As part of our commitment to the local and global environment, Smartdesc have been working in partnership with World Land Trust (WLT) to offset our unavoidable carbon emissions. We are proud to announce that we have been awarded their Carbon Balanced Certificate. So, what does this mean? Using the Carbon Calculator created by WLT, we…
We are excited to announce that as of today, Microsoft have made Copilot for 365 available to all organisations, removing the minimum order requirement. What does this announcement mean for organisations like yours? Until now, Copilot for 365 was only available with a minimum order of 300 seats, a 3 year commitment and a waiting…
In today’s digital age, charities need to continually adapt to leverage technology for greater impact. The digital maturity of a nonprofit plays a pivotal role in enhancing operational efficiencies, expanding reach, giving them a competitive edge and ultimately fulfilling its mission. In this blog, we explore the five key stages of digital maturity for nonprofit…
When I learnt that women only make up 26% of the tech workforce, and that over half of women in tech leave the industry before the age of 35 citing ‘non-inclusive’ company culture as the reason behind this decision, it is clear why events like the Women in Tech Festival are so important. It is…
ACEVO is the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations. Together with their network, they inspire and support civil society leaders by providing connections, advocacy and skills. Their members include the leaders of small, community based groups, ambitious medium-sized organisations, and well known, well-loved national and international not-for-profits. ACEVO approached Smartdesc through a tender process…
In today’s digitally driven world, technology has become a central component of most charities – from managing operations, measuring impact, connecting with supporters, coordinating volunteers, and enabling organisations to develop new services. Indeed, in our Charity IT survey we conducted earlier this year, over half of the leaders that took part are considering outsourcing via…
The Charity Digital Skills report, now in its sixth year, is widely regarded as an annual barometer on digital maturity, skills and priorities across the nonprofit sector. It’s the digital sister of our own annual Charity Tech Leaders Report which focuses on IT infrastructure, M365 & cloud, outsourcing and cyber security. In this blog, we…
With a shortage of IT talent in the UK, charities face an uphill battle to attract staff against inflated corporate wages available to IT professionals elsewhere. Many IT teams are finding it harder to source, fund and retain the multidisciplinary mix of specialist skills needed to run a modern not-for-profit’s technology estate. We undertook a…
Welcome to the Smartdesc January newsletter. We are NCVO-approved IT experts specialising in the charity sector, enabling nonprofits to achieve more with technology and modern ways of working. This month we focus on how charities can be more cyber secure and offer the following resources: A framework on how to prepare should you ever experience…
According to the UK government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2021, a quarter of charities (26%) reported having cyber security breaches or attacks in the last 12 months. The risk is high for all organisations; email (phishing) remains the most successful method. Preparing for what to do should the worst happen is almost as important as preventative…
