Over 90 percent of businesses report using cloud solutions now, and many software companies are in the process of moving to it or already have. The good news is that there are also real benefits for nonprofits. What Is Cloud Computing? Cloud computing software and services are delivered over the Internet and are accessed mostly through our web browsers. The difference between cloud-based and traditional software is that when we access the cloud, our computer or mobile device isn't doing the actual computing. Most of the information processing happens in a large datacenter outside our organization. Benefit #1: Cost The pricing structure of cloud services is really different than traditional software and takes some getting used to. It's closer to renting than buying software. Instead of a one-time cost, cloud providers usually charge per month per seat, which initially can make it look more expensive. Lots of cloud services, however, are free or very low- cost, especially for charities. Many companies offer donated or deeply discounted options to nonprofits. Also, in the long run, cloud-based software tends to save organizations money. We don't have to buy as much networking hardware or software. And using cloud services means we don't need to spend as much on IT staffing costs to maintain local networks. Benefit #2: Working from Anywhere With cloud services, staff members or volunteers working off-site can access their work and communicate nearly as easily at home as they can in the office. They just need a computer or mobile device and the Internet. So many charities do fieldwork that this really is a significant benefit. Benefit #3: Security One of the true headaches of modern IT is the danger of hacking and malware. Cloud-based applications are more secure from cyberthreats than a typical nonprofit server environment is. Cloud applications are updated frequently, and teams of skilled cybersecurity engineers use sophisticated software to watch over datacenters. Plus, datacenters make multiple backups to other datacenters in different locations around the world. No data is 100 percent secure, but the major cloud services are probably the best security we have. Benefit #4: Online Databases Nonprofits increasingly rely on data of all kinds. We must track and communicate well with our donors, members, and volunteers — really anyone who interacts with our organizations, including press and partner organizations. CRM (constituent relationship management) applications are becoming the center of our nonprofit IT systems. Nearly all of them now are cloud-based and available to us wherever we need them — at our fundraisers, service events, and off-site meetings. Online databases allow us to get to our data whenever and wherever needed. Explore Cloud-Based Tools for Charities I already mentioned low and no-cost cloud options for charities. TechSoup donor partner Microsoft expanded its donated cloud offers for nonprofits this year to include a significant number of donated or significantly discounted products. Here they are. Microsoft Office 365 — the online version of familiar Office applications like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, plus many more, including video conferencing. It also has hosted email via Exchange Online and online document sharing with SharePoint Online. These can greatly simplify a nonprofit network. See much more about Office 365 . Dynamics 365 — Microsoft's online CRM or constituent relationship management database. It helps charities engage with donors and volunteers, manage grants and finances, and coordinate projects from the field or anywhere with an Internet connection. Azure — Microsoft's "infrastructure as a service" cloud offering for building and hosting applications that your charity wants to create or make available to your audience. Power BI — transforms your nonprofit's data into visuals including graphs and charts from your own CRM or from your website using Google Analytics. This online application is useful for demonstrating impact, something that is increasingly important to our donors and grantmakers. Enterprise Mobility Suite — a suite of software tools that helps you manage the BYOD mobile devices that your employees and volunteers use for work. It provides identity and access management for nearly any app or device, plus lots of security tools to keep your organization's critical data safe. Your charity can apply to receive donations of all or some of these cloud services from Microsoft Philanthropies . Get Cloud Services Additional Cloud Offers Through TechSoup A majority of the many IT product donations and discounts on TechSoup are now cloud-based. Here are some of our most popular ones. Adobe Creative Cloud — includes all of Adobe's famous design applications like Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and many more. QuickBooks Online Plus — Intuit's flagship accounting application, now cloud-based. This TechSoup offer provides a one-year subscription for up to five users. Tableau —professional-grade data analysis and visualization software. It creates interactive visualizations and dashboards for you to share with supporters. No programming necessary. Box — a robust online document and file-sharing service with good content management and collaboration tools for your entire organization. Find additional cloud products, including several online CRM applications, on TechSoup's cloud solutions page . Is There Anyone the Cloud Isn't Right For? The answer is yes. Cloud-based software and services aren't suitable for organizations that don't have reliable broadband Internet access. Also, does your organization have sensitive data that cannot be shared, even under government subpoena? If so, it might be advisable to be careful about choosing your cloud provider or to keep your data under your sole control. All providers have different privacy policies regarding using your data themselves and allowing governments to have it on demand. For more on this, have a look at our article by Donny Shimamoto: What Cloud Security Really Means — Confidentiality and Privacy . The Bottom Line I've been watching the progress of cloud computing since around 2010, and I've been largely pleased with how it has affected nonprofit technology. I was skeptical of whether the pricing model would be good for charities. But as the field has matured, things have largely worked out for our organizations. The prevalent freemium model means basic core services are available at no cost. Thanks to that model and the generosity of major cloud providers like Microsoft, Google, and our many donor partners, things have turned out pretty well. The cloud is designed to let us work from anywhere on any type of device. So, if you haven't already, it's high time to embrace the 21st century — and with it, the cloud. Image : Microsoft spanhidden