Spreadsheet Formulas You Need to Know, Part 1: The 6 Biggest Time-Savers

Even if you’ve never used formulas before in your spreadsheets, you’ll be happy you scanned these formulas. They can save you hours of manual spreadsheet time.

Have you ever spent hours on a spreadsheet & thought “there has to be a better way”?

Then I’ve got bittersweet news. There probably was.

When I started using spreadsheets 6 years ago, I thought they were glorified Microsoft Word Tables. Except they were finicky and I could never get them to look right. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Fact is, spreadsheets come with tons of powerful functionality. The problem is just that it all sits quietly behind the scenes. And you won’t reap the benefits unless you know how to use some of them.

Enter this post series, devoted specifically to formulas.

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How I Passed the Salesforce Advanced Administrator Certification Exam [2020]

My story about studying for the Salesforce Advanced Admin 301 exam, and the mistakes I made along the way. 😬

Gang, I recently got my Salesforce Advanced Admin Certification. And to be honest, it was a bit of a mess getting there! 🤪

So I’m sharing my story for anyone who might benefit. That includes the mistakes I made during my prep, and the last minute changes that helped me turn things around before exam day.

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How to Deliver Bad News to Staff Stakeholders

Yup! You can deliver bad news in a way that still leaves everyone feeling good-ish.

Aw, sugar. That’s my first thought anytime I’ve got bad news.

If you’ve ever had to deliver bad news to a colleague, you know it’s a delicate dance. No one wants to hear that they can’t have what they want. Especially in tech!

But sometimes, this is the nature of work. When you’re beholden to a group of stakeholders, be they staff or other constituents, you can’t make everyone happy all of the time!

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8 Questions For Auditing Your Org’s Database Automations

Whether it’s your donor database, email marketing platform or other CRM – here’s how to make sure those automated processes are serving your org.

Automations are like magic to end-users. They inexplicably make life easier.

But for the admins who build them, they can feel closer to rocket science. So it’s no wonder that some orgs take a set-it-and-forget-it approach. Why fix what isn’t broken?

But you never want to wait for something to break to get your attention. Crashed automations can cost your org – if not financially, then at least in data quality or time. (p.s. This is also true for integrations, which are even more delicate since they require third-party access to your data!)

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9 Nonprofit CRM Cleanup Projects to Tackle This Summer

Got some down time? Here are all the database projects we admins rarely have the time for, but that go along way in making our CRM & tech systems better.

Gang, I think it’s safe to say: this is not your typical summer.

Coronavirus continues to run rampant in the country (if you’re in the US). We’re still somewhat in a lockdown, and things are a little chaotic!

Still, I’ve always found summer to be the best time to slow down and get organized. That’s especially true when it comes to the database: this is when I begin wrapping my head around all the projects I keep putting off!

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How can fundraisers & database managers best work together?

A prospect researcher and a database admin walk into a bar.

This week, I teamed up with prospect researcher Joan Ogwumike to share tips on what what makes for a great fundraiser/database manager working relationship. Check it out over on her blog, A Researcher’s Diary!