Page 16 – Attain Partners

Obsessing Externally for Heart Health

February 24, 2023/in About Attain Partners, Attain Gives Back, Events/by Olivia Pycha

President and COO Phil Agee Shares His Experience as Chair of the American Heart Association’s 2023 Triangle Heart Ball

The seven core values comprising The Attain Way guide every decision we make and every interaction we have with our clients and communities. Our values embody the character that we believe a trusted partner and a client advisor should possess, but we don’t just work by these values, we live by them. One of these values is to Obsess Externally by giving back to the communities in which we live and work.

Attain Partners President and COO, Phil Agee, is a wonderful example of what it means to Obsess Externally. Together with his wife Andrea, Phil is chair of the American Heart Association‘s (AHA) 2023 Triangle Heart Ball in Raleigh, NC, on Friday, March 3. Attain Partners is proud to support the lifesaving work of the American Heart Association as a sponsor of the event.

For nearly 100 years, the AHA has been fighting heart disease and stroke, striving to save and improve lives. As the Nation’s oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke, the AHA has been taking major steps toward creating a healthier community.

To learn more about his volunteer work and the AHA, we sat down with Phil to discuss his involvement in this year’s ball and his passion for heart health.

Attain Partners (AP): How did your involvement with the AHA begin?

Phil Agee (PA): It started with a network of friends, specifically one of my close family friends, who was the chair of the 2020 Triangle Heart Ball. Through his endorsement, I joined the executive leadership team in 2019 to prepare for the 2020 Heart Ball just as we were running into the pandemic.

When he asked me to join, I didn’t hesitate to help this important cause. Heart disease is an issue in my family. Unfortunately, I’ve had family members pass away because of the disease, so that’s what initially compelled me to become involved.

Then, I quickly realized that the AHA—especially the Triangle region’s chapter—really places an emphasis on the local community. The organization works hard to raise awareness about the food inequalities that exist within the community and spread information about how your diet contributes directly to heart health. They give large grants back to the research community based in Raleigh, NC, so it comes full circle. They also give money to many of Raleigh’s pharmaceutical companies that do research on medicines, which ultimately provides jobs to the local area.

So, it started as a family-focused endeavor, but I quickly realized it’s much more than that. It’s about promoting heart heath and serving the local community.

AP: So, the gateway to your involvement began with your role on the leadership team, but you’ve stepped up a bit more since then. What is your role now?

PA: My wife, Andrea, and I serve as the Event Chairs for the 2023 Triangle Heart Ball. This year, our role has been to chart the focus of the event and lead its fundraising efforts, in addition to helping raise awareness for the Heart Ball and the AHA in the Triangle region. We are going to raise well over $1,000,000 in funding for the organization as a result of the event, which exceeds our goals and expectations for what we hoped to raise. We are incredibly proud of how Raleigh is giving back.

AP: What is the focus of this year’s event?

PA: The focus of the 2023 Heart Ball will be on the local community and the direct community impact that the AHA has in the Triangle region. We’ll be highlighting the AHA’s work in the Triangle region, including its efforts around creating avenues for greater access to care, expanding healthy food access and education, building a network of first responders through CPR kits in schools, supporting blood pressure screenings and education, and educating on the dangers of tobacco and vaping.

AP: How has it been collaborating with your wife, Andrea, through this process?

PA: It has been a blast. It’s been fun to see how our leadership styles work together. I always say, she could sell her dirty socks! She can really work a room like no one else.

She is great at building relationships, and I come in to help close the deal. She came up with the idea for the ball’s post-event entertainment, Dueling Pianos, which we’re really excited about. It’s going to be another great way to help fundraise for this important cause.

AP: What long-term goals or ideas do you have regarding your involvement with the AHA in the Triangle Region?

PA: In the coming years, I want to work with the AHA, the local sports leagues, and the surrounding government bodies that help fund heart heath education initiatives to connect the dots so that coaches have CPR training and access to AEDs on the field.

For the Heart Ball, I will continue as a member on the executive leadership team for at least another year, if not for the foreseeable future.

Beyond the Heart Ball, another area that Andrea and I are equally passionate about and will probably devote as much energy to over the coming years is the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Our daughter has Type I diabetes, so that will continue to be a major focus in our lives. We are excited to explore how can we help to raise awareness and give back to this community as well.

AP: How can someone who’s reading this get involved with the American Heart Association?

PA: When giving back, I believe we need to give not just treasure, but also time and talent, as I think they are equally as important to getting involved. First and foremost, get trained in CPR, because you never know when you’re going have to do it. Too many people die of cardiac arrest, and CPR training is an easy way we can all be more prepared to help.

Second, there are walks in all the local communities that the AHA puts on, so that’s another big initiative for people to get involved in to help raise awareness.

Third, becoming educated and helping spread awareness about food banks and food insecurity. Helping to get the right food in front of people will ultimately lead to better heart health.

AP: A lot of your career has been spent with working alongside Greg Baroni and at Attain, LLC, and Attain Partners. How have these factors influenced your desire to give back, and why is corporate social responsibility important to you?

PA: Growing up in this culture is all I’ve known. It’s a no-brainer—giving back is what you do. My personal beliefs exactly match the culture and the DNA of Attain Partners. Greg’s steadfast focus on the National Kidney Foundation is the perfect example of how Attain Partners is dedicated to Obsessing Externally and living The Attain Way. I have had such great examples of giving in Greg as well as in Manish Agarwal and Rich Roberts both at Attain. Giving back is just part of the fabric of who I am—Attain Partners is part of who I am.

There are so many people that are struggling in different ways. I’ve been so blessed in my life that I can and want to give my time, skills, and resources. If there’s a way for me to help somebody else live a little bit better for a little bit longer—it’s just a no-brainer for me.

AP: Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about the AHA?

PA: What I’d like people to know about the AHA, and in particular the Triangle Chapter of the association, is that it’s not just necessarily a national brand. This organization does so much for the local community and makes such a profound impact. People sometimes think, “Oh, it’s a big national nonprofit organization, my donation is just going to go into vapor.” But, the AHA really does make a difference in the community where you live and work, which again is what Attain Partners is all about.

More Information

Learn more about Phil here.

Learn more about the American Heart Association Triangle Heart Ball here.

