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Salesforce for NGO Monitoring and Evaluation: Is it the Right Tool for You?

What you will learn:

a graphic showing various components of NGO M&E

Spoiler Summary

Salesforce is a powerful CRM that many NGOs use for donor management and case tracking. However, when it comes to Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E), it has limitations that may require pairing with dedicated M&E tools. If your organization needs structured indicator tracking, survey data analysis, and automated reporting, other solution like Kinaki may be a better fit.

Salesforce for NGOs (and their M&E)

Salesforce is primarily designed as a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool, widely used in the nonprofit sector for donor management, volunteer engagement, and case tracking. Some NGOs also attempt to use Salesforce for M&E. While this is a good solution for some, it may be challanging for others since Salesforce lacks native support for logframes, indicator tracking, survey data collection and analysis. Instead, M&E functionality needs to be built through custom configurations or integrations with external tools like Excel, KoboToolbox, or specialized M&E platforms.

While Salesforce offers advanced data management, workflow automation, and reporting, these features often require significant customization to fit the needs of M&E professionals. Organizations with technical expertise and resources may find Salesforce adaptable, but those looking for an out-of-the-box M&E solution may struggle with its limitations.

When Salesforce May Be the Right Fit for Your Organization

When Salesforce Is Likely Not the Right Fit for M&E

Salesforce can be a good choice for your organization’s M&E when at least two of the following characteristics apply:

  • Already using Salesforce: Expanding its functionality within your organization to include basic M&E might be a practical choice if your team is already comfortable with the system and has the resources to customize it.

  • Your organization needs case management: Salesforce excels in tracking individuals, such as program beneficiaries, volunteers, or clients. (You may want to read our blog post on Avoiding Double Counting).

  • You don’t plan to bring in-depth data collection and analysis into Salesforce: If your M&E needs are minimal, or if you plan to manage survey data and activity tracking externally (e.g., in Excel, Kobo, or other tools), Salesforce may work as a reporting hub rather than a full M&E system. However, you may want to check our article on Is It Time to Ditch Excel for M&E?

 

In this scenario, Kinaki provides a dedicated M&E environment for collecting and analyzing project data and can stream results to Salesforce, while Salesforce can continue to be used for donor and case management and overall reporting and can provide the “big picture” on organization, ensuring seamless integration between program performance tracking and stakeholder engagement.

Salesforce may not be the right choice if:

  • Your NGO does not already use Salesforce and does not have a need for tracking individuals, donors, or case management.
  • You require a turnkey M&E solution with built-in indicator tracking, automated analysis, and reporting without needing extensive customization.
  • You lack the technical expertise or budget to customize Salesforce for M&E.

For organizations in these cases, an out-of-the-box dedicated M&E platform, like Kinaki, offers a rapid start,  more efficient and cost-effective solution, allowing teams to be effectively data-driven to collect, analyze, and report on program data without requiring complex IT infrastructure.

Takeaway Points

  • Salesforce is not inherently designed for M&E, though it can be adapted with external tools or custom setups.

  • If your organization already uses Salesforce and needs case management, it may be useful, but it should be paired with a dedicated M&E tool like Kinaki for survey data analysis, indicator tracking, and reporting.

  • If you don’t use Salesforce yet and don’t require case management, consider an M&E-first tool instead.

  • For NGOs still relying on Excel for M&E, check out our blog post: Is It Time to Ditch Excel for Monitoring & Evaluation?.

  • If your NGO tracks individuals and case management, ensure you are avoiding double counting by reading our blog: Avoiding Double Counting.

Would you like to explore how Kinaki can help streamline your M&E needs?

If you need a solution for your M&E needs and your are not sure if Salesforce is the right fit, talk to us and we can discuss with you your options.

Book a Discovery Call and talk to our M&E Experts for free. 
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