Nonprofit Technology Consulting and Strategy Services

Your nonprofit is dedicated to making a difference, but the path to success can be fraught with challenges. Whether you’re looking to enhance your fundraising efforts, streamline your operations, or improve donor engagement, Heller Consulting is here to help. We understand the unique pressures and obstacles you face, and our goal is to provide the technology strategies and support you need to amplify your impact.

TRUSTED BY LEADING NONPROFITS INCLUDING

We understand diverse nonprofit needs

Every nonprofit has its own unique set of challenges and goals. Our approach begins with you—assessing your needs, identifying gaps, and collaborating on a plan that supports your mission.

Operational Efficiency

Need to do more with less? Our solutions streamline your processes, helping you focus on what you do best—serving your community.

Fundraising Challenges

Is your tech holding back your fundraising goals? We help you implement strategies and tools that drive donor engagement and maximize contributions.

Data Strategy

Are you concerned about data accuracy and security, or are you looking to leverage automation? We provide strategies for effective data governance that ensure your information is secure, accessible, and actionable.

Real results for nonprofits like yours

Animal and environmental

Arts and cultural

Community groups

Faith-based

Food banks

Health and human services

Hospital foundations

International relief

CRM selection

We help nonprofits select, configure, and launch CRM systems that fit their team’s existing workflows. We work with platforms such as:

Salesforce, including Agentforce Nonprofit (formerly Nonprofit Cloud) and Nonprofit Success Pack (NPSP).
Microsoft, including Microsoft Dynamics 365, Microsoft Cloud for Nonprofits, and Power Apps.
Blackbaud, including Raiser’s Edge.

User adoption and operations streamlining

Our change leadership services cut the chaos with clear plans and tailored training, supporting your staff through each step of the process. Our services include (but aren’t limited to):

Implementation readiness
User adoption
Enablement and stabilization
Project assessment and recovery

Fractional Chief Information Officer (CIO)

Heller’s experts have the years of experience necessary to make informed decisions as your CIO. With Heller serving as your CIO advisory, your nonprofit can build and implement:

Data governance frameworks
Enterprise solution roadmaps
Information security
Budget management guidelines

AI strategy assessment

We review your organization’s readiness to implement AI technologies, identifying gaps and areas for improvement. We then create an AI Strategy and Roadmap that addresses specific needs and improves efficiency to better serve your mission. Also, we can implement AI systems and run governance to ensure total peace of mind.

Data management and strategy

We investigate the technology, people, and processes that drive your data management, conducting an inventory of the data you collect, its inputs and destinations, and your data management tech and workflows. We also establish and document data best practices tailored to your organization and support you with ongoing data management.

Real nonprofits, real results

HealthPartners

As the largest consumer-governed nonprofit healthcare organization in the US, HealthPartners had a myriad of system needs related to data management and analytics. Plus, all eight of its hospital foundations used their own CRMs. To unify this data in one system, Heller collaborated with the organization’s steering committee and prioritized system requirements to create an ideal technology vision. HealthPartners now has a clear technology vision in place for its family of hospital foundations.

Canadian Cancer Society

When the Canadian Cancer Society transitioned to a national structure, Heller partnered with the organization to consolidate data from 10 provinces and 20 million records into a unified system. Team Heller delivered a bilingual, end-to-end solution, spanning CRM implementation, business process redesign, data cleansing, and change management. Now, CCS has a powerful platform that enables nationwide collaboration, centralized metrics, and scalable operations for the future.

Environmental Defense Fund

The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is a leading environmental organization with 1,000 employees who champion environmental causes in 29 countries. The organization faced its largest technological challenge yet—migrating from Blackbaud to Salesforce in only 14 months. By working with Team Heller, EDF completed a smooth transition with six weeks to spare.

Hear about our nonprofit tech strategy from our clients

The Heller Consulting team has been an exceptional partner throughout this process. Their combination of deep expertise and approachable, professional demeanor has created an environment that is both collaborative and enjoyable. The team’s easy-going yet highly competent style has made complex tasks feel manageable and instills confidence at every stage.

This partnership has not only been productive but also a tremendous relief, knowing we have such strong support for this monumental undertaking. Their contributions have been invaluable, and we deeply appreciate the clarity, responsiveness, and commitment they bring to the project.

Libby Einterz, MSW

Statistician & Outcomes Manager, The Salvation Army National Headquarters

What sets Heller Consulting apart

Three decades of nonprofit experience

Since 1996, we’ve helped nonprofits, healthcare, and education organizations implement and customize their CRMs and other critical infrastructure to work for them. From integrating fundraising systems and streamlining program delivery to making data work harder, our nonprofit technology consultants have done it all before and can provide your team with the skills and experience you need to power your mission.

Proven track record

Hundreds of nonprofits across many verticals have trusted Team Heller with their tech innovation. Our Technology Guiding Principles offer a structured path for selecting and implementing software customized to your nonprofit’s values, growth stage, and risk tolerance.

People-first approach

Behind every system are the people who make it work—and that’s where we come in. We provide the training, development, and fractional management needed to ensure long-term success, seamless integration, and organization-wide adoption.

Nonprofit technology consulting FAQs

What does a nonprofit technology consultant do?

A nonprofit technology consultant is a strategic partner that helps organizations implement and optimize technology to best meet their operational needs and further their mission. At Heller, this goes beyond software selection. We provide a comprehensive suite of services, including:

Technology strategy, including roadmapping and change management
System implementation and optimization (for platforms like Salesforce, Microsoft, and Blackbaud)
Data management
AI strategy and automation
IT services

When does a nonprofit need a technology consultant?

Your organization likely needs a consultant if its current systems are a barrier to growth rather than an accelerator. Specific indicators that it is time to seek professional guidance include:

Using tools that are being sunset by their manufacturers.
Planning a major digital transformation to hit fundraising goals or to engage supporters better.
Enhancing an unsuccessful implementation (e.g., adoption is low or the project didn’t deliver its promised value).
Program or donor base growth that makes your current processes unsustainable.
A lacking internal technical strategy that doesn’t optimize business processes or fundraising.
Mergers or acquisitions that require the organizations to consolidate disparate databases and solutions into a single source of truth.

What is change management, and why is it important?

Change management is the process of supporting your staff and organization when introducing new technology. Our team of change management experts integrates this process into each project by providing communication strategies, custom training plans, and leadership alignment to promote long-term adoption. We audit your organization’s implementation readiness, conduct user adoption planning, and develop a tailored launch strategy.

Does Heller provide support after the implementation is complete?

Yes. We offer post-launch stabilization support to ensure everything functions as planned and provide training and support to encourage your team to adopt new technologies. If your organization requires more extensive, ongoing support, we also offer fractional CIO advisory and managed services.