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Matt Roush is an Expert in Developing Salesforce Solutions for Education and Nonprofit Organizations

February 17, 2023/in Advancement, Digital Engagement, Higher Education, Nonprofit, Salesforce, Salesforce Community, Team for Speed/by Olivia Pycha

Meet Attain Partners’ Experts!

At Attain Partners, we have the privilege of leading education institutions—colleges, universities, and K-12—as well as nonprofit organizations through their digital transformation journeys. We proudly employ the industry’s brightest thinkers and problem-solvers who bring big-picture visions to life while orchestrating innovative, future-proof technological solutions for advancement, student success, and organizational growth.

Always striving to Invent the Future, Attain Partners was named the Salesforce 2022 Consulting Partner of the Year – Education and achieved the acclaimed Salesforce Summit Partner status in 2022. Now, we’re spotlighting the experts behind our innovative Salesforce solutions.

In the first installment of this Team for Speed blog post series, we introduced advancement expert Rainer Weissenberger. This week, meet Salesforce Solution Architect Matt Roush! Matt is a lifelong learner whose initial introduction to Attain Partners was as a client. Matt later came onboard as a team member to join us as we help our clients harness the power of Salesforce to accelerate their missions forward.

We sat down with Matt to learn more about his Salesforce expertise and what he likes most about working at Attain Partners.

Attain Partners (AP): What brought you to Attain Partners?

Matt Roush (MR): I was an Attain Partners client first, but my relationships with some of the team members date back nearly a decade. I have always enjoyed their attitude, professionalism, and friendliness, so we stayed in touch over the years. When I was ready to take the next step in my career, they were the first ones I reached out to, and I’m so thankful I did.

AP: What did you do before joining Attain Partners?

MR: I spent nearly my entire career pre-Attain Partners in marketing roles for various universities. Most recently, I was the Director of Digital Engagement for the University of Colorado Office of Advancement, leading a team of digital marketers and developers in support of alumni relations and fundraising for the CU System. Throughout my career, I have done work across all channels, including radio, video, print, social media, email, and web. I have served as creative lead on multiple recruitment, fundraising, and PR campaigns, and I have led technical teams in the development of websites and apps.

In 2015, I participated in my first Salesforce Marketing Cloud implementation for the University of Colorado and have been hooked ever since.

AP: Which of the core values speak to you most?

MR: All the core values hit home—which was another contributing factor in my decision to join the Attain Partners team—but I would have to say Invent the Future and Have Absolute Integrity speak to me the most.

For many of our clients, we are essentially being asked to help them invent their future—to help them break down technological barriers, modernize their operations, and ultimately maximize the benefits they set out to achieve with their Salesforce investments. If we aren’t helping them define, design, and then achieve that future, then we aren’t doing our jobs. If we do that well and do so with absolute integrity, then everything else will fall into place.

AP: What do you like most about the work you do?

MR: I love interacting with clients and helping them navigate through what is usually a very big change. I am a problem-solver by nature, so I truly enjoy collaborating with my colleagues to develop sophisticated solutions that solve a complex issue or need our client is facing. I especially love when I see the “Oh, now I get it!” look. Given that I’ve been in their shoes before, and continue to find myself in this position today, it never gets old.

AP: What are the biggest ways you’ve seen advancement efforts impact organizations?

MR: Advancement can often become siloed in a large and complex organization, and then individual siloes tend to form within advancement itself. Technology—and even the implementation process itself—is one of the most effective ways to help break those down. In my experience, the biggest gains from projects like these result from helping teams realize that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts and by providing them with more effective ways of working together to advance towards their common goal.

AP: Can you share an example of a project you’re especially proud of?

MR: I am immensely proud of the work the Attain Partners team did in moving a large hospital foundation from Raiser’s Edge to Salesforce and UC Innovation (UCI) ascend. This was a truly collaborative effort and this organization exemplified how a great partnership leads to great results.

AP: What is the most challenging aspect of your job?

MR: New technology often comes with big changes, but also big opportunities. The most challenging part of my job is helping clients make the mental leap to recognizing the immense value that can result from an otherwise difficult or uncomfortable decision, and then helping them make that case to their colleagues. This also happens to be one of the most rewarding aspects of the job for me.

AP: What do you read to keep current?

MR: I have a handful of industry websites, blogs, and social media accounts I follow, but I have come to rely heavily on the extremely talented and collaborative team here at Attain Partners. We tend to share and discuss everything we find, from exciting new trends to highly nuanced changes in forthcoming releases. The result is a culture rooted in mutual benefit that extends from us to our clients.

AP: What do you like to do for fun outside of work?

MR: I am married with two young kids, so much of my life outside of work involves shuttling the kids to their various activities or simply enjoying a relaxing day with the family. We live in Colorado and try to find things to do outdoors whenever possible including camping, hiking, and making short trips to one of the many neat little mountain towns. I’m also happy just grilling or reading a book on my back porch while the kids (hopefully) wear themselves out in the yard.

AP: What is your preferred energizing beverage?

MR: Surprise, surprise, it’s coffee. I’m a sustenance-oriented guy—coffee in the morning, water in the afternoon, quick and easy food for breakfast and lunch. If I need a midday pick-me-up, a walk outside is the best thing for me.

Attain Partners – Salesforce Experts

Regardless of whether your organization is beginning its Salesforce journey or many years into development, Attain Partners is here to help you achieve your goals. Contact our team today to learn how we can help you advance your mission by harnessing the power of Salesforce.

To learn more, check out our Salesforce Innovation services, read case studies about our transformative work, and explore blog posts from our Salesforce experts.

Read our latest advancement insights here.

Learn more – Matt Roush

Matt Roush is a Senior Architect at Attain Partners with 12+ years of experience working in nearly every major area of higher education. He specializes in helping universities and nonprofits make the most of their integrated Salesforce ecosystem through his experience and expertise in both the technology and the organizations he supports. In general, though, he is just a lifelong learner who sees constraints as a chance to explore new opportunities and is grateful to work every day with people who share that mindset.

Matt holds a B.A. and M.A. in Communications from Florida State University and has nearly a decade of experience implementing and working in the Salesforce product ecosystem. He holds multiple Salesforce certifications, including Salesforce Administrator, Marketing Cloud Administrator, and Pardot Specialist. He is also a fully certified Functional Lead for UCI ascend.

