A data-driven transformation through Salesforce

Client background

The client is a large New York City–based charitable organization focused on poverty alleviation. With complex fundraising and grantmaking operations, it requires strong coordination across fundraising, finance and program teams.

Serving a city where 2.1 million residents live in poverty, including one in four children, the organization needed technology that could support the scale, pace and critical nature of its work.

The client’s technology journey

The organization began its technology journey in 2013 when they teamed up with Baker Tilly’s Salesforce team for a multi‑year transformation. The goal was to leverage technology to strengthen both grantmaking and fundraising efforts and drive greater impact in the communities they serve. The work was guided by a simple philosophy: lead with data and let technology follow.

After transitioning from its legacy donor database and grants management system to Salesforce, the client gained the ability to manage fundraising revenue, track donor touchpoints and oversee grantmaking activity in a single, unified environment. Fundraising and grantmaking were centralized, giving teams clear visibility into organizational activity and performance.

Partnership highlight

One of the most innovative chapters of the client’s Salesforce journey centered on their annual gala, one of the most impactful philanthropic nights in the country. Each year, the event gathers more than 4,000 high‑net‑worth donors and generates an extraordinary level of generosity within minutes. The organization turned to Baker Tilly to create a secure, discreet and highly engaging way for attendees to give during the live call to action.

Traditional mobile apps were not feasible due to attendees’ strict phone security settings, and text‑to‑give solutions lacked the reliability and trackability of communication required for high-value donations.

To address these challenges, Baker Tilly designed a custom email‑to‑gift application built on Heroku and Mailgun, fully integrated with Salesforce. Donors could make pledges using a simple, familiar email interface. Those pledges were converted instantly into Salesforce records, where they appeared on real‑time dashboards monitored backstage. Staff could watch donations populate as they happened, see who was giving, view donor history, gauge repeat versus first‑time donors, and track momentum as the room responded to the call to action.

In its first year, this innovation helped the organization raise an unprecedented $101 million in just six minutes, one of the largest single fundraising moments in philanthropy.

 The system continued to evolve, eventually providing deeper donor behavior insights such as pledge velocity charts, table‑level giving data and comparisons to previous years.

Expanding the ecosystem

As the gala experience evolved, the organization continued to advance other parts of its technology infrastructure. In 2017, the organization launched its first Salesforce-powered grantee portal, giving its community partners a clearer, more structured way to engage with the grantmaking process. A comprehensive redevelopment in 2024 modernized the portal, enhancing usability and strengthening communication between the organization and its constituents.

Donor communication also went through a major shift. Before 2023, prior to being integrated with Salesforce, their legacy system siloed their data which forced the team to build lists manually and limited the ability to personalize outreach. Baker Tilly implemented Salesforce Marketing Cloud through a two‑phase rollout that enabled more targeted and efficient communication based on real‑time data. Marketing Cloud supports 40 to 60 email campaigns each year and includes a custom preference center used by more than 165,000 constituents. With donor activity, preferences, and history in a unified system, outreach is now more strategic and responsive.

Data driven organization

Today, the organization heavily relies on Salesforce in many areas of their operations. Fundraisers use it to understand donor behavior, forecast giving, and refine engagement strategies. Program staff rely on it to track grants, evaluate organizational portfolios, and maintain data integrity. Leadership uses it to monitor performance and guide evidence‑based decisions. With Salesforce at the center of its technology ecosystem and Baker Tilly providing ongoing guidance, the organization has created a culture where reliable data drives strategic action.

Each year, the organization now raises between $120 million and $200 million to support its programmatic work, engages 8,000 to 10,000 active donors and directs 100 percent of donations to grantees thanks to board support. With its systems working together, the organization has strengthened its ability to serve millions of New Yorkers while accelerating the impact of its mission.

Turn to Baker Tilly

Backed by nearly two decades of Salesforce expertise, Baker Tilly helps organizations like this one use data to strengthen operations and extend their mission impact across their communities. Interested in learning more?