Inspiring Scotland
About Inspiring Scotland
Inspiring Scotland brings people, communities, organisations, and government together to drive social change and transform lives across Scotland. For over 15 years, they have partnered with charities, gaining deep insights into challenges and refining interventions based on shared knowledge.
Last year, they supported 350 organisations and responded to 477 requests for support through their Specialist Volunteer Network.
The Challenge: Managing Volunteers and Funds at Scale
As Inspiring Scotland's network of 500+ volunteers grew, tracking their contributions and managing funds became increasingly complex. Relying on spreadsheets for volunteer updates, timesheets, and reporting created inefficiencies, consuming valuable time that could be better spent on strategic work.
"I used to hate the last Friday of the month-I'd spend all day sending 40 to 50 personalised emails to volunteers just to gather updates.
It was exhausting and unbelievably time-consuming."
- Elaine Crichton, Specialist Volunteer Network Executive & Fund Manager, Inspiring Scotland
Pain Points
Managing a growing volunteer network required a streamlined and automated system to free up time and improve reporting. The team needed to free up their time to do more impactful work which would have a huge impact on the charities they work with.
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Manual & Time-Intensive Volunteer Management
- Volunteers were manually contacted for updates, taking hours each month.
- Tracking timesheets and calculating financial value of volunteer support was cumbersome.
- Volunteers were manually contacted for updates, taking hours each month.
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Limited Visibility on Non-Financial Support
- Spreadsheets made it difficult to track the impact of pro bono services.
- Reporting on the £400K of non-financial support provided last year was challenging.
- Spreadsheets made it difficult to track the impact of pro bono services.
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Inefficient Fund Management
- Grant applications, approvals, and payments lacked automation.
- Generating reports for funders, including the Scottish Government, required manual work.
- Grant applications, approvals, and payments lacked automation.
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Limited Impact Tracking
- Without a centralised system, it was difficult to measure the impact of volunteer contributions accurately.
- Timesheets and reporting were disconnected, preventing Inspiring Scotland from fully understanding the value of pro bono services.
- Lack of real-time insights made it challenging to communicate impact effectively to funders and stakeholders
- Without a centralised system, it was difficult to measure the impact of volunteer contributions accurately.
The Solution: A Streamlined, Automated System Built on Salesforce
Hyphen8 implemented a centralised Salesforce platform to streamline volunteer management, automate timesheets, and enhance fund tracking.
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Automated Volunteer Tracking & Engagement
- Volunteers receive automated updates and timesheet requests, reducing admin time.
- Data is centrally stored, making volunteer contributions easy to track.
- Volunteers receive automated updates and timesheet requests, reducing admin time.
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Impact Reporting & Fund Transparency
- Custom reporting tools provide real-time insights into non-financial support value.
- Automated reports improve accountability and storytelling for funders.
- Custom reporting tools provide real-time insights into non-financial support value.
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Seamless Fund & Grant Management
- Salesforce now manages everything from grant applications to payments in one place.
- A clear audit trail ensures compliance and simplifies fund reporting.
- Salesforce now manages everything from grant applications to payments in one place.
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Enhanced Impact Tracking
- Timesheet management is now fully automated, allowing Inspiring Scotland to capture real-time volunteer hours and contributions.
- Volunteers are automatically matched with charities, ensuring quicker and more effective support delivery.
- Data is shared across Fund Teams and charities, making it easier to measure, track, and showcase the financial value of volunteer contributions.
- Timesheet management is now fully automated, allowing Inspiring Scotland to capture real-time volunteer hours and contributions.
The Impact of working with Hyphen8
The Impact
With Salesforce, Inspiring Scotland has eliminated manual processes, allowing them to support more charities and improve transparency.
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Driving Long-Term Organisational Growth
- Time savings = More impact: Less admin means more time to focus on case studies and relationship-building.
- Improved funder engagement: Clear reporting enhances accountability to the Scottish Government and other funders.
- Scalable for the future: A centralised system that can grow with Inspiring Scotland's mission.
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Stronger Fund Management & Accountability
- Grant applications and payments are now handled within Salesforce, providing a clear audit trail.
- Reports for funders, including the Scottish Government, are now easily generated, improving compliance.
- Grant applications and payments are now handled within Salesforce, providing a clear audit trail.
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Increased Efficiency for the Inspiring Scotland Team
- Time saved on manual tasks allows the team to focus on strategic projects and relationship-building.
- Staff can now dedicate more time to supporting charities rather than chasing updates and managing spreadsheets.
"If we didn't have automation, we'd have no time left for case studies and relationship-building-the work that truly makes a difference."
-Tommy Seymour, Specialist Volunteer Network Coordinator & Fund Manager
- Time saved on manual tasks allows the team to focus on strategic projects and relationship-building.
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Automated Volunteer Updates
- Elaine no longer has to sed 40-50+ handwritten emails
- The system allows Elaine to claim back that one day a month as the work is now automated
- Volunteer timesheets flow directly into Salesforce.
- Elaine no longer has to sed 40-50+ handwritten emails
Making an impact
"Salesforce has also improved our ability to manage funds and communicate with stakeholders. Now, volunteers receive automated requests for updates, and their timesheets are directly linked to the system.
We can accurately calculate the financial equivalent of their support and share that data with funders and charities."
- Tommy Seymour, SVN Coordinator & Fund Manager, Inspiring Scotland
Why Did You Choose Salesforce and Hyphen8?
"We chose Salesforce because we needed a system that could grow with us-one that would streamline our volunteer management, fund tracking, and reporting while ensuring transparency for our funders.
Hyphen8 understood our challenges from the start and worked with us to create a solution tailored to our needs. Their expertise and collaborative approach made the transition seamless, and now we have a system that truly supports our mission."
Elaine Crichton, Specialist Volunteer Network Executive & Fund Manager, Inspiring Scotland
Advice for other charities
"Salesforce has given us a clear audit trail for everything we do. Now, when I speak to a charity leader, I can log the conversation in Salesforce, ensuring transparency and efficiency. It's an invaluable tool for any organisation looking to scale and improve impact reporting."
By partnering with Hyphen8, Inspiring Scotland has built a future-proof system that empowers their volunteers, enhances fund management, and ultimately drives greater social impact across Scotland.