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Is a Library Cost Study Right for Your University Library?

February 10, 2023/in Best Practices, Higher Education, Library Services, Research, Strategy, Uniform Guidance Blake Norby/by Olivia Pycha

Watch our recent webinar, How a Library Cost Analysis Study Can Benefit Your Research Library, to learn more.

Increase funding at your institution by leveraging library usage to negotiate a higher F&A cost recovery rate

Higher education revenue sources are limited, so when a research university is working on negotiating an F&A cost recovery rate, they often look for as many ways as possible to increase their reimbursement. The United States government allows educational institutions to seek reimbursement for library expenses related to funded research via the university’s F&A cost rate using OMB Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards 2 CFR Part 200 (“Uniform Guidance”), Appendix III – Indirect (F&A) Costs Identification and Assignment and Rate Determination for Institutions of Higher Education.

In other words, researchers use the library and its resources, and the university can claim more reimbursements based on how much the library is used for funded research.

A proven methodology

Attain Partners is the only consulting firm with a Library Cost Study methodology approved by the federal government. For decades, universities have depended on our expertise to provide Library Cost Studies. The standard full-time equivalent (FTE) approach only accounts for the salaries of full-time employees without considering all of the library services, resources, and spaces that contribute to funded research projects.

Through our approach, universities can assign a specific percentage of library use to funded research projects, designating salaries and benefits and also physical spaces, collection materials, and online resources for funded research reimbursements. Attain Partners’ approach has been used successfully as part of F&A rate negotiations and has consistently helped raise universities’ rates at an average of 1.2 points, which equals approximately $1.2 million/year on a $100 million base. To read more about the methodology behind the library cost studies, check out this blog post.

Will a Library Cost Study benefit your university?

Take a look at your past F&A rate and pay special attention to the library’s points. The library should be contributing at least one full point to the F&A rate. The standard FTE approach typically means the university is chasing down financial information and making educated guesses about which employees can be counted. Through a Library Cost Study, Attain Partners pinpoints exact and specific salaries, space, and resources allowable for reimbursement.

Client Success

In the table below, we highlight seven university clients comparing their FTE allocation to the Library Cost Study allocation. The Library Cost Study allocation yields a higher point contribution (86% average increase) to the F&A rate.

Client	FTE Allocation	Library Cost Study Allocation
University A	1.5	2.8
University B	0.9	2.4
University C	1.4	2.7
University D	2.0	3.8
University E	1.3	1.6
University F	1.3	2.5
University G	1.1	2.2
Average (n=7)	1.4	2.6 (86% increase)

The power of data

An additional benefit of the Library Cost Study is valuable assessment data useful to the university library and campus administrators. This Library Cost Study data provides insights for library leaders, Libraries receive cross-tabbed data on library use and expenditure by

Purpose of library use: sponsored research, instruction/education, (non-sponsored) research, patient care (if applicable), other sponsored activities, and other activities
Library collections (e.g., databases, journals, books), by purpose of use and affiliation
Library expenditures, by purpose of use
In-person library use, by purpose of use and affiliation
Electronic resource use, by purpose or use and affiliation
Library services utilized, by purpose of use and affiliation
Space allocations by function

The Study highlights the library’s impact on the university mission and informs library leaders as they make budgetary and programmatic decisions.

Attain Partners – Library Experts

Attain Partners is the only consulting firm that offers this federally approved methodology for Library Cost Studies. Contact our team today to find out more about how our consultants will work with your library to conduct a Library Cost Study.

Learn more about our Library Planning and Strategy services here.

About the Author

Ms. Blake Norby is a Senior Library Consultant for the Research Enterprise Services practice of Attain Partners. During her time with Attain Partners, Ms. Norby has been involved in multiple library consulting projects with higher education institutions. She has participated in various stages of Facilities & Administrative Expense (F&A) strategic planning, proposal preparation and submission, and space functional usage studies with a focus on library spaces. Ms. Norby brings over 13 years’ experience working in libraries with extensive knowledge of using patron data to create inclusive, accessible library spaces and programs. She is currently a member of the American Evaluation Association (AEA), the American Library Association (ALA) including the Public Library Association, and several additional roundtables and special interest groups.

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Leveraging Momentum to Deliver Excellence

February 8, 2023/in About Attain Partners, Thought Leadership Olivia Pycha/by Olivia Pycha

We are consistently strategizing how we can help our clients make the biggest impact. After a year of unprecedented growth, we’re leveraging the momentum that we worked together to create to drive new innovations and create an impact in the education and nonprofit industries. Read about our recent areas of growth and how we’re leveraging each to continue to deliver excellence in 2023 and beyond.

Reflecting on the company’s growth, Founder and CEO Greg Baroni shared, “What I notice, more than anything, is how each and every one of our team members goes above and beyond to Execute with Discipline to serve our clients, with the idea and the focus of creating a better world for their constituents, and thereby improving the communities in which we live and work.”

Team Attain Partners: Growing our talent

As a people-first organization, it’s only right we begin by highlighting how our talent flourished over the past year. In 2022, Attain Partners experienced incredible growth, with approximately 100 new team members hired—an increase of 84% from 2021.

Among our key hires were two strong additions to Attain Partners’ executive leadership team—Philip (Phil) Agee and Shannon Benson. Former Partner and Board Member of Attain, Phil Agee, was appointed as Attain Partners’ President and Chief Operating Officer (COO). A proven leader with demonstrated success, Phil brings nearly 20 years of experience growing and building diverse and inclusive teams. Shannon Benson also joined the team in 2022 as the Director of Human Resources at Attain Partners. Shannon brings two decades of experience providing human resources support, guidance, and engagement to the team. Together, Phil and Shannon bring a wealth of experience—their positive impact has already been felt throughout the organization, and we look forward to their continued leadership as we strive to Invent the Future.

Learn more about our leadership team here.

Juran Acquisition: Extending our offerings

In June 2022, Attain Partners proudly announced its acquisition of Juran, an organization recognized as a global leader in quality management service offerings. Now known as Attain Partners | Juran, the practice, led by Dr. Joseph DeFeo, continues to offer robust advisory services and comprehensive training and certification programs, including Lean Six Sigma (LSS), under the strategic guidance of Phil Agee.

