TechSoup, founded in 1987 as CompuMentor and later known as TechSoup Global, is a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

international network of

non-governmental organizations A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

(NGOs) that provides technical support and technological tools to other nonprofits.

History

After discussing the technology needs of nonprofits with members of the

WELL A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

, Daniel Ben-Horin founded CompuMentor (later TechSoup). His objective was to create a program in which those with technology skills ("mentors") volunteered to assist nonprofit organizations with information technologies. In 1991, Fred Silverman,

Apple Computer Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, in Silicon Valley. It is best known for its consumer electronics, software, and services. Founded in 1976 as Apple Computer Co ...

's manager of community affairs, praised CompuMentor as "a perfect marriage of technology and volunteerism." CompuMentor also began soliciting donations of technological products, largely from tech magazines that had large stocks of unneeded software sent to them by companies seeking coverage of their products, which CompuMentor collected and then sold to nonprofits for a nominal fee, originally $5. In 1997, CompuMentor received $350,000 in donations, tying it with the IT Resource Center as the largest Nonprofit Technology Assistance Provider in the U.S. On May 9, 2000, TechSoup websit
www.techsoup.org
was launched. In 2008, the organization changed its name to TechSoup Global. As of 2016, TechSoup reported $30.8 million in revenue. It provides technology assistance services and NGO validation services to nongovernmental organizations, foundations, libraries, and other civil society organizations worldwide in partnerships with companies like Microsoft, Adobe, Cisco and Symantec. In partnership with Microsoft, it formed the TechSoup Global Network to support increased distribution of services to nonprofits. The TechSoup Global Network includes Fundacja TechSoup, a separately incorporated "regional hub" established by TechSoup Global. It is based in Warsaw, Poland, and supports activities in 48 European countries.

Notable programs

TechSoup.org

Launched in January 2002, TechSoup.org is a web site serving nonprofits that provides training webinars, community forums and other resources about the use of technology in nonprofit organizations and public libraries. TechSoup partners with Microsoft to distribute Microsoft's product donations globally, and helps to connect nonprofits and libraries to corporate donors such as Adobe, Symantec, Cisco and Intuit. TechSoup.org also verifies the nonprofit status of organizations seeking donations and matches them to the donated technology products they need.

GuideStar International

GuideStar International is a global service that provides open access to accurate NGO data. GSI was begun in 2010 when TechSoup Global and GuideStar International, a U.K.-registered charity that promotes transparency and civil society organization reporting, combined operations.

NGOsource

NGOsource, a project of the

Council on Foundations A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...

and TechSoup Global, is an online service for U.S. grantmakers to receive equivalency determinations, which are legal certifications that a non-U.S. NGO is equivalent to a U.S. public charity, thereby reducing the cost and complexity of international grantmaking. Launched in March 2013, it helps U.S. grantmakers streamline their global philanthropy. According to its website, NGOsource was active in 126 countries as of 2018.

NetSquared

NetSquared organized local actors to collaborate in open innovation challenges, as well as monthly face-to-face meetups. NetSquared was organized into local chapters that had monthly meetings. Chapters went by such names as Tech4Good or NetSquared Chicago. NetSquared's "ReStart Slovakia" challenge provided recognition and seed funds to help launch the "Open Courts" project to promote transparency in Slovakia's judicial system.In Slovakia, a Website Shines the Spotlight on Infamously Corrupt Judiciary
TechPresident, July 31, 2013 TechSoup Connect became the successor to NetSquared in 2021, and each chapter continues to be led by a volunteer who produces local events, in-person and online.

Quad

In February 2022, TechSoup launched a subscription service, Quad, which it described as "TechSoup's peer-to-peer community where nonprofit organizations connect with tech experts and each other to do great things."

References

{{Reflist, 30em Non-profit organizations based in California Non-profit technology Organizations established in 1987 501(c)(3) organizations