Making Collaborative Nonprofit Technology Projects a Success
Starting with Why
When a coalition of four domestic violence service organizations approached me about collaborating on a digital crisis service, I initially thought about the technology challenges – servers, platforms, security protocols, etc. Then I inquired about why this mattered. They explained that the need arose from domestic and intimate partner violence survivors who couldn’t safely make a phone call, but who were embracing texting. That shifted everything. This wasn’t a technology project that happened to help people. It was a lifeline that required technology to exist.
It began with inquiry and listening. As the coalition shared why they needed something beyond telephone hotlines, I heard stories that stayed with me—people in abusive relationships who couldn’t speak aloud without being overheard, people whose emergencies happened in the middle of the night in shared spaces. The common thread was clear: crisis didn’t wait for privacy. Survivors needed a way to reach out silently. They needed text and chat.
From Shared Mission to Shared Action
Based in this community need, the four organizations made the choice to work together on a solution and applied for funding to create just such a service. I was fortunate to accompany the coalition as their nonprofit technology advisor for this collaborative project, which came to be known as SafeChat Silicon Valley.
All of the participating organizations shared missions and served similar populations of survivors. Since no single organization could manage this alone, a collaborative project was the perfect answer. The organizations already had the foundation of strong working relationships as members of a local coalition working together on advocacy and shared impact. Creating the first collaborative online & mobile chat crisis counseling service in the United States broke new ground for these nonprofits. Critical lessons about successful approaches, the benefits – and challenges – of having nonprofits collaborate on a technology project emerged in working with these amazing professionals over five years. Collaboration allowed us to tap into the power of a diversity of viewpoints, experience, and talents.
Laying the Groundwork for Collaboration
The project began with a feasibility study to determine how the organizations could best work together and which approaches (how to share roles, how to staff the service across organizations, etc.) best suited the group. By identifying potential friction points early, we were able to build processes to address them before they became breaking points. I led an evaluation of their technology capacity, capabilities, and skills to identify areas of strength as well as areas for improvement. The process identified crucial issues that were systematically addressed and helped inform thoughtful project planning.
Rising Tide of Technology Confidence
Technology confidence spread. At our first technical capacity assessment, the gap between organizations was significant. Some were ready; others needed foundational upgrades just to participate. What surprised me was how this became an advantage. Organizations further along became informal mentors. I’d see them staying after meetings to troubleshoot with colleagues, sharing not just what worked but why. By project’s end, the technological rising tide had lifted all four boats—not to the same place, but each significantly higher than where they’d started.
I watched the transformation happen in waves. Early meetings were punctuated by technology questions directed at me—how does this work, what does this mean, can you help with this? By year three, those same questions were being asked peer-to peer, staff members troubleshooting together before meetings even started. The technology anxiety I’d sensed initially had shifted to technology curiosity and confidence.
Time as a Tool, Not a Barrier
Time became an asset, not an obstacle. As with all collaborations I’ve been part of, having multiple voices at the table and multiple organizational factors to consider means meetings – and the project as a whole – need to be given adequate time. I watched each organization bring its unique cultural norms, history, and assets to the table. This complexity brings with it the enormous advantages of collective wisdom and the power of the group to make the best possible decisions.
With capacity for additional tasks limited, we found the most effective approach was using half of each meeting for full group discussions/decision making and half of it for small group work, ensuring dedicated time for working on the project that might not otherwise be available. I came to recognize a pattern in our meetings: initial discussion often felt scattered, with each organization focused on its own concerns. But given time—and this is where the half-meeting structure proved essential—the group would find synthesis. The best solutions almost always emerged from the second half when small groups could dig into specifics.
Learning Together Across Organizations
What struck me most was witnessing everyone sharing learning – what was working or not working for them, seeing how everyone benefited from others sharing their experience. Learning took place not only about technology but effective collaboration, project work and relationship approaches. Over five years of meetings, I catalogued the knowledge exchange happening. Staff shared approaches for bringing skeptical leadership along—one mentioned progress reports that included client feedback, another described inviting executives to observe beta versions of the service. When someone hit a roadblock with a vendor, the group brainstormed approaches based on their combined experience. The vocabulary in the room evolved too. Terms that needed explanation in year one were common language by year three. The community approach opened up possibilities for sharing valuable knowledge in cross-organizational ways.
When people accomplish things they have never done before they build their individual confidence and capabilities which then transfers into their organization.
Skills and knowledge gained through being stretched in their project roles built even stronger leaders, more confident project managers and better trainers. Including everyone in discussions on software selection, hardware requirements, website development, online privacy, marketing and many other topics allowed people to learn from discussions while participating at their various levels. Sharing ways for them to comprehensively track traffic across their digital presence, for example, allowed them to share insights with staff, board and funders.
Pooling Resources for Greater Impact
Having the assets of multiple organizations to draw on provides a larger pool of resources – talents, skills, contacts, cultural contexts, and even physical assets. One organization typically provided the meeting space, one was able to have their website design person provide some hours, one was able to have all of the printing done for marketing materials. Through contacts, they were featured on major market television news. Sharing the project load eases the burden on everyone.
As the project launched and we reflected on how far we had come, improvements in technology proficiency, service delivery, and their ability to collaborate were top positive outcomes identified. Collaborative work generates impactful results on organizations, shared area of focus, and the sector as a whole.
The resulting service – SafeChat Silicon Valley – continues to successfully meet the support needs of survivors of domestic and intimate partner violence after almost 10 years. That four organizations not only built something together but continue to sustain it beyond the initial funding cycle speaks to what’s possible when nonprofits truly collaborate. They created something none could have built alone—and it’s still there when someone needs to reach out silently for help.
More details about the SafeChat Silicon Valley project here: Digital Crisis Counseling – Technology Meets the Hotline
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JOHN KENYON is an internationally recognized strategist and educator with over 20 years of experience working with changemakers in nonprofit and philanthropic organizations.
He serves as adjunct professor at University of San Francisco, Sonoma State University, and has delivered keynotes for the Alliance for Strong Children and Families’ Executive Leadership Institute, Australia’s Connecting Up, and Stanford Social Innovation Review’s Nonprofit Management Institute, among others. John specializes in accompanying organizations and networks making transformative decisions while navigating complex organizational change. His expertise has taken him from boardrooms across America to international stages in England, Australia, and online. www.johnkenyon.org