In addition to consulting services, Attain Partners | Juran’s IMPRO e-learning content includes a comprehensive suite of online training modules and learning plans. The learning content included within IMPRO will help drive Attain Partners toward our vision as an asset-based consulting firm.

Learn more about Attain Partners | Juran here.

New Clients: Increasing our impact

In addition to the commendable growth Attain Partners experienced internally, we also expanded our external impact by adding several notable clients to our roster in 2022.

Learn more about who we serve here.

Maryland Connect

In October, Attain Partners was pleased to expand our work with University System of Maryland (USM), reinforcing Attain Partners’ role in the education space as a leader of enterprise transformation for schools and universities nationwide.

Attain Partners is providing the Maryland Connect (MD Connect) consortium of five schools—Bowie State University, Frostburg State University, Salisbury University, University of Baltimore, and Coppin State University—program management, organizational change management, and staff augmentation support as the client implements a single instance of Workday Financial Management and Human Capital Management systems.

Seattle Children’s

In 2022, Attain Partners also proudly strengthened our working relationship with Seattle Children’s providing interim staffing and research operations stabilization and research leadership support to help further advance its important mission.

Salesforce Success: Showcasing our ecosystem expertise

As premier Salesforce implementation experts, we were proud to add two impressive accolades to our Salesforce partnership in 2022. In June, Attain Partners was named the 2022 Salesforce.org Consulting Partner of the Year – Education, in recognition of our unparalleled expertise leveraging Salesforce to reimagine the student experience. In December, Attain Partners achieved the highest tier of Salesforce partnership, earning the coveted Salesforce Summit Partner status.

These esteemed milestones are a direct result of our team’s commendable work to advance certifications, update project entries, achieve business development growth, and maintain efforts fostering a positive, active relationship with Salesforce.

Learn more about our Salesforce Innovation services here.

Asset-driven Business: Expanding our capabilities

As an asset-powered consultancy, we are especially proud of the 21 new assets we created and added to our portfolio in 2022, including Deep Data Exploration (an addition to Attain Research Performance), assessments (used to deliver the Attain Partners IDEA Performance Maturity Framework), Amp Impact templates, an F&A benchmarking tool, and the Salesforce Student Success Hub accelerator, among others.

Looking Ahead: Growing our impact The Attain Way

As we move ahead into the new year, the great work from our team members in 2022 is paving the way to attain even greater success ahead. We look forward to further expanding our impact as we continue to help education, nonprofit, healthcare, and state and local government organizations move their missions forward.

We invite you to join us on this journey in a variety of ways:

Visit us at an upcoming industry event.
Learn more about our offerings through our monthly webinars, or watch an on-demand session that can help your organization grow.
Check out our other blog entries—we’re constantly updating case studies and client stories, thought leadership, and sharing work with our partners.
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter, The Pulse—one of the best ways to stay current on all Attain Partners news and innovations.

Interested in doing even more? Discover how you can grow your career at Attain Partners here.

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Rainer Weissenberger is an Expert in Advancement for Higher Education

February 6, 2023/in Advancement, Higher Education, Salesforce, Salesforce Community, Team for Speed, Thought Leadership/by Olivia Pycha

Meet Attain Partners’ Experts!

Higher Education institutions have the power to change the world, especially those with successful advancement programs. We founded Attain Partners to be the spark that helps leaders achieve their mission faster, more efficiently, and with greater impact. We proudly fuel our fire with passionate experts who help our clients attain more. In our new Team for Speed series, meet some of our experts and learn how they are creating impactful solutions for higher education institutions.

Meet Rainer Weissenberger! Rainer joined Attain Partners in 2022 and has already made significant contributions in helping us serve our clients The Attain Way. As the Salesforce.org 2022 Consulting Partner of the Year – Education and a Salesforce Summit Partner, we have big plans for 2023 and are grateful to have Rainer on board to help live out our core value to Invent the Future.

We sat down with Rainer to dive deeper into his background before joining Attain Partners. Read our conversation with him below.

Attain Partners (AP): How did you get into advancement for higher education?

Rainer Weissenberger (RW): When I began my career in advancement for higher education almost 13 years ago, it was the perfect fit for me. I had just completed a degree in arts administration and felt passionate about fundraising and advancing higher education. So, when the opportunity arose at my alma mater to combine the two, I jumped at it and didn’t regret it once.

AP: What did you do before joining Attain Partners?

RW: In my advancement career, I’ve grown from Development Research and Prospect Management at Florida State University to the Director of Advancement Operations at Connecticut College. I’ve supported development with intelligence and strategic efforts and led a conversion from Banner Advancement to Salesforce (EDA) as the product owner.

I fell in love with Salesforce for higher education because it allows us to build the exact environment we want for our clients. As a Salesforce System Administrator, I added the technical aspects of the advancement effort to my portfolio of responsibilities—including biographical data management, gift processing, reporting, analytics, and system development—for all of advancement.

AP: Can you share an example of a project of which you are especially proud?

RW: Two of my biggest achievements before joining Attain Partners were helping lead Connecticut College to be the first to adopt the Salesforce Gift Entry Manager (GEM) and achieving the best fundraising year in the history of the college by raising over $55 million in philanthropic donations in 2022.

AP: What brought you to Attain Partners?

RW: I began wondering what it would be like to help others realize the transformation we accomplished at Connecticut College. Enter, Attain Partners!

When I learned that the exact opportunity I always dreamt of actually existed—and existed within a company that reflects my values—it was a no-brainer for me to apply. Integrity, creativity, and being bold have always been guiding principles in my life, and at Attain Partners, it’s baked into the DNA. Getting to do what I love at the highest level possible and in an environment that nurtures collaboration is empowering.

I love working with skilled, creative, collaborative professionals who are not afraid to tackle difficult problems. And I love working for a company that invests in its workforce because it understands the fundamental difference this makes.

AP: What do you like most about the work you do?

RW: Seeing the results of an advancement organization being liberated from the confines of a legacy CRM is the most gratifying aspect of my job. Remembering at the end of a project what the “before” looked like and how Salesforce or a managed product built on Salesforce transformed business processes, deepened collaboration, simplified data entry, and created data transparency makes it all worth the effort of inventing the future together with our client, for our client.

