Suggestion: Leverage LinkedIn for tracking volunteers.

[rogard]

Hi,

I have a suggestion. Rather than standing up - and populating - a new
CRM to keep track of Tech Volunteers, why not leverage LinkedIn. Most
techies already have professional profiles on LinkedIn describing
their skills. There are also already two groups in existence there:
- CrisisCommons: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2678213
- Haiti Crisis: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2659304

If we ask volunteers to register with LinkedIn, join a specified group
(one of the above or a new one), we instantly get a searchable
volunteer database.

The group administrators can then also create sub-groups to match
volunteers with projects.

Rogard Ross
Allegis Group, Inc.

[Erik]

Rogard,
Hello. Can LinkedIn also track the services or tangible goods (servers,
wires, pallets of food) that a company can provide to an NGO for a specific
project?

Warm Regards,
Erik

[Ross, Rogard]

Of course not.

I was addressing more of the issue of building a database of tech
volunteers.

Warm Regards,
Erik

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[Ross, Rogard]

Just to elaborate.

We have three complimentary needs.
1) a mechanism to track and organize Requests coming in.
2) a mechanism to build a repository of volunteers
3) a mechanism to match the Requests and volunteers

Ultimately a solution would resemble the tools like that used in the
recruiting and staffing industry. (CRM packages are generally better
suited to tracking customers (e.g. the NGOs) than the volunteer 'supply
chain').

One of the challenges in such a solution is populating the supply pool -
i.e. the people willing to help. You could build a new database to
track volunteers but may have more luck using an existing database, i.e.
LinkedIn. LinkedIn will NOT provide you a complete solution but would
fill that key need.

If you build a database of NGO needs, you could then link in the names
and LinkedIn IDs of the volunteers who fill the need.

- Rogard

-----Original Message-----
From: Ross, Rogard
Sent: Tuesday, January 26, 2010 8:44 AM
To: 'techaid-cr...@googlegroups.com'
Subject: RE: Suggestion: Leverage LinkedIn for tracking volunteers.

Of course not.

I was addressing more of the issue of building a database of tech
volunteers.

-----Original Message-----
From: techaid-cr...@googlegroups.com
[mailto:techaid-cr...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Erik
Sent: Tuesday, January 26, 2010 6:22 AM
To: techaid-cr...@googlegroups.com; TechAid

Warm Regards,
Erik

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