With Software Donation, LA-Based Organization Can Focus on Helping Youth
Helpline Youth Counseling is the largest youth services provider in Southeast Los Angeles County. Founded in 1971, the organization promotes the development of strong individuals and families in the community. This is accomplished through education, therapeutic approaches, advocacy, and partnering with community resources. In a typical year, HYC provided comprehensive educational case management, counseling, skill building, and treatment services to 5,192 children, youth, and adults in cities throughout the greater Los Angeles area. An additional 7,944 individuals in crisis were assisted via its Community Helpline Hotline.
By the 1990s, HYC's scope service delivery and business practices had reached levels that surpassed the way it managed its data. Without a proper technology system in place, HYC found its business practices struggling, including tracking those who were in need of help. HYC realized that it needed a strategic data plan. The organization created a strategy that was more cohesive, that required tighter integration between departments, locations, and programs, and that tied the database together as a communication layer.
With limited resources, this all had to be achieved affordably and with the ability to be updated in the future. Through TechSoup, HYC was able to obtain the necessary licensed copies of Microsoft Office. This enabled it to move forward with the new technology plan. The organization utilizes Microsoft Access as the tool to warehouse, view, query, modify, and report centralized data to the entire organization.
HYC has improved its efficiency by decreasing accounting and program department's monthly reporting time by more than 60 hours each month. This improved efficiency allows all areas of the agency to focus the time and energy on meeting the mission instead of producing reports.
