Kent Community Foundation
About Kent Community Foundation
Kent Community Foundation is a philanthropic organisation dedicated to connecting people who care with causes that matter. Managing a diverse portfolio of over 100 funds, they support a wide range of charitable initiatives, from community projects to individual grants.
Their unique approach to personalised philanthropy allows donors to create their own funds and participate in the decision-making process, ensuring that their charitable intentions are effectively met. As the Foundation grew, they needed a scalable, flexible system to manage grants, enhance donor engagement, and increase operational efficiency.
The Challenge: Managing Growth While Maintaining Efficiency
The Foundation had been using Salesforce since 2012, but by 2022, they recognised the need to move to a custom-built platform that could better support their unique grant management and fundraising needs.
"We needed more flexibility and autonomy in how we manage funds.
Our old system wasn't designed for our expanding operations, and we wanted a solution that reflected the way we work.
Ultimatly, we wanted a system that would empower our amazing team to make more impact in our community by empowering them with the best tools, and thats where Hyphen8 came in!"

Pain Points
With rapid growth, the Foundation required a scalable system that could streamline processes, improve collaboration, and enhance efficiency.
-
Lack of System Flexibility
- Rigid system configurations limited the Foundation's ability to customise key processes.
- The team needed greater autonomy over system settings, such as managing their own picklists.
- Rigid system configurations limited the Foundation's ability to customise key processes.
-
Time-Consuming Manual Processes
- The team was heavily reliant on spreadsheets, creating inefficiencies.
- Duplicate data entries slowed down workflow and increased errors.
- The team was heavily reliant on spreadsheets, creating inefficiencies.
-
Limited Visibility & Reporting Challenges
- Fund managers lacked real-time insights into fund balances and grant distributions.
- Reporting was time-intensive, requiring manual data validation.
- Fund managers lacked real-time insights into fund balances and grant distributions.
The Solution: A Scalable, Custom Salesforce System Built by Hyphen8
To ensure the Foundation had a system that aligned with their workflow, Hyphen8 worked closely with the team to design and implement a flexible, intuitive solution using Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud.
-
Enhanced Flexibility & System Autonomy
- The Foundation can now customise settings, workflows, and reports without external support.
- Picklists and system fields are now fully configurable by internal teams.
- The Foundation can now customise settings, workflows, and reports without external support.
-
Automated Fund & Grant Management
- Spreadsheets eliminated-all grant management now takes place within Salesforce.
- Custom Gift Aid claims solution ensures compliance and accuracy in donations.
- Spreadsheets eliminated-all grant management now takes place within Salesforce.
-
Real-Time Fund Balances & Reporting
- Fund managers can now see fund balances dynamically, reducing manual calculations.
- Automated inter-fund transfers and adjustments improve efficiency.
- Fund managers can now see fund balances dynamically, reducing manual calculations.
The Impact of working with Hyphen8

The Impact
By working with Hyphen8, Kent Community Foundation has transformed its operations, increasing efficiency, improving data accuracy, and freeing up staff time to focus on the community.
"The implementation of Salesforce has been a game-changer. We moved away from outdated systems and embraced a flexible, streamlined approach that allows us to focus more on our mission." - Sarah, Kent Community Foundation
-
Increased Efficiency for Fund Managers
- Grant managers now spend more time with charities instead of admin tasks.
- Automation has saved countless hours, allowing the team to focus on community engagement.
- Grant managers now spend more time with charities instead of admin tasks.
-
Stronger Safeguards & Data Integrity
- Error-catching safeguards reduce the risk of incorrect data entry.
- Integrated processes ensure Salesforce functions and reports are aligned.
- Error-catching safeguards reduce the risk of incorrect data entry.
-
Scalability for Growth
- The system supports future expansion, allowing the Foundation to manage more funds without increasing headcount.
- Custom automation reduces reliance on manual tracking, ensuring long-term sustainability.
"Having Salesforce has reduced the need for storing files on SharePoint. Everything is now centralised, improving our efficiency and making reporting much easier."
- Sarah, Kent Community Foundation
- The system supports future expansion, allowing the Foundation to manage more funds without increasing headcount.
Making an impact
"The implementation of Salesforce has been a game-changer.
We moved away from outdated systems and embraced a flexible, streamlined approach that allows us to focus more on our mission."
- Sarah, Kent Community Foundation

Why Did You Choose Salesforce and Hyphen8?
Hyphen8's expertise in grantmaking and fund management allowed Kent Community Foundation to implement a tailored solution that maximised efficiency.
"Working with Hyphen8 has been a transformative experience. Their team was transparent, always prioritising our budget and needs. The flexibility of the Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud-combined with Hyphen8 accelerators-has improved efficiency and centralised our operations. Their expertise and communication were exceptional, making them a fantastic partner in our journey." - Sarah
By partnering with Hyphen8, Kent Community Foundation has built a future-proof system that allows them to continue growing while maintaining high service standards-ensuring greater impact for communities across Kent.