Press Release
For Immediate Release

Web Tool Reduces Overhead Costs and Workload for Non-Profit

Non-profits under pressure to show where their money is being spent; SME’s shareholders need accountability

Increased transparency in both the charitable and small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) sectors has led companies to find more innovative and efficient ways to cut costs to satisfy their donors, shareholders, and customers alike. Spartan 6, a Calgary-based business management company, recently deployed an application for a non-profit - C.A.R.E. Society –to help manage their volunteers’ schedules online -resulting in the organization accomplishing more than twice as much work with the same resources.

C.A.R.E, who specializes in education through seminars, courses and workshops, originally managed their volunteer’s shifts and day-to-day schedules through time-consuming emails, manual entries and phone calls. This changed quickly when C.A.R.E.'s annual by-donation gift-wrapping fundraiser campaign hit a roadblock in December 2011. After several staff members fell ill ahead of the campaign and others had family emergencies, the non-profit scrambled to find an experienced person to run the 800-volunteer led shopping mall event.

Company founder Dr. Irene Estay, who has been overseeing the operation’s self-esteem and self-empowerment programs since 1995, was faced with the possibility of canceling the event.

Dafne Canales Lees, advisor to C.A.R.E.'s board and founder of Spartan 6, quickly stepped in and applied her skills to the challenge. Using a self-service tool placed directly on C.A.R.E.’s website, Spartan 6 deployed the reservation system within just a few weeks, allowing the organization to manage hundreds of its volunteers’ schedules more efficiently without adding additional staff.

The application also included free online tutorial training sessions for C.A.R.E. to manage staff schedules independently and between staff members. Based on the (Saa S) model, the system didn’t require any IT infrastructure to support the application and was implemented directly into the non-profit’s website– another cost reduction for C.A.R.E.

As a result, C.A.R.E.’s workload dropped, operating costs were reduced by the equivalent of one staff person working for three months, and the staff learning curve fell from four hours to one.

“This solution not only made the 2011 campaign a success, but going forward will allow the C.A.R.E. Society to expand its fundraising activities without requiring additional staff to run those projects,” Dr. Estay said.

Spartan 6 is a Calgary-based company, established in 1999, which specializes in business management systems for non-profit organizations and small and medium-sized enterprises. The company’s Intrachise System, is derived from the words "intranet" and “franchise”, and is based on the concept of using technology to create business systems and procedures like those of a "franchise." This system includes over 105 different business management tools that integrate with each other to create more efficient systems for the business owner or the non-profit division manager.

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If you would like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with Dafne Canales Lees, please call (403) 990-9013 or email at info@spartan6.com.