AP: How do you keep current in advancement?

RW: While having technical expertise is paramount to what I do, having deep knowledge of and keeping up on the latest developments in the advancement space is equally important to me as it helps contextualize my technical skills within the environment in which I serve. Therefore, I continue to be engaged with organizations supporting the development sector such as Apra International and aasp (Association of Advancement Services Professionals).

AP: What do you like to do for fun outside of work?

RW: When I’m not working, I spend time with my family, bake bread, brew beer, build/research my next DIY project, and relax on the water while fishing with one of my kids.

Attain Partners – Salesforce Experts

No matter if your organization is beginning its Salesforce journey or 10+ years into development, Attain Partners is here to help you achieve your goals. Contact our team today to learn how we can help you advance your mission by harnessing the power of Salesforce.

To learn more, check out our Salesforce Innovation services, read case studies about our transformative work, and explore blog posts from our Salesforce experts. Read our latest advancement insights here.

Learn more – Rainer Weissenberger

Rainer Weissenberger is a Senior Consultant at Attain Partners with 12+ years of experience as a higher education advancement professional. His advancement services include gift accounting, data management, system administration, reporting, database conversion, development research, prospect management, contracts and budget management, and a commitment to a customer-centric service philosophy.

Rainer holds an M.A. in Arts Administration from Florida State University, an M.A. in Historical Musicology from the University of Iowa, and multiple Salesforce certifications including Administrator, Education Cloud Consultant, ascend Certified Functional Lead, Bio/Demo, Gift Processing, and Prospect Management.

Interested in speaking directly with Rainer? Fill out this form to be connected!

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Enterprise Resource Planning Systems for a Higher Ed Consortium

January 18, 2023/in Best Practices, Higher Education, Strategy, Thought Leadership Mark Meyers/by Olivia Pycha

The Playbook for ERP Consortium Success: A Gridiron Allegory

Building the Franchise

What do you mean, you can’t implement an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system to support multiple universities?

Yes, you can! ERP systems have been and currently are being implemented to support multiple universities throughout the country. Attain Partners has successfully completed numerous implementations like this for our clients nationwide.

Advantages of the Consortium Approach to ERP Implementations in Higher Education

1. Cost Savings
Implementing an ERP system is expensive. With a consortium approach, multiple universities can share the subscription/licensing cost if you limit the number of implemented tenants. Licensing or subscription fees are then priced by the number of implemented tenants, not the individual institution (this is discussed further in “Executing the Gameplan” below).

System integrator fees can also be shared. This provides substantial savings for the consortium over individual universities paying their own way.

2. Shared Resources
Implementing an ERP system requires many staff resources, even if a third-party integrator is involved. Functional and technical staff from the universities still need to be involved in user design and testing and technically for integrations and data conversion. This burden can be shared by all universities in the consortium where each institution can contribute staff to work on the project.

3. Long-term Sustainability
After the project is completed, the ERP system still needs to be supported. A consortium empowers shared services for technical maintenance in addition to human resource and financial management operations.

Drafting the Start Team

The first key element to a multi-university ERP system implementation is to pick a winning team. It is not essential, but preferable, for the universities to have relational ties (e.g., all institutions are members of one state system). The advantage is that within one state system, universities often share a primary funding source and have a common governance structure.

Ideally, but not essentially, the universities should also share similar demographic structures. In the best case, the universities would have similar:

Budgeted revenues and expenditures
Number of staff and faculty
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students

This helps “level the playing field” for all the participants.

Lastly, the universities having similar business management and operational models will simplify the system design, implementation, and operations. Ultimately, an ERP system that operates consistently for all consortium members will provide the largest cost savings for both the implementation as well as ongoing support.

Designing the Playbook

Just as every play relies upon a strong foundation (i.e., the interior line), the foundation for a successful consortium ERP implementation is a well-defined governance structure. Once the governance structure is determined, the cost allocation structure should be defined, and a process put in place for making decisions that benefit all universities in the consortium.

Governance Structure

The governance structure should provide a representation of varying levels of involvement for each of the universities involved in the ERP system

For example, a consortium ERP implementation might include:

An executive committee comprised of the university’s Senior Vice Presidents for Administration and Finance (i.e., CFOs) to provide final approval for critical cross-institutional issues and budget decisions
Chief Information Officers (CIOs) to provide directional support to the project management office
Project Management Office (PMO) to manage the day-to-day activities of the project
Functional advisory committees to provide input and help direct and resolve design issues for the project team
Technical advisory committees to provide direction for technology concerns, such as integration architectures and data warehouse toolsets

Cost Allocation Structure

The second component of the project that must be defined is the cost allocation structure. Will the cost for software subscriptions/licenses and system integrator fees be divided equally among the schools or will some kind of weight factor be applied?

Weighting options to consider could include:

Relative budgets for each university
Number of staff and faculty
Number of students

Decision-making Process

Finally, it’s essential to define the consortium’s approach to decision-making. Each university will have a unique “personality,” and it is important to understand that some will want to take the lead and cause others that may be content to follow. Moving forward with approaches and decisions that best represent the needs and requirements of all the universities in the consortium is imperative for a successful ERP implementation.

Decision-making considerations may include:

One vote for each university
Delegates based on a weighting factor (such as those listed above)
Simple majority rules or a two-thirds majority requirement

The Coaching Staff and Executing the Game Plan

Once the consortium has formed and built the franchise, the starting team has been drafted, and the playbook is written, it is time to engage the coaching staff! The earlier work in laying a strong foundation and creating a solid team will enable your consortium to execute the game plan and win the ERP system implementation game.

Learn More

Stay tuned for part two of this series to learn how to win the game in the coming weeks!

Can’t wait? Contact us today to learn how our expert team can help build your consortium and lead you through a winning ERP system implementation. Learn more about our Enterprise Business Solutions here.

About the Author

Mark Meyers brings over 40 years of experience, specializing in ERP and transformational change initiatives. Mark has provided leadership to the implementation of the ERP systems for The Ohio State University, University of Michigan, Vanderbilt University, University of Maryland Global Campus, University of Maryland System Consortium, as well as Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Mark holds a Bachelor of Science degree with a double major in Computer Information Science and Accounting from The Ohio State University.

