IT Service Opportunities
I believe in service, I believe in giving back. But as an IT Guy, I’ve historically had a difficult time finding service opportunities that allow me to utilize my professional skills. Frankly, I’ve always been a bit envious of the doctors I know that are able to do a great service to those in need by donating free medical expertise.
But this has changed due to the good work of the people at GroundWork Group (www.groundworkgroup.com). GroundWork Group is a non-profit whose mission is to “Provide solutions that help nonprofits put information to work – increasing their capacity to serve.” Stated simply, their mission is to help non-profits with IT.
One of GroundWork’s programs is to place qualified IT people on the Boards of non-profits to assist specifically in matters relating to technology. The need here is great, imagine:
- Very few not profits have any type of long range IT plan, and
- Most non-profit Boards are not equipped to guide on IT matters.
As part of GroundWork’s Board matching program I was given a list of local non-profits looking for Board members with IT skills. Through research and a series of interviews I got to know Rebuilding Together of Central Ohio (www.rtcolumbus.org). Rebuilding Together organizes volunteers to do home repairs for the needy in our community. I’ve recently been nominated for a Board seat and will join Rebuilding’s Board in January. I am already working on an IT plan and strategy for Rebuilding.
If you are an IT person looking for service opportunities that utilize your skills, I’d encourage you to get in touch with the people at GroundWork Group.
I welcome you comments.
Mike Brannan
