Pro Bono Consultant Profile
Matthew Richen
Business and Data Analyst, Software and Web Developer in San Francisco Bay Area
Background
Matthew is a developer and database/application administrator who manages an inventory management application for a mid-size retail chain. He started out working primarily in systems and network administration.
Pro Bono Clients & Projects
Three projects completed including: Volunteers in Asia & Oasis for Girls, Donor Databases.
What was your Taproot Foundation project experience?
It was exciting to work closely with people from so many different backgrounds. Our client organization was clearly very passionate about their work, but tended to work very informally and were not used to the structure that Taproot Foundation brought to the table. My fellow volunteers were a lot like myself; working professionals from corporate office environments who were still becoming accustomed to the nonprofit culture. I think that everyone involved learned a great deal from the experience.
How have you grown from your pro bono work?
My previous involvement with implementation projects has been as a subject matter expert; I'm typically brought in for a specific task or portion of the project and given little visibility into other phases. It was interesting to be involved in all aspects of a project from beginning to end.
What were the biggest challenges?
Working with a client with a limited budget and a complex set of legacy data certainly made things interesting. In addition, our chosen vendor's constantly changing lineup of support and professional services staff forced us and the client to stay organized and in close contact.
How can the business community and nonprofit sector strengthen one another?
Many of the problems that nonprofits are currently facing have already been addressed in one form or another within the business community, and there is a great deal of experience and knowledge waiting to be tapped. Likewise, nonprofits provide a setting in which professionals from the business world can apply their expertise with more flexibility and creativity than would be possible inside the office, and thus can learn and grow more quickly.
What community issues hit home and what did you learn from the project?
I spend a lot of time thinking about young people in difficult settings in this city, and what opportunities they may or may not have, and the choices they have to make. The client organization's success in recruiting and sending volunteers to work in third world countries is a testament to how much difference a little dedication can make.
What do you do when you’re not doing pro bono?
I run, and I play soccer off and on. I'm passionate about music and will spend hours digging through crates of LPs at garage sales and used record stores.