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The Value of User Surveys for Library Assessment

January 11, 2023/in Best Practices, Higher Education, Library Services, Research, Strategy, Thought Leadership Blake Norby/by Olivia Pycha

Hear directly from Attain Partners library consultants in our on-demand webinar, The Versatility of Library User Surveys: Why Libraries Need Them and How We Can Help.

Providing Services that Resonate with Library Patrons

The first goal of every library is to provide useful, relevant resources and services for its patrons. In fact, without its patrons, a library has no reason to exist. But how do libraries determine which resources, materials, and services to provide? The market is flooded with assessment tools and philosophies that can make deciding on a method confusing, but the one aspect consistent across the most successful assessment tools is the use of a library user survey.

Leverage Library User Surveys to Gain Insight

There is no doubt that libraries need to know what their patrons need and want, and there is simply no better way to find that out than to directly ask them! National trends and benchmarking can help provide new ideas or focus areas, but without surveying actual library users there is no way to determine a specific goal with tasks that will benefit the community.

For example, a leading national trend for public libraries is a focus on inclusivity, but what does that truly mean? In a community with a large Spanish-speaking population, it likely would include a higher number of Spanish language materials, but what and how many materials should be purchased? Does the library need to ensure the librarians available speak Spanish? Should the website have a translation available? Are there school-aged children who would benefit from bilingual resources that match the local school curriculum? Libraries have limited budgets and cannot address every single need or task to reach a bigger goal, so what takes priority? User surveys would address these kinds of questions to go beyond the initial ideas and help identify specific tasks or activities to reach a goal.

Designing a User-friendly Library Survey

So, now a library has decided the best next step is to implement a library user survey as part of its assessment, but how does it decide how many and what questions to ask? Users can quickly get survey fatigue, especially if there are too many questions or if the users feel the questions are irrelevant to them.

At Attain Partners, our consultants are experts in the design and implementation of library user surveys. We spend the time getting to know our clients and their organizations to ensure all questions are directly relevant to obtainable goals and the community the library serves. Questions are formulated to gain specific data for focused goals while providing users the opportunity to offer their own ideas for what they would like to see in their library.

We also provide the survey in a variety of formats to not only reach as many users as possible, but to prevent survey fatigue. The use of web intercepts and QR codes to provide the survey in an electronic format allows us to design the surveys to skip questions based on the users’ answers, so they only answer questions relevant to them.

Attain Partners closely collaborates with libraries to ensure library user surveys are individualized and specific to a library community.

Attain Partners – Library Experts

At Attain Partners, our consultants work with university, public, and school libraries to design and implement effective library user surveys to inform critical financial and strategic decisions. Contact our team today to find out more about how our consultants will work with your library to create a valuable assessment tool!

Learn more about our Library Planning and Strategy services here.

About the Author

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Obsess Externally: Giving Back the Attain Way

January 6, 2023/in About Attain Partners, Attain Gives Back, Thought Leadership Olivia Pycha/by Olivia Pycha

At Attain Partners, we believe that service to others is not just a responsibility, but a privilege. That’s why one of the seven core values comprising The Attain Way is to Obsess Externally. Our employees share their time, talents, and treasures to positively impact the communities in which we live and work. Whether through volunteer work, mentoring a colleague, or providing groundbreaking results to our clients, our culture of intention fosters a steadfast pledge to service.

Our values embody the character that we, as members of an elite professional services company, believe a trusted partner and a client advisor should possess. Our values are not only the foundation of Attain Partners’ culture, but they also provide an inspiring, motivational framework for driving excellence, achieving the best results for our clients, and attaining insanely great results. That’s The Attain Way.

Greg Baroni

Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Attain Partners

As our company grows, we continue to demonstrate a passion for service through active support of philanthropic organizations, including the National Kidney Foundation Serving the National Capital Area and The Women’s Center, located in Vienna, Va.

The National Kidney Foundation Serving the National Capital Area

The National Kidney Foundation conducts extensive public and professional education programs, provides early detection screenings, advocates for organ donation, and supports kidney research to identify new treatments.

Our team is passionate about supporting the National Kidney Foundation. For the past several years, Team Attain Partners has been recognized as a top Capital Area Kidney Walk Corporate Fundraiser. Each year, Team Attain Partners shows up for the D.C. Walk—both in-person and virtually—to help fundraise and drive awareness across the country.

Ellen Walsh, Partner, serves as a Member of the Board of the National Kidney Foundation Serving the National Capital Area, playing an active role in raising awareness and funds to support kidney health. Additionally, Reshma Patel-Jackson, Partner and Practice Lead, has led the company’s support of the annual Kidney Walk as our Team Captain.

The Attain Way is our compass by which decisions are made, actions are taken, and business is brokered and built. But our core values are so much more than that. To me, Obsessing Externally is what makes Attain Partners the company where I am proud to work. We’re not just about the bottom line, we’re also about giving back, in a real way, to the communities in which we live and work.

Ellen Walsh

Partner, Attain Partners

The Women’s Center

Based in Fairfax, Va., the mission of The Women’s Center is to significantly improve the psychological, professional, financial, and legal well-being of women, men, and their families—regardless of financial situation.

The Women’s Center has been working to make mental health care accessible to and affordable for the Greater Washington region for more than 50 years. As a counseling and resource center, the Center’s clinical staff includes therapists and career counselors who provide indispensable support services to benefit the constituents it serves. 

Attain Partners passionately supports the important mission of The Women’s Center as an annual Patron Sponsor of the organization. Attain Partners is proudly represented on the Board of Directors for The Women’s Center, with Reshma Patel-Jackson, Partner, currently serving as a Member of the Board, and Founder and CEO Greg Baroni as the former Board Chair. Each year, Attain Partners team members actively participate in the Center’s marquee fundraising events, including the annual Women’s Leadership Conference, which provides access to unique professional development for team members across our organization, as well as the annual Fall Benefit Gala.

Additional Philanthropic Efforts—Supporting the Causes Most Important to Our People

In addition to our flagship causes, we embrace a, “What matters to our employees, matters to us,” philosophy and support a roster of more than 20 charitable organizations important to Attain Partners’ team members and the firm’s philanthropic initiatives.

The Attain Way inspires and motivates us as consultants, embodying the character that we believe a trusted partner and a client advisor should possess. We don’t just work by these values; we live by them.

