges and opportunities posed by technology. Panelists from leading nonprofits, academic institutions, philanthropic foundations and consulting firms discussed the infrastructure and cultural shifts that organizations must embrace in the current technological environment.
Topics ranged from granular advice, like how to dovetail mailing lists with social media accounts, to deeper existential concerns, like how to convince funders and boards to prioritize capacity building and training for technology needs.
Three distinguished keynote speakers addressed the way that technology has transformed the role of governments and foundations. Seth Andrew, senior advisor to the chief technology officer at the White House, offered an inspirational vision of the government's ability to harness technological innovation to improve systems and rejuvenate services for citizens. Andrew spoke abouthis own work running Democracy Prep Public Schools and how his organization's use of data and analysis, inspired by South Korean practices, led to incredible improvements in achievement.
Minerva Tantoco, New York City’s first chief technology officer, spoke of the need to involve more women in technology and bridge the technology gap between socioeconomic groups, saying that Internet access in today’s world is as essential as running water and electricity. She outlined some of the city’s initiatives to help bridge that gap, including free Internet kiosks that will provide direct access to all New Yorkers and generate income for the city through advertising.
Finally, Stanley Litow, president of the IBM International Foundation, shared his company’s global reach, enabling nonprofit organizations and government to harness cutting-edge computing and innovative data analysis. Just one of IBM’s incredible programs: using the energy from a global network of volunteers’ cell phone batteries to power the infrastructure needs of third world countries. Litow also highlighted the opportunities presented by effective public-private partnerships, making the argument that the corporate social responsibility modeled by IBM should become an industrywide norm.
To watch footage of the day’s panel discussions and three keynote addresses, and to find out more about future NYN events, visit the Events section of www.nynmedia.com.
SELECTED TWEETS FROM #NYNTECHCON
Nathan Moore@nmoore08
Barack Obama is the first president to write a line of code. He was taught by an 8th grader from Newark, New Jersey. #NYNTechCon
NYN_media@NYN_media
Hearing viewsfrom pros at @NYHomeless @comunilifeinc @Columbia, Nonprofit Solutions Network & National Cybersecurity Institute #NYN- TechCon
Laura Willis@NYnonprofit
The unit of change is the client experience, tech is a revolutionary tool but not enough to change structures & culture alone #NYNTechCon
Amanda Stylianou@AMStylianou
You should not be creating all of your social media content. A big part of your content needs to be created by your constitutes. #NYNTechCon
Steve Heye@SteveHeye
I don't think "does the tool do what you want?" is right question. Right question is "does it solve my problem?" #nyntechcon
Jeremy Schneider@JGS_Tech
Seriously, that was delightfully fun! I think I love moderating as well. Esp enjoyed my Star Wars comment on readable videos. #NYNTechCon
Brandy McNeil@Digivide
@minervatweet the CTO of NYC says "Internet Access is like water and lights". #Facts #NYNTechCon @NYN_media
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