The Challenge

Quick and consistent access to data is key to the success of Lehigh University’s Advancement Office (Lehigh). Using multiple applications, including pure SQL, Access and Oracle Reports, made it difficult to get information quickly. Creating reports required a technical skillset which limited the task to only IT members. And the time-consuming process often made the reports out dated and thus unnecessary. The Advancement Office staff wanted a user friendly reporting solution that gave real time access to data. The search began for one product that would meet all of their needs at a cost effective price.

The Solution

Lehigh recognized Argos, the Enterprise Reporting Solution from Evisions, as the solution to improve their access to Advancement data, as well as the quality of the data.

Argos is used in many more ways than Lehigh originally anticipated. For instance, Argos provides for a customer relationship management system (CRM) containing tactical and detailed reports along with a 360-degree view of their customer/constituent base. The CRM includes a prospect finder, ability to enter call reports, online & pre-formatted donor profile reports and dashboards that are customized to each Advancement Officer. Dashboards give immediate at-a-glance views providing drill down capability to information on progress towards donation goals, pipeline and more. The data is very detailed including information about food allergies, t-shirt size, children names and any other unique facts allowing for personalized interactions with prospective givers and alumni. Advancement Officers can also track account information such as giving history, activity history, how first contact was made and next required steps.

The package of reports takes care of 90% of the Advancement Officer’s daily needs, making it a one-stop shop for instant, up-to-date access to detailed information, accessible anywhere at any time.

With Argos, Lehigh makes data driven decisions with precise analysis of donation trends, key initiatives towards goals, proper donor identification and charitable commitment funnels, just to name a few. Lehigh’s business rules are also enforced with Argos’ capability of ensuring accurate data entry. By doing so, the cumbersome task of reviewing each newly-entered field is eliminated. This safeguard maintains clear, accurate data, resulting in time savings and staff confidence in the information they’re using.

Gone are the days when Advancement Officers manually research call reports one at a time. With the simple click of a button, the information is readily available. Fulfilling data requests are no longer the responsibility of an IT staff member. Advancement Officers can now use Argos to access any information right when it is needed. The quality of donor information has been greatly improved and they now know who the ideal donors are to contact.

Lehigh has 40 scheduled reports emailed campus wide on a weekly basis. Daily staff time savings of 80% has been achieved with the Scheduling and Delivery feature in Argos. No more manually extracting information, formatting and emailing reports to Advancement Officers and management. Lehigh now automatically emails tailored reports such as gifts that are entered in each day, personalized reminders, call reminders, prospect lists and any other requested information.

Lehigh’s approach in Advancement is more strategic and proactive now than ever before. Argos has proven to be a user-friendly reporting solution for Lehigh. In just two years with Argos, Lehigh has accomplished more towards their goals than with their prior reporting software. Argos has improved the quality and access to data, saves time and satisfies all of Lehigh’s reporting requirements.