Learn more about Attain Partners’ philanthropic efforts and community involvement here.

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Strengthening Company Culture with a Predominantly Virtual Workforce

December 21, 2022/in About Attain Partners, Thought Leadership Jenifer Parker, Maureen Goldman/by [email protected]

As organizations continue to adjust to the evolving post-pandemic landscape, many employees have been provided with the opportunity for a more flexible working arrangement—working remotely and leaning into a more balanced work-life dynamic. At Attain Partners, this shift to a predominantly remote workforce has allowed us to hire diverse, experienced professionals from across the country as well as motivated us to think through new, innovative ways to strengthen our company culture.

Bringing Our Virtual Team Members Together

Virtual, high-touch engagement practices are a key part of our people-first strategy. Our team members are used to virtual meetings with colleagues and clients alike, but this holiday season, we wanted to find a way not just to work together, but to celebrate together—despite more than 60% of our team members working in a remote capacity across the country.

In years past, we’ve had an in-person holiday event to gather Team Attain Partners together to celebrate and socialize. This year, we took a new approach to acknowledging various time zones and interests!

Instead of planning one event offered at a single location, we offered four virtual event options, held on separate days at varying times, and let our employees choose which event best fit their availability and interests. Choices included trivia, an escape room adventure, a baking class, and an at-home wine tasting.

The event options were announced at our November Town Hall meeting via a virtual poll—the results of which helped drum up excitement for the events to come as well as helped our planning committee preview registration numbers.

Expressing Gratitude

To accompany the week of holiday events and our pre-holiday Town Hall meeting, we also sent every full-time employee a virtual gift card, ensuring that all team members, even those whom opted out of the virtual event offerings, felt the gratitude our company wished to express for their wonderful work throughout the year.

“We wanted to celebrate everyone’s contributions throughout the year and come together in a setting that was convenient and accessible for all employees. In particular, the virtual gift card was our way of recognizing the contributions of our team members, especially those that couldn’t attend our virtual events.” – Jennifer McAllister, Special Projects Manager, Office of the CEO, Attain Partners

(Photo: Virtual wine tasting, Lucid Wines)

To add another level to our offerings, we accentuated each event with its own bonus:

Each member of the winning Trivia team and winning Escape Room team received a gift card
Baking Class participants received their recipes ahead of time along with the specialty chocolate recommended from their ingredients list
Wine Tasting participants received the link to a Spotify playlist, based on the songs recommended in the booklet that accompanied their box of wine samples

(Photo: Raffle prizes, Attain Partners Town Hall)

Creating Opportunities for Virtual Access to Leadership

To close out the week of celebrations, our CEO and Executive Team hosted a pre-holiday Town Hall to virtually bring everyone together. We celebrated the wins of the year with a high-level recap and ended the meeting with the company-wide raffle drawing where we had seven prize winners as well as a grand prize winner. All (full-time) employees’ names were entered into a drawing, with members of our senior leadership team taking turns to spin the virtual wheel. Prizes ranged from plane tickets to coveted electronics and (small) kitchen appliances, but the best prize of all was the camaraderie and sense of community that permeated the virtual meeting space. Each time a raffle winner was chosen, hearts and clapping hand emoticons flooded the shared screen. Though in various physical locations, we were all united as one Team Attain Partners.

Recharging to Close Out 2022

At Attain Partners, we put our people first and are always looking for ways to invest in our team. To support our employees’ health and well-being, we will be shutting operations during the holiday season from Friday, December 23, through and including Monday, January 2. During this closure, our team members will have an opportunity to truly disconnect. Every day, Team Attain Partners goes above and beyond to execute with discipline and deliver excellence—we couldn’t be more appreciative of their many contributions.

We wish you all a happy holiday and hope that you are able to rest, recharge, and spend time with those most important to you! Happy Holidays!

About the Authors

Jenifer Parker is a Senior Professional with the Corporate Services Team at Attain Partners. With a passion for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Ms. Parker has experience in helping organizations develop their DE&I strategies, leveraging her professional training in Diversity & Inclusion. Prior to working at Attain Partners, Ms. Parker led a corporate DE&I program at a private firm in Alexandria, VA. She holds a professional certificate in Diversity & Inclusion from Cornell and earned a Bachelor of Arts from Wake Forest University.

Maureen Goldman is the Associate Director of Marketing and Communications at Attain Partners. Maureen stewards the firm’s brand, leading its social media presence, website, digital content strategy, tradeshows, webinars, and email marketing campaigns. Maureen is passionate about sharing the innovative solutions that Attain Partners delivers to positively impact our clients, our team members, and our communities. Maureen has a B.A. from Northwestern University and her M.A. from George Mason University.

Three Steps to Elevate Your Nonprofit’s Digital Maturity

December 19, 2022/in Best Practices, Digital Transformation, Nonprofit, Salesforce, Thought Leadership Kristi Phillips, Laura Bourland/by Olivia Pycha

How can your nonprofit organization make a bigger impact in 2023? The Salesforce Nonprofit Trends Report is out, and the answer is clear: Digital maturity!

Salesforce surveys found organizations are 3.5x more likely to achieve their mission’s goals and 1.9x more likely to see improvements in organizational efficiency if they rank high in digital maturity. What exactly is digital maturity? It can be defined as an organization’s ability to take advantage of current opportunities in technology and staffing resources to transform people, culture, and processes.

Clean data, centralized systems, and defined processes are all elements of a thriving organization capable of tackling mission-critical work and retaining a dedicated workforce. These organizations are often further along in successful fundraising initiatives, climate action, and DEI programming and put their technology to work to help progress their commitments and demonstrate resiliency.

So, the question is, “How can your nonprofit organization improve its digital maturity?”

Get Ready for 2023

Answering this question around digital maturity seems reminiscent of other rituals and mantras that are popular at this time of year. For example, as the new year draws closer, we see many people setting a New Year’s resolution to “get healthy.” While it sounds great—who can object to better health?!—the ambiguity can make it incredibly difficult to get started.

Should I join a gym? Buy an exercise bike? Start counting my steps? Go on a diet? Cut out sugar? Go to bed earlier?

Faced with too many options about what it means to “get healthy” and how to start, one might end up with analysis paralysis. Without a clear plan and accountability partner, many lose focus and give up entirely after a few weeks.

