During that time of growth and expansion, the organization implemented its highly customized constituent resource management system. When Hornor joined the team, he took six months to evaluate the current situation and determine the best course forward. “We need to flip this thing over and see how well it’s serving the business,” he told his colleagues.

As a nonprofit, Ducks Unlimited had to conduct its technology overhaul in stages to avoid large, unforeseen expenses that would put a strain on mission-critical conservation work. Hornor and his colleagues addressed the most urgent need first—financial systems—and soon partnered with Microsoft for its Dynamics 365 enterprise resource planning.

Next, the organization looked at its constituent resource management with three clear goals in mind: building a modern member experience; creating a compelling event environment; and offering a simpler, more efficient process for the entire team, including the dedicated volunteer base. “None of the other players in the nonprofit space were big enough to handle us,” Hornor said. “Blackbaud CRM is a perfect fit. It’s in the cloud, so Blackbaud has to worry about the underpinnings. With any advancement that comes along,
Blackbaud is going to take care of most of the heavy lifting for us.”

Customizations for Conservation

The partnership began with a six-month discovery process to ensure that Blackbaud thoroughly understood Ducks Unlimited—from its funding structure to its culture. That discovery process uncovered unique needs, and the nonprofit recognized the value of Blackbaud’s robust out-of-the-box capabilities and extensibility options.

“Over the years it’s been difficult to keep up with technology, and in today’s environment, nonprofits are competing for the same dollar,” said Ducks Unlimited’s Chief Fundraising Officer Amy Batson. “Our fundraising success relies on an efficient, modern technology footprint to be a leader in the nonprofit conservation space.”

Ducks Unlimited raises funds primarily from private individuals, corporate partnerships, and grants. The organization prides itself on leveraging every dollar raised into $3 or more dollars toward its mission—but that requires careful, thoughtful accounting and reporting.

“It takes a sophisticated system to marry rules and regulations to leverage each dollar raised,” Batson added. Ducks Unlimited plans to go live with Blackbaud CRM in summer 2020.

“Blackbaud has been the premier nonprofit fundraising supplier of technology, and we want that expertise,” Hornor said. “We will add our special recipe and magic potion into that mix to raise money for our mission and be more efficient in the process.”

Looking toward the CRM launch and beyond, Ducks Unlimited aims to expand its membership and supporter base, as its work benefits wildlife andpeople across North America.

“We know we can continue to honor our hunter-based history and traditions while also appealing to a larger, more diverse audience,” Hornor said. “A key isthat our CRM system keeps up with people interested in our work. We want to leverage technology in ways that Ducks Unlimited isn’t even thinking of yet. To do that, you need something industrial  strength, and we found that in Blackbaud.”