Nonprofit Networking Night: Digging Deeper
Recently, Bryan, Sam, and I made Nova’s second visit to the annual Nonprofit Networking Night (NNN), hosted by the Community Service Commission for the UCLA student body. If you go, expect a giant career-fair-esque room of tables, posters, and banners, where students and nonprofits can connect.
Last year, when Nova was barely conceived (we didn’t even have a name yet), we attended NNN merely to dip our curious toes into the nonprofit world. And Holy smokes, we realized, there are so many nonprofits out there!
This year, however, we came with a mission: to dig deeper and identify the core challenges that each nonprofit faced. We wanted problems to solve. After explaining that Nova is a group of tech and design students hoping to tackle issues in the nonprofit industry, we dove right into asking: “Are there difficulties, outwards-facing or operational, that you think we could help with?” Right away, we discovered:
Lesson #1: Not all problems have technical solutions.
Yes, I know this sounds like the most obvious statement ever, but it still caught us off guard. For example, Wags & Walks, an organization that pairs dog walkers with dogs, faces the logistical burden of organizing their many volunteers; so maybe we could write an app that coordinates volunteers. This sounds promising, until you consider the volunteers’ willingness and aptitude towards adopting a mobile app, as well as their accessibility to smartphones and cellular data. Another nonprofit, Los Angeles Walks, aims to improve the pedestrian experience in LA and keep street-walkers safe, and their biggest challenge is lobbying the government to increase attention towards broken sidewalks and missing street signs. But even a million lines of code cannot mitigate the political and legislative barriers of adding a few extra stop signs on a dangerous street.
In fact, although people were excited to hear that we wanted to help, most were unsure what to ask of us. More often than not, we would hear: “I can’t think of a project for you right now, but we should definitely stay in contact!” And then, an awkward pause. Do we just say “thank you”, exchange contacts, and move on to the next table? Which leads me to my next point.
Lesson #2: Be proactive — pitch your own ideas and spark conversations.
After a few “Let’s stay in contact” convos, we realized that we were being way too passive. We were basically waiting for nonprofits to devise solutions that we could nod our heads to. But brainstorming solutions should be a team effort — while nonprofits bring domain expertise, we bring tech/design backgrounds to the table. So throughout the night, we slowly built the courage to give our own suggestions in conversation. When Food Forward talked about the logistical challenge of delivering food (within 48 hours!) between 200+ organizations, I proposed an algorithmic food delivery scheduler that automatically considers amount of food, time received, and delivery time. When Jazz Hands for Autism, which trains musicians on the autism spectrum, explained that stage fright is a huge problem for performers, Bryan suggested a VR solution that simulates a live audience for practicing musicians. When Sam talked to Beloved Beauty, which helps victims of human trafficking back on their feet, she suggested that technology could provide a more comfortable and indirect medium for people to share their traumatic experiences.
Of course, these on-the-spot ideas aren’t developed at all. But they don’t have to be. Because now, the person we’re talking to can provide his/her own input. Through our suggestions, we were able to open up new avenues of discussion, helping us dive deeper and learn even more about each organization. As we grew more proactive, our talks increased in substance, and we noticed an interesting trend:
Lesson #3: Data management is a widespread problem across many organizations.
We found that data is especially important to nonprofits fighting for lesser-known causes. For example, take LA Waterkeeper, which protects LA bodies of water, and Michelson Found Animals, which facilitates stray pet adoption. They both use data of river samples and animal descriptions respectively to create detailed reports which they present to the city council, hoping to raise awareness and secure funding. Despite this, nearly half of the groups we talked to cited the need for an efficient system for data gathering, processing, and analysis. For example, database systems are not user-friendly and tailored to their needs. Or, the process of collecting data using pen and paper and then transcribing it digitally often results in information loss. In the future, Nova would like to investigate these issues by learning more about these data-related needs of each org and acting on them in a scalable manner. If we could develop solutions for some of these common problems, we could make a large impact on many organizations!
Lesson #4: Expect the unexpected and be open to new possibilities.
So far, I’ve made NNN sound jam packed with action (okay, it high-key is), but let’s be realistic: not every conversation is going to lead to an immediate partnership or a well-defined project on the spot. At last year’s NNN, the very last organization we talked to was One&All, a consulting agency for nonprofits. Walking up to their booth, Bryan and I doubted if there was anything we could help with. But we sure are happy we did, because over the course of a few weeks, our conversation blossomed into a long-term relationship. Ever since, One&All has provided amazing mentorship on growing our organization and developing our projects! Cherish every opportunity to talk, because you’ll never know where your experiences will take you.
Coming into NNN with a different approach this year allowed us to leave with a brand new set of insights. Not only did we learn more about each nonprofit’s sphere, but also we were able to identify common challenges faced by nonprofits as a whole. Additionally, we found that if Nova hopes to tackle a wider range of problems in the future, we’d have to think beyond merely designing and coding apps.
Most importantly, however, NNN was a chance for us to step out of our comfort zones, connect with people, and immerse ourselves in the social good discourse. Although I will forever get mad butterflies when I approach the next nonprofit stand, I now do so with more excitement and confidence, knowing that people are thrilled to talk and that I am welcomed into the community with open arms. With that said, here’s my biggest takeaway from NNN:
Lesson #5: Nonprofits are approachable. Behind every table stands someone who is passionate about what they do and would love to share their knowledge, open up about their struggles, and connect with you!
If you are interested in the nonprofit sector, I’d strongly encourage checking out Nonprofit Networking Night and seeing for yourself what amazing things can come out of these conversations.
See you there next year! 👋
