Salesforce architecture
allows agencies to distinguish between types of clients (sometimes called participants or
constituents) in
various programs within one organization. Because many human services agencies have
multiple programs available to the folks they serve, some organizations choose to utilize the Program Engagement Model
to track participants.
In the Program Engagement model,
all constituents are added to the Salesforce application as “contacts.” Their
participation in the various areas or programs of the organization is then
assigned to their contact record as “Program Engagements.” This allows the
organization to track participation in multiple programs, even when that
participation occurs simultaneously.
This is beneficial to the nonprofit
in two ways:
- Maximizing the Record
Efficiency - Enrolling the contact in a program offers you the
ability to track contact involvement in one or more program(s). This is valuable
because rather than hosting a
long list of limited systematic records associated with a contact only, now, the
contact's records (such as Intakes or Assessments) can be coupled with the
contact's participating program(s). The
organization can track Start and End Dates, client involvement in workshops, and, most
importantly, gains clients have made in any program more efficiently and effectively than
ever before. Additionally, imagine the potential benefits to making connections
between a contact’s successes in one program, say Job Training, with gains in
another, such as Housing.
- Data Sharing– The Program Engagement reduces duplication of data collection by allowing
programs to share data about a contact that might also be collected in other
programs. Privacy and sharing rules can be implemented
to prevent employees from seeing data about a Program to which they should not have access.
