Blackbaud Newsroom
Blackbaud Connects Measurement of Customers’ Impact to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
Organizations such as Reebok, Subaru and The UPS Foundation agree that
Blackbaud has the right solutions to help deepen their relationships with nonprofit partners
Charleston, S.C. (May 16, 2017) – Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB), the world’s leading cloud software company powering social good, today announced the mapping of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, to the taxonomy of its Blackbaud Outcomes cloud solution. With this addition, corporations and foundations will be able to report the impact of their grantmaking on the 17 goals and additional related targets, allowing them to participate in and contribute to a concerted, worldwide movement.
Blackbaud Outcomes solves key challenges experienced by funders and nonprofits as the sector evolves from traditional philanthropy to results-focused giving. Blackbaud Outcomes is the first and only technology solution to provide a common outcomes measurement language, empowering funders and nonprofits to truly understand the impact they are making and to tell their success stories using statistics, results and a shared language.
The SDGs are a set of 17 interconnected global goals devoted to addressing hunger, poverty, health, equality, peace, justice and more that strive to “leave no one behind.” Adopted in 2015 by 193 countries, including the United States, they serve as a call to action to governments, the private sector, foundations, nonprofits and individual change agents to make significant improvements in life, on land and under water by 2030. A follow-on to the previous UN Millennium Development Goals, the SDGs are more ambitious and apply to all countries regardless of classification as high income, middle income or developing.
“The Global Goals establish a powerful framework for us to engage our partners in our efforts to nourish the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way,” said Michelle Grogg, senior director of corporate responsibility for Cargill. “As a private-sector leader, we are eager to clearly demonstrate the impact of our giving.”
Powered by Blackbaud SKY, the company’s modern, integrated and open cloud, Blackbaud customers are now able to easily collaborate with their grantee partners around specific SDGs with instant access to reporting around progress and results. “It’s exciting to combine our role as a convener in the social good technology space with our advanced cloud solutions to contribute toward the overall achievement of the SDGs,” said Kevin McDearis, Blackbaud’s chief products officer. “Our Blackbaud Outcomes solution allows grantmakers to view their existing grants programs through a new lens with a focus on the SDGs and automatically measure their contributions in their own communities and around the world.”
A diverse set of organizations, such as Subaru, Robert R. McCormick Foundation, The UPS Foundation, Shell Oil Company, Reebok and SEFCU, agree that Blackbaud has the right solutions to help advance their missions, deepen their relationships with nonprofit partners and change the world for the better. “Measuring outcomes and impact really helps our members understand where SEFCU’s money is going,” said Jolene Barr, community impact leader at SEFCU. “And our nonprofit partners have even thanked us because we are able to have more in-depth, analytical conversations with them.”
For more information about Blackbaud Outcomes, visit www.blackbaud.com/outcomes.
About Blackbaud
Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB) is the world’s leading cloud software company powering social good. Serving the entire social good community—nonprofits, foundations, corporations, education institutions, and individual change agents—Blackbaud connects and empowers organizations to increase their impact through software, services, expertise, and data intelligence. The Blackbaud portfolio is tailored to the unique needs of vertical markets, with solutions for fundraising and relationship management, digital marketing, advocacy, accounting, payments, analytics, school management, grant management, corporate social responsibility, and volunteerism. Serving the industry for more than three decades, Blackbaud is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina and has operations in the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.blackbaud.com.
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