Worldwide Office 365 Donation Programme for Nonprofits

September 11, 2013

Microsoft Launches Worldwide Office 365 Donation Programme for Nonprofits

Cloud-based productivity and collaboration tools enable nonprofits to streamline IT and focus on social impact

From today, charities across New Zealand and in 41 other countries are set to benefit from Microsoft’s extended software donation programme. Last year, Microsoft donated $15 million (FMV[1]) in cash, software and services to 1,200 charities in New Zealand and this is set to grow with Microsoft offering Office 365 for Nonprofits as a donation to all qualifying charities.

Office 365 for Nonprofits is a cloud-based service that has been tailored for the needs of charities and provides access from anywhere to professional email, shared calendaring, instant messaging (IM), HD video conferencing, screen sharing, and personal online storage.

Qualifying organisations also gain the ability to view and edit Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote files via a web browser, and can easily set up a public website without hosting fees and an intranet site to support internal collaboration.

Paul Muckleston, managing director of Microsoft New Zealand, says many New Zealand charities, including Royal New Zealand Plunket Society and The Child Cancer Foundation, have experienced huge benefits after implementing Office 365 and hopefully many more charities will now benefit from this software.

“Technology has long been a catalyst for progress on key societal challenges. The advent of cloud computing, connected smart devices, and new ways to communicate, interact and access information creates vast new opportunities and enables organisations to spend fewer resources and time on IT so they can focus on their missions,” says Muckleston.

In a study by Microsoft’s software donation partner TechSoup Global, nonprofits reported that the top four advantages of cloud computing are easier IT administration (79%), cost-savings (62%), improved collaboration (61%), and data security (54%).

The results have been mirrored by the experiences of New Zealand charities already using Office 365.

Sue Jury, National Manager Fundraising with The Child Cancer Foundation, says that implementing Office 365 across seven regions throughout New Zealand saved the Foundation up to $60,000 in the first year.

“As soon as we got Office 365 up and running our staff nationwide were able to access and share information more easily. The need for staff to travel to our offices around the country for meetings has been reduced, and we have made significant savings by no longer needing to pay for conference calls.

“Office 365 has also proved to be stable and reliable. During the Canterbury Earthquakes in February 2011 we were able to maintain our service levels, which is something we wouldn’t have been able to do without a centralised system,” says Jury.

Craig Le Quesne, General Manager of Information Communication Technology, Royal New Zealand Plunket Society shares a similar story about increased collaboration and better time management after upgrading to Office 365.

“Office 365 has changed how we do so many day-to-day tasks. The best thing I can do is facilitate conversations between our staff, because this sparks new ideas. Before Office 365 this was a costly exercise that usually required people travelling to meetings, but applications like Lync Online mean our staff can be in touch with each other all the time and get on with achieving,” says Le Quesne.

Office 365 for Nonprofits provides nonprofits access to Microsoft’s always up-to-date Office cloud service, tailored to the needs of nonprofits, including:

• Ability to access information from anywhere: Office 365 for Nonprofits increases an organisation’s ability to work from anywhere with access to documents and files by using Office applications optimised for use across PCs, smartphones and tablets.

• Collaborate easily: Nonprofits are easily able to work together across an organisation by using familiar Office applications with email, shared calendar, document sharing, and video conferencing.

• Easy IT implementation: Office 365 for Nonprofits includes access to easy-to-use admin controls and the ability to install Office without uninstalling previous versions, all backed by industry-leading security features.

• Reliable and up-to-date: Office 365 for Nonprofits allows organisations to spend less time on IT maintenance, while providing access to always up-to-date technology that is simple and easy to use. And Office 365 for Nonprofits is backed by industry-leading security features and a 99.9% uptime guarantee.

Microsoft’s donation of Office 365 for Nonprofits is part of the company’s 30-year history of community support. In fiscal year 2013 alone, Microsoft donated $795 million (FMV[2]) in cash, software and services to more than 71,000 nonprofits in more than 115 countries around the world. Nonprofits and NGOs interested in implementing Microsoft Office 365 can check eligibility and order donations at www.microsoft.com/office365nonprofits.

ENDS

[1] Fair market value
[2] Fair market value

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