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ELCA Case Study
Category: Insights
AI Solutions to Advance Your Data Analytics – 12.06.23 @ 12:00 PM
2023 has been the year of Artificial Intelligence. People are talking about it everywhere you go, and organizations are trying to figure out how to use it.
Datatelligent and Tableau have partnered to help institutions like yours enable the use of AI within your organization.
Join us for an educational and informative webinar, AI Solutions to Advance Your Data Analytics, on the hot topic of AI and how you can bring this exciting technology into your organization to improve speed to market and get better insights.
Attendees of this webinar will learn about the following:
- AI trends, including the use of predictive analytics and generative AI
- How to enable the use of AI with Tableau Pulse
- Examples of AI deployment
- Quick ways to get started now.
The presenters for the webinar will be:
- Rob Wellen – Chief Strategy Officer at Datatelligent
- Harold Thomas – Lead Solutions Engineer at Salesforce
Webinar Title: AI Solutions to Advance Your Data Analytics
Date: December 6, 2023
Time: 12:00 pm Central
Time: 12:00 pm Central
We look forward to seeing you there!
Data-Driven Innovation: A Dive into Datatelligent's Impact on Tri-Town YMCA
In a recent interview on WGN Radio’s “Your Money Matters,” the spotlight shone on a groundbreaking partnership between Datatelligent and Tri-Town YMCA. The interview highlights the transformative power of data-driven innovation in community development.
Datatelligent, an active member of Innovation DuPage, has been at the forefront of leveraging data to drive positive change. The company’s collaboration with Tri-Town YMCA is a testament to the potential for innovation when technology meets community initiatives.
The interview delves into how Datatelligent’s expertise is being harnessed to enhance the efficiency and impact of Tri-Town YMCA’s programs. By employing data-driven insights, the YMCA aims to optimize resource allocation, improve program effectiveness, and ultimately better serve the community.
Tri-Town YMCA’s commitment to community development aligns seamlessly with Datatelligent’s mission to empower organizations through data. By integrating data analytics into their decision-making processes, the YMCA can:
- better understand the community’s needs
- identify areas for improvement
- tailor their programs to make a more significant impact.
For an in-depth exploration of this exciting collaboration, listen to the full interview here. Gain insights into how data-driven innovation is shaping the future of community development. Learn how Datatelligent and Tri-Town YMCA are working together to create positive change.
Technology is playing a pivotal role in shaping our communities. Datatelligent’s collaboration with Tri-Town YMCA exemplifies the potential for data-driven innovation to drive positive social impact. This partnership is a beacon, showcasing how businesses and organizations can create a better, more informed future.
Elevate Education: AI Solutions for Higher Education – 11.15.23 @ 12:00 PM
2023 has been the year of Artificial Intelligence. People are talking about it everywhere you go, and organizations are trying to figure out how to use it.
Datatelligent and Snowflake have partnered to help institutions like yours enable the use of AI within your organization.
Join us for an educational and informative webinar, Elevate Education: AI Solutions for Higher Education, on the hot topic of AI and how you can bring this exciting technology into your institution to improve speed to market and get better insights.
Attendees of this webinar will learn about the following:
- AI trends in Higher Education, including the use of predictive analytics and generative AI
- How to enable the use of AI with Snowflake’s Unified Data Platform
- Examples of AI deployment in Higher Education
- Quick ways to get started now.
The presenters for the webinar will be:
- Rob Wellen – Chief Strategy Officer at Datatelligent
- Brendan Schultz – Sales Engineer at Snowflake
If you would like to read more on the ever-growing importance of AI, feel free to check out our blog post here. This blog is filled with great insights into how colleges and universities are utilizing AI across the entire campus.
Webinar Title: Elevate Education: AI Solutions for Higher Education!
Date: November 15, 2023
Time: 12:00 pm Central
Date: November 15, 2023
Time: 12:00 pm Central
We look forward to seeing you there!
The Importance of AI-Powered Analytics in Higher Education
The future of AI is now
At Datatelligent, we look to the future for ways to help our customers solve decades-old Higher Education problems. We hear a lot of questions lately about AI and what it means for Institutional Research. Questions like, “How can Generative AI and Large Language Models help our analytics? Will adding AI extract the predictive insights we need to help students and help us with retention, recruitment, and funding?”
Well, it’s funny you should ask. On November 15, 2023, we are hosting a webinar on these very topics with our most AI-innovative partner, Snowflake. Elevate Education: AI Solutions for Higher Education.
Snowflake is moving fast, at Chicago-blizzard pace, embracing all that’s AI and announcing earlier this month, during Snowday, a host of new AI tools. We will in turn innovate with our Higher Education customers and implement these tools into the Datatelligent Unified Data Platform.
The Definition of AI in Higher Education
AI-powered analytics is the use of artificial intelligence to analyze large datasets to identify patterns, trends, and insights. Here are some of the areas will innovate with AI-powered analytics with our higher education customers:
- Student success: AI-powered analytics can be used to identify students who are at risk of dropping out or failing a course. This information can then be used to provide targeted interventions, such as tutoring or academic advising.
- Student Recruitment and Enrollment: considered one of the holy grails of analytics, identify the best mix of students who will benefit and are succeed from the specialties offered by the institution. Closely related, AI can help identify so you can focus recruitment on the students that will help your institution win and retain their grant funding.
- Enrollment Trends: Identifying the trends early that will impact future enrollment. Linking to all sorts of internal and external data sources, AI-powered insights helps plan for student recruitment in fast-changing demographics.
- Faculty Planning: Recruitment doesn’t stop with students. AI can help with faculty planning, identifying the educational specialties that are in demand now and in the future. Recruitment efforts and education certifications can be planned years in advance.
- Personalized learning: Personalized learning experiences can be created for students using insights from AI-powered data. This can be done by adapting course materials, providing individualized feedback, and recommending additional resources.
- Administrative efficiency: Why not have that AI-bot be the helpful assistant it wants to be, automating scheduling, grading, and admissions processing? This can free up time for faculty and staff to focus on more strategic initiatives.
The Challenges of AI
Of course, AI is not the magic pill to make all our analytic and Institutional Research headaches go away. At Datatelligent, we help mitigate the challenges AI-powered analytics brings to higher education:
- Data quality: AI-powered analytics immediately bring up Data Quality. Institutions need to ensure the data is accurate, complete, and consistent, or your “insights” will be none of these.
- Bias: AI algorithms can be biased, which can lead to unfair or inaccurate results. Data Analysts need to be aware of the potential for bias and make sure a human takes steps to mitigate it.
- Ethics: The use of AI in higher education raises a number of ethical concerns, such as the potential for surveillance and discrimination. Institutions need to develop clear ethical guidelines for the use of AI in higher education. At Datatelligent, we have a well-developed AI Governance and Ethics framework.
Overall, AI-powered analytics has the potential to revolutionize higher education. As with any revolution there are always challenges, which is why it’s best to align with an ally before overthrowing any king. We’ll be talking about the AI Revolution on November 15. We hope to see you at the Datatelligent and Snowflake AI Solutions for Higher Education webinar.
How Food Banks Benefit from Partnerships
How might your organization benefit?
As a food bank, food pantry, or food council, your mission likely involves reducing food insecurity or hunger and increasing access to healthy food. You probably ramped up during the pandemic and are still waiting for the need to decrease. You have likely already squeezed out every bit of efficiency in your operations with today’s tools.
But what if you could add a tool that, within three short months, can maximize the data collected in your various systems and communicate it effectively to stakeholders? Have you considered a partnership with Datatelligent and Tableau?
Datatelligent is a data analytics company that partners with nonprofit organizations to organize existing data. Conversely, Tableau is a leading data visualization tool that can transform complex data into easily understandable and actionable insights. Food banks, food pantries, food councils, and their human service partners have worked with us in many ways.
Data analysis and visualization
Organizations often input information about donors, volunteers, food types, needs, geography, expenses, and more into various software systems. Datatelligent pulls data from disparate systems and layers on Tableau’s data visualization tools. We transform this data into dashboards where various staff leaders can answer questions and make data-driven decisions through self-service.
Streamlined operations
Datatelligent can combine data sets that previously lived in data silos or even simple spreadsheets. Using data analytics, Food Banks and Pantries may identify bottlenecks or inefficiencies in their processes. With info from across their service area, Food Councils can visualize the trends in needs, resources, and gaps in the overall food assistance ecosystem. With the help of Datatelligent and Tableau, they can implement changes to streamline their operations, improve efficiency, and ultimately serve more people in need.
Improved fundraising and communications
How do you prove you are making a difference? Data analytics can help you identify donation trends, understand your donor base, and target communications. More importantly, effective use of data can help justify sustained or increased funding—especially when it illustrates how the services provided meet the need or highlights precisely who is most in need. Datatelligent and Tableau equip organizations with strategies that are more likely to resonate with donors and result in increased funding.
Contact us to learn how your Food Bank, Food Pantry, or Food Council can work with us. Tell the story of your food ecosystem and your organization’s impact. Consider partnering with Datatelligent and Tableau to take your organization to the next level.
Marching Toward a Better Future
My Introduction to March of Dimes
In 2022 the U.S. preterm birthrate increased to 10.5% (slightly over one in 10), making the U.S. one of the most dangerous developed nations for childbirth. I knew the risk was there during my pregnancy, but I never expected to be part of that 10.5%…until I was admitted to the hospital with sudden, severe preeclampsia at 32 weeks. We accepted that our May baby was going to have a March birthday.
Before this, I had only heard of March of Dimes, but they suddenly had a massive impact on the outcome of my baby’s life and myself. First, the medical team administered an IV of magnesium sulfate to protect her brain and prevent seizures caused by my dangerously high blood pressure. Next, the team administered corticosteroid shots to help her lungs develop rapidly, preparing her for an early entrance. Both interventions were developed and funded through March of Dimes.
At 33 weeks and two days, Eisley made her grand entrance at 3lbs 6oz. She was tiny but healthy – her cry let us know the steroid shots had done their job! The next 28 days were a fever dream of NICU visits. Here, we found that March of Dimes funded resources, initiatives, and research that would guide us through the unknown. During a NICU visit, I saw a flyer for the 2022 March for Babies and felt inspired – but our experience was still too fresh. I promised myself that we would be a part of the event next year.
Rallying the Community
Fast forward to May 2023 – Eisley is a happy, healthy one-year-old, and Eisley’s Team has just finished our first March for Babies 5k. We weren’t alone, as I am incredibly fortunate to have a community in Datatelligent. When I decided we were ready to participate, my leadership and coworkers stepped up with an astounding show of support, encouragement, and donations. This action reaffirmed what I already knew about Datatelligent – we truly live our company purpose – to use data to make our communities better – as we tripled our original fundraising goal. Our CEO Larry and his family joined us on our walk. Eisley’s Team raised over $1,300 to help fund research and initiatives to create positive outcomes and equitable healthcare for mothers and babies!
What I Learned and What’s Next
Participating in our first March for Babies was a bittersweet experience. While it was inspiring and fun to come together and support those who will come after us, it was also disheartening to know there will be others. Until we end preventable maternal health risks, deaths, and preterm births, the need for advocacy and awareness remains. I hope that Eisley’s Team will grow even bigger in 2024 and that you’ll join us in supporting March of Dimes!
Religious Organizations Embrace Technology and Data Post Pandemic
Faith-based organizations, like many other institutions, are increasingly relying on technology to accomplish their goals. From online worship services to digital giving platforms, thriving congregations and ministries have been quick to adopt new technologies to meet the needs of their communities.
The pandemic spurred changes in attendance from online and outside service attendance in the spring of 2020 to a hybrid of in-person and online attendance in 2022. The Pew Research Center documented the changes through five surveys between July 2020 through November 2022. Virtual viewing of services online or on TV increased, in-person attendance declined, and overall participation remained nearly steady with a slight decline since the pandemic.[1]
While attendance may have been tracked by religious organizations before, deeper analysis can help leaders understand which programs are most popular—whether in-person or virtual–and for whom. Virtual attendance creates opportunities and challenges to meet a new definition of the sense of “community” religious institutions seek to create. Heidi Campbell, professor of communication at Texas A&M University, stated, “Digital technology in the church and in ministry is here to stay. And our future is definitely hybrid.”[2]
One of the most significant changes that religious organizations have experienced in recent years is the integration of data into their operations. The Pew Research confirms what congregations may observe anecdotally in the demographic differences of attendees by participation type. By using data analysis tools, congregations, and ministries are gaining insights into their members’ needs and preferences, which allows them to better tailor their programs and services.
Faith-based organizations are also turning to social media and technology to improve their outreach efforts. By engaging with their communities on social media, organizations can spread their message to a wider audience and engage with individuals who may not be able to attend in-person events or who joined the virtual religious community. They can use social media analytics to understand which posts are most effective and how to better engage with their followers. Others are using virtual reality technology to give members a virtual tour of their facilities or to provide a more immersive worship experience.
It’s important to note that while technology can certainly be a valuable tool for faith-based organizations, it is not a replacement for the personal connections and relationships that are at the heart of congregations and ministries. However, by embracing new technologies and integrating data into their operations, religious-based organizations can better understand and meet the needs of their communities.
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[1] Pew Research Center, March 2023, “How the Pandemic has Affected Attendance at U.S. Religious Services,” by Justin Nortey and Michael Rotolo, and accessible at https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/03/28/how-the-pandemic-has-affected-attendance-at-u-s-religious-services/.
[2] Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), “Religion and Technology Webinar” held March 23, 2023, and accessible at https://www.cfr.org/event/religion-and-foreign-policy-webinar-religion-and-technology. In this webinar, Heidi A. Campbell, professor of communication at Texas A&M University, and Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, president and CEO of Interfaith Alliance, discuss the meeting of religion and digital culture, and its effect on religious communities. Carla Anne Robbins, senior fellow at CFR, moderates.
