CHARLESTON, S.C., Nov. 30, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blackbaud, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLKB), the leading provider of software and services for the global philanthropic community, today announced it will continue its tradition of powering and supporting the #GivingTuesday movement by providing key reporting, trend data and commentary throughout the day to gauge the growth and impact of the movement. The company, whose systems process the majority of online donations on #GivingTuesday, also announced a special consumer incentive and a strategic partnership with Microsoft and movement creator 92nd Street Y (92Y) to inspire the most generous #GivingTuesday yet.
Observed annually on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, #GivingTuesday connects diverse organizations around the world to celebrate and encourage giving. Blackbaud is a founding partner of #GivingTuesday and key provider of technology, information and thought leadership resources to support the movement. The company is also known for year-round corporate philanthropy work, including charitable giving, cost-free mission-development resources, and the volunteering of more than 200,000 employee hours to charitable causes annually.
“We’re proud to be a technology provider that is so trusted by the philanthropic community that its systems power the majority of online giving happening on #GivingTuesday,” said Mike Gianoni, Blackbaud president & CEO. “We are inspired by every organization and individual working to make a difference in the world, so Blackbaud is giving back in even more ways this year to help propel what we hope will be the most impactful #GivingTuesday yet.”
Blackbaud Donates Administrative Costs to Increase Charitable Impact
In support of the #GivingTuesday movement, and to honor those who give generously to meaningful causes, Blackbaud announced it will waive its administrative fees for any U.S. donations made on #GivingTuesday through www.everydayhero.com, its consumer crowdfundraising platform.
“All high-performance platforms have associated infrastructure and maintenance costs, but on #GivingTuesday, Blackbaud will waive its administrative fees for all U.S.-based giving done through its everydayhero™ crowdfundraising platform,” said Rachel Hutchisson, vice president of Corporate Citizenship & Philanthropy at Blackbaud. “By running our best-in-class platform at our own expense on #GivingTuesday, Blackbaud is empowering fundraisers and donors to maximize the impact of gifts, delivering more funding to the front lines of causes they care about. We encourage everyone in America to help start a wave of good by either kicking off their own campaign or support an existing campaign at everydayhero.com on #GivingTuesday.”
Strategic Alliance with Microsoft and 92Y to Support 2015 Movement
Blackbaud, 92nd Street Y, the nonprofit cultural and community center that created #GivingTuesday, and founding partner Microsoft, have come together in partnership to inspire greater transparency and momentum for the movement. As giving activities unfold around the world throughout the day, Microsoft Power BI will turn vast amounts of data—much supplied by Blackbaud—into a vivid picture of the day’s momentum via a #GivingTuesday Dashboard. The dashboard will be accessible online and in Microsoft stores throughout the United States.
The group will also host a command center for the day in 92Y’s facility in the heart of New York City, which will serve as “home” base for the movement. Outfitted with the latest Microsoft technology, #GivingTuesday Command Central will display the real-time virtual dashboard, and will feature expert commentary from the three organizations on the day’s trends and human interest stories. Press is encouraged to visit Command Central and to visit www.GivingTuesday.org to view dashboard updates throughout the day.
Blackbaud, 92Y and Microsoft will kick off #GivingTuesday on Tuesday, December 1 with the ceremonial “ringing of the bell” to start NASDAQ trading.
More Information & Resources for #GivingTuesday
For more information about Blackbaud and #GivingTuesday, visit: www.Blackbaud.com/GivingTuesday. To learn more about everydayhero or to start your own fundraising campaign, visit: www.everydayhero.com/us/givingtuesday-2015. Blackbaud experts are available throughout #GivingTuesday to discuss giving and other trends in the philanthropic sector—contact below.
About Blackbaud
Serving the worldwide philanthropic community for more than 30 years, Blackbaud (NASDAQ:BLKB) combines innovative software and services, and expertise to help organizations achieve their missions. Blackbaud works in over 60 countries to power the passions of more than 30,000 clients, including nonprofits, K-12 private and higher education institutions, healthcare organizations, foundations and other charitable giving entities, and corporations. The company offers a full spectrum of cloud and on-premise solutions, as well as a resource network that empowers and connects organizations of all sizes. Blackbaud's portfolio of software and services support nonprofit fundraising and relationship management, eMarketing, advocacy, accounting, payments and analytics, as well as grant management, corporate social responsibility, and education. Using Blackbaud technology, these organizations raise, invest, manage and award more than $100 billion each year. Recognized as a top company, Blackbaud is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina and has operations in the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.blackbaud.com.
About #GivingTuesday:
Now in its fourth year, #GivingTuesday is a global day of giving fueled by the power of social media and collaboration. Observed on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving (in the U.S.) and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday kicks off the charitable season, when many focus on their holiday and end-of-year giving. Created in 2012 by 92nd Street Y—a cultural center in New York City that, since 1874, has been bringing people together around the values of service and giving back—#GivingTuesday connects diverse groups of individuals, communities and organizations around the world for one common purpose: to celebrate and encourage giving. A team of influencers and founding partners joined forces—collaborating across sectors, offering expertise and working tirelessly—to launch #GivingTuesday, and it has become a movement that celebrates and supports giving and philanthropy with events throughout the year and a growing catalog of resources. To learn more about #GivingTuesday participants and activities or to join the celebration of giving, please visit: Website: www.givingtuesday.org; Facebook: www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday; Twitter: twitter.com/GivingTues.
About Microsoft
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Website: www.microsoft.com; Facebook: www.facebook.com/Microsoft; Twitter: twitter.com/Microsoft.
Forward-looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Although Blackbaud attempts to be accurate in making these forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based. In addition, other important factors that could cause results to differ materially include the following: general economic risks; uncertainty regarding increased business and renewals from existing customers; continued success in sales growth; management of integration of acquired companies and other risks associated with acquisitions; risks associated with successful implementation of multiple integrated software products; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; risks related to our dividend policy and share repurchase program, including potential limitations on our ability to grow and the possibility that we might discontinue payment of dividends; risks relating to restrictions imposed by the credit facility; risks associated with management of growth; lengthy sales and implementation cycles, particularly in larger organization; technological changes that make our products and services less competitive; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in the SEC filings for Blackbaud, copies of which are available free of charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or upon request from Blackbaud's investor relations department. All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc.