About Customer
United Way is a powerful international network consisting of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. Its mission is clear and impactful: to bridge gaps and create opportunities in health, education, and economic mobility across diverse communities worldwide.
Key Facts:
- Presence: Active in 95% of the United States.
- Global Reach: Serves 1,100+ communities across 37 countries and territories.
- Volunteer Force: 11 5 million strong.
- Donor Base: 6 8 million supporters.
- Partnerships: 29,000 community partners and 45,000 corporate allies.
By leveraging their vast network of volunteers, donors, and partners, United Way tackles complex social issues at both local and global levels. Their work exemplifies the power of collective action in driving meaningful, sustainable change in communities worldwide.
The Challenge
United Way faced significant hurdles in managing its extensive network of contracts, stemming from the limited functionality of the tools they were using before Zeal. On top of this, United Way experienced a noteworthy 36% increase in document volumes this year compared to the entirety of 2023. As we have experienced at Zeal, this trend of growing document volumes is not unique to United Way but has been observed across many organizations in the nonprofit sector.
These challenges were varied, including specific pain points such as:
- Lack of keyword tracking capabilities
- High costs ($5 per document) associated with top-tier competitor pricing for purchase orders at high volume
- No expiration tracking or renewal reminders, which could lead to unwanted auto-renewals
- No contract-specific recording features
Implementing Zeal
After considering competitors, United Way implemented Zeal to tackle these contract and platform challenges. Zeal’s capabilities and features effectively tackled each challenge, giving the client an enhanced overview of auto-renewals. Moreover, Zeal provided custom solutions tailored to United Way’s specific needs, such as efficient document management and streamlined contract creation, thereby enhancing their contract management process.
Zeal has helped United Way manage increasing document volumes and implement new contract management policies. The platform streamlined core processes, created custom intake forms for business users, and sped up contract creation. These improvements have significantly boosted efficiency, empowering United Way to focus on what truly matters – their mission.
“We’re now proactively alerted to expiring contracts, which is crucial as we approached our fiscal year-end on June 30. Our finance department used to struggle with a flood of auto-renewals, but now we’re in control. Plus, with end-of-year audits looming, having a centralized system to monitor all our contracts is invaluable. Zeal has empowered our team, giving us a sense of control and confidence in our operations” – Mary Ann Canavan, CFO of United Way of Rhode Island.