Empowering Faith-Based Organizations with Data: How Tableau and Snowflake can Increase Data Maturity
Faith-based organizations play a significant role in communities all around the world. These organizations have unique challenges when it comes to data management and analysis, as they often rely on volunteers and need more resources. However, modern tools such as Tableau and Snowflake can help faith-based organizations increase their data maturity and make more informed decisions.
Tableau is a data visualization tool that allows organizations to create interactive and engaging data visualizations. On the other hand, Snowflake is a cloud-based data warehouse that provides a secure and scalable platform for storing and analyzing data. Faith-based organizations can use these tools together to gain insights into their operations and make data-driven decisions.
Here are a few ways that faith-based organizations can use Tableau and Snowflake to increase their data maturity:
- Track and analyze donations: One of the most critical aspects of any faith-based organization is donations. With Tableau and Snowflake, organizations can track and analyze donations over time to understand trends and patterns. They can create dashboards that show how much money they have received, where it came from, and how it was used. This can help them make more informed decisions about fundraising and budgeting.
- Monitor participation: Faith-based organizations rely on attendance and engagement to gauge the effectiveness of their programs. With Tableau and Snowflake, organizations can track attendance and engagement metrics over time. They can create dashboards that show how many people attended each event, how engaged they were, and how long they stayed. This can help them identify which programs are most effective and where they need to make improvements.
- Monitor volunteer engagement: Volunteers are a critical part of many faith-based organizations, and it can be challenging to track their recruitment, training, assignments, and recognition. Tableau and Snowflake can help organizations evaluate volunteer performance by tracking hours worked, tasks completed, and opportunities for volunteer training or recognition. Data-driven volunteer management helps direct attention to the volunteers who might need additional support.
- Analyze program effectiveness: Faith-based organizations run a variety of programs, from education and outreach to charity and support services. With Tableau and Snowflake, organizations can analyze the effectiveness of these programs by tracking metrics such as program attendance, participant feedback, and outcomes for service recipients. This can help organizations identify which programs are most effective and where to improve.
- Monitor and improve operations: Like any organization, faith-based organizations have operational challenges that can be difficult to manage. With Tableau and Snowflake, organizations can track operational metrics such as budget, staff time, and inventory. They can create dashboards that show how these metrics change over time, identify areas of concern, and make data-driven decisions to improve operations.
Tableau and Snowflake are powerful tools that can help faith-based organizations increase their data maturity and make more informed decisions. Faith-based organizations can gain insights into their operations and make data-driven decisions by tracking donations, attendance, volunteer performance, program effectiveness, and operational metrics. With the right tools and strategies, faith-based organizations can use data to improve their programs and services and positively impact their communities.
How Food Banks and Pantries Can Tackle SNAP Benefit Expiration
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity has become a critical issue in many communities worldwide. Food banks and food pantries have played a vital role in providing essential support to those who are struggling to make ends meet. However, with the expiration of COVID-related SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits and the rise of inflation, food banks and food pantries are facing new challenges. This blog will explore how food banks and food pantries can overcome these challenges.
1. Collaborate Locally
Collaborating with local businesses and farms can be an effective way for food banks and food pantries to supplement their supply of fresh produce and other food items. Some businesses and farms have excess inventory, unsold products, or needed items that they can donate to food banks and food pantries in their own communities. By forging partnerships with these organizations, food banks, and food pantries can enhance their supply of nutritious food for their clients.
2. Strengthen Inventory Management
Effective inventory management is critical for food banks and food pantries to prevent food waste and ensure that clients receive fresh and nutritious food and necessities. By implementing inventory management practices, food banks and food pantries can monitor the shelf life of their food items, prioritize items that are nearing expiration, and track most-in-need items by time of month and year.
3. Leverage Technology
Incorporating technology can be a game-changer for food banks and food pantries. By implementing various software, food banks and food pantries can monitor their inventory, volunteers, and donations in real time. This can help them decide which projects to prioritize and increase efficiency.
4. Educate the Community
Educating the community about food insecurity and the role of food banks and pantries can help raise awareness and encourage donations. While everyone is affected by inflation, many need to be aware of SNAP benefits’ limitations, such as not covering soap, diapers, hygiene products, or ready-to-eat items. By partnering with local schools and community organizations, food banks and food pantries can organize educational workshops and events to educate the community about food insecurity and how they can help.
Food banks and food pantries face new challenges due to COVID-related SNAP benefit expiration and inflation. However, by collaborating with local businesses and farms, strengthening effective inventory management, leveraging technology, and educating the community, food banks and food pantries can overcome these challenges and continue to provide essential support to those in need.