But, what if you narrowed your decision to just one area of health that appeals to you? Instead of “get healthy,” your resolution might be to simply start exercising. Perhaps, taking a walk during lunch each day? And, with a clearer path, you could even hire a personal trainer to help create an action plan and hold you accountable.

Your New Year’s Resolution: Digital Maturity

So, what does this have to do with digital maturity and your organization’s goals for 2023? Improving your organization’s digital maturity is an admirable goal, but without an actionable plan, it could end up like that New Year’s resolution; one that lacks a path toward realization.

So, here are Attain Partners’ recommendations for avoiding common pitfalls and elevating your digital maturity in the new year.

How to Achieve Digital Maturity in 2023

Step 1: Choose Your Focus

The first step to building your organization’s digital maturity is to decide where to focus your efforts.

Is exercise your thing? Do you want to run a marathon this year? Or, is a mile more your speed? Are you ready to analyze organizational data to plan 2023 fundraising, or do you need to start by collecting and organizing the data first?

If you’re unsure where to start or feel overwhelmed by the options, consider enlisting the help of an expert. At Attain Partners, we’re experts in working with nonprofits to identify goals and design paths to help you achieve them. Meeting you where you are, we can start with an audit, a conversation, a plan to implement a new dashboard, or whatever feels best to you. From there, we can assess your needs and draw out an actionable plan with clear milestones, timelines, and team investment required.

Attain Partners can help your organization:

Define goals
Create roadmaps
Focus your DEI efforts
Organize and manage data
Improve digital engagement to reach stakeholders

See how Attain Partners worked with The WNET Group to streamline its subscription process, empower the customer, and ultimately increase its email list by 25%.

Step 2: Build Your Support System

Anyone who has set a New Year’s resolution knows that starting is the easy part—it’s showing up and working towards a goal that requires daily dedication and accountability. If you were working towards an exercise goal, you might hire a personal trainer or get a workout buddy; someone to help ensure you show up for yourself each day.

How does that translate to your organization?

You need a support system in place to sustain and motivate the efforts of your digital transformation. Joining a community of like-minded organizations that are also working towards digital maturity is a great start. Here are some ideas of where you might find those support systems:

Salesforce User Communities
Attend your local Salesforce nonprofit user group, take time to attend the Salesforce World Tours, or carve out time to join a topical webinar. Learning from and networking with others can provide new resources, partnerships, and the confidence to keep up the hard work.

Product Communities
If you’re using Salesforce already, what products are you using? Do they have a community of users you can join?

For example, Attain Partners is a formal partner and implementer of Amp Impact. Amp Impact is a Salesforce-based solution designed specifically for organizations to manage their portfolios and measure impact.

Our Amp Impact clients are part of a larger global community of 150+ organizations, including Habitat for Humanity International, World Vision, and Conversation International. In these communities, they discuss best practices, share stories, and learn from other organizations using the same suite of tools that may be further along in their digital maturity journey.

Invest in a Support System
Whether you’re a lean team struggling to keep pace with your system or a mature team looking for specific expertise, hiring someone to drive the improvements may be the answer.

Attain Partners Managed Services goes to work for nonprofit organizations to continually move the backlog forward, fill capacity gaps as they arise, provide a second opinion when needed, and simply support your team with the daily work. Managed Services can provide advice as you map out your next steps toward digital maturity and/or take tasks off your plate so that you have the time to work on new tasks and strategies.

Step 3: Just Do It.

Take that first step. Trust the technology and experts you’ve hired to help your nonprofit mature.

The Salesforce Nonprofit Trends Report shared that in the next 12 months, 39% of digitally mature nonprofit organizations are planning to focus on improving their cybersecurity and privacy, 27% are planning new programs and services, and 26% are putting effort into remote working models that improve employee retention and empower them to hire the right people, regardless of physical location.

Try something new—big or small. We’re big proponents of innovation and our team is always working to Be Bold and Invent the Future. We want that for you, too!

Here are some of the ways that Attain Partners supports nonprofit organizations:

DEI and IDEA Transformation
Strategic Planning
Change Management
Business Process Modernization
Salesforce Roadmapping & Planning
- Virtual Admin and Managed Services
- End-to-end Salesforce Implementation Services, including Digital Engagement and Amp Impact

When in doubt, research what successful organizations are doing and fake it until you make it. Attain Partners is here to support, hold you accountable, help you take new risks, and teach you how to manage day-to-day improvements.

Mission Success is Dependent on Your Nonprofit’s Digital Maturity

Regardless of your mission, improving your technological infrastructure will help you better achieve your goals and scale comfortably. 74% of nonprofit leaders say digital transformation is necessary for their organization, but only 12% of nonprofits score high on the Salesforce for Nonprofit Digital Maturity Index.

The data is clear. Digitally mature nonprofits perform better than their less mature counterparts, and technology can improve:

Efficiency
Productivity
Relationships
Workplace culture
Mission achievement

So…

Are you ready to set a New Year’s resolution to further your mission?

Like starting a new exercise routine, it all begins with putting on your shoes and taking a single step. Attain Partners is ready to take that first step with you! Contact us today to learn how we can help.

Read the whole report: The Fifth Edition of the Nonprofit Trends Report (salesforce.org)

About the Authors

Kristi Phillips leads Attain Partners’ nonprofit practice to help organizations leverage technology for social change. Kristi has been working directly with nonprofits to accelerate their impact and deliver creative solutions on the Salesforce platform since 2013.

Before diving into the world of consulting, Kristi worked at Teach For All, where she served as its Director of Data Management. There, she supported 30+ international organizations with their design, configuration, and implementation of Salesforce. Prior to Teach For All, Kristi was at Education Pioneers as their Director of Strategic Site Support and Operations where she led new site development, new program integration, technology development, and program operations. Kristi began her career as a Teach For America Corps Member in Phoenix, Arizona, where she taught elementary special education. Kristi earned her Master’s in Education from the Harvard University Graduate School for Education and her undergraduate degree in International Relations from Boston University.

Laura Bourland is a Manager at Attain Partners with over 12 years’ experience helping education, nonprofit, and technology organizations better connect business goals to the human experience. She holds a BS in Advertising from San José State University and is passionate about using data to drive digital transformation.