Newsletters

Common Connection

Volume 5, Number 4: March 21, 2005

This archived newsletter is from Harbinger Partners, before it
joined forces with the Corporate Volunteer Network to become Common Impact.

It was a real privilege to design a new visual identity for Harbinger Partners. Developing the project with input from their staff and constituents made the effort a true collaboration. We went through many rounds of design and we think the final result quite eloquently captures the spirit and direction of the organization moving forward.

-- Willy Wong and Emily Lessard, who helped design a new visual identity and logo for Harbinger Partners to be released in April. Read the "What's News" section for more details!

We've Moved!

We are now happily established at our new offices in Harvard Square. While our e-mail addresses and fax number remain the same, our new address and phone numbers are as follows:

22 Hilliard Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

Main line / Katie Wang: (617) 492-3105
Theresa Ellis: (617) 868-1188
Zach Goldstein: (617) 868-1832
Leslie Koplow: (617) 868-2034
Fax: (617) 492-2605

Thank you to Flagship Ventures

As much as we love our new space, we already miss our friends at Flagship Ventures. We extend a very warm, very genuine thank you for housing Harbinger Partners for the past three years. As a result of your generosity, we were able to conserve precious start-up resources while drawing on the wisdom of the Flagship team. What an amazing gift to Harbinger Partners and to the community; we can't thank you enough!

Our Technology Pioneers: An Update on Progress to Date

Congratulations to the 2005 Spring Technology Pioneers!

We are so excited to welcome four new nonprofits into the Technology Pioneers Program! Read on for descriptions of these four impressive organizations:

  • Health Care for All (http://www.hcfama.org/)
    Health Care for All is dedicated to making quality, affordable health care accessible to everyone, regardless of income, social or economic status. It seeks to empower Massachusetts consumers-especially the most vulnerable members of society-to know more about our health care system and to become involved in changing it.
  • Margaret Fuller House (http://www.margaretfullerhouse.org/)
    The Margaret Fuller Neighborhood House strengthens and empowers families through social and educational programs in the City of Cambridge. Its programs include a school-age program, a food pantry, and a computer technology center.
  • SquashBusters (http://www.squashbusters.org/)
    SquashBusters provides academic tutoring, mentoring, community service, and squash instruction and competition for middle school and high school students. Through its programs, it challenges urban youth to have integrity and respect on the squash court, in the classroom, and throughout the community.
  • The City School (http://www.thecityschool.org/)
    The City School is a center for civic education where high school students engage in community service, academic study, and leadership development. Its out-of-school time programs unite a wide range of students to take leadership and action on social issues.

Looking for More Nonprofits to Serve...

Do you know any Boston-area nonprofits that are interested in building their technology capacities? Are you one yourself? In May, we will release another request for applications to our Technology Pioneers Program for participation in the Fall and Winter cycles. If you'd like to sign up to receive notification of the application upon its release, please go to http://www.harbingerpartners.org/go/tpp/apply/ and fill out our online web form. Applications will be due July 15, 2005.

Strategic Teams for Technology: Our Newest Program

The Second Phase Begins!

As you may know, the pilot of Strategic Teams for Technology is occurring in two phases. During Phase One, our group of after-school programs has been coming together to discuss their common challenges. By the time this phase ends in June, we will find a way for technology volunteers to build a common technology project. During Phase Two, technology volunteers will build the identified technology project for the group!

At our annual Volunteer Recognition Event in late June, we will get a chance to celebrate the successes of Phase One of Strategic Teams. At the event, we'll learn more about the common technology challenges facing after-school programs and the innovative ways some organizations are addressing these needs. We'll be sending out more information about this event as the date gets closer!

What's News...

Come Partner With Us!

We enlisted the talents of Willy Wong and Emily Lessard to design a brand-new visual identity for Harbinger Partner, and we couldn't be more excited about the result. Supported by a grant from Sappi Fine Paper, the new logo and collateral will be unveiled next month. Keep your eyes peeled!

But this work is only the beginning; the launch of the new collateral kicks off an 18-month campaign during which Harbinger Partners will take its next steps forward as a growing organization. We're beginning a strategic planning process; developing new services for nonprofits; engaging new companies; and launching a new website with new tools and more features. All of this work will culminate in a gala event during the spring of 2006, celebrating the end of our first five years of service!

As we undertake these exciting projects, we're looking for new folks who are interested in playing a role. If you want to become more involved in the work of Harbinger Partners, send an e-mail to Theresa at tellis@harbingerpartners.org. We look forward to working with you!

Harbinger Partners is Growing!

There are lots of changes afoot at Harbinger Partners. As we grow to serve the needs of more nonprofits and companies in the community, we're pleased to announce the following:

  • We're Hiring!
    Do you have a passion for technology? Are you looking to use your skills in a way that gives back to the community? Does our mission of connecting IT professionals to deserving nonprofits inspire you? If so, we're looking for you! Harbinger Partners is hiring a new Program Manager and Program Associate to join our team. You'll wear a wide range of hats, working directly with our nonprofit clients and technology volunteers, and helping us serve even more organizations next year. Learn more about the two positions at http://www.harbingerpartners.org/go/jobs/.

  • Congratulations, Zach!
    We are pleased to announce that Zach Goldstein has been promoted to Program Director! Zach will be taking on greater responsibility in setting the strategic direction of our programs in his new role. We are thrilled to continue working with such a talented colleague.

  • Welcome, Weston!
    There will be a new face around the office come May; we're pleased to announce that we have hired Weston Smith to be the new Special Assistant to the Executive Director. Weston graduated from Columbia University and spent several years in cabinet-making. Starting May 4th, you can reach Weston at wsmith@harbingerpartners.org; introduce yourself to him when you get the chance!

  • Our Board of Directors Expands
    Finally, we're pleased to welcome Charles Cassidy to the Board of Directors. Charles brings his experience in marketing and finance from a long tenure at State Street Bank & Trust Company. We are pleased to have him on our Board!

Many Thanks

We get by with a little help from our friends -- what an understatement! This month, we would especially like to recognize:

Willy Wong and Emily Lessard for their time, enthusiasm, and graphic design talent as they helped create our new visual identity. We couldn't have done it without you!

The creative bunch that comprised our Marketing and Communications Working Group: Judy Axten, Eric Bedell, Mary Conway, Jim Matheson, and Charlotte Wagner. These folks devoted many hours over the course of the past six months to help Harbinger Partners retool its marketing and communication efforts. Our new visual identity -- which we'll roll out in April -- is just one of several pieces that this group helped Harbinger Partners align. Thank you all for your help in this effort; we look forward to sharing our results this spring!

Best of the Web

This month, we'd like to point you to TechFoundation's TechMarketplace (http://www.techfoundation.org/techmarketplace), which helps make technology more affordable for nonprofit organizations. They offer some great discounts for nonprofits, like 15% off Dell hardware. We invite you to check it out!

The Small Print

Thank you for reading the quarterly newsletter of Common Impact! We welcome your comments and contributions. Please send all inquiries to:

Common Impact
The Athenaeum Building
215 First Street, Suite 25
Cambridge, MA 02142-1236
Phone: (617) 492-3105
E-Mail: info@commonimpact.org