Best Of
Re: Query Access of Past Account Holder in WV Remaining?
You’re correct that the queries, lists, and reports will still remain available. The recommended approach is not to delete a user from Security, but to rename the account by adding an “X” or “Z” to the beginning of their username. This makes it immediately clear which queries, workflows, lists, and other assets were originally created by that person. This allows you to sort your list of users alphabetically so that only active users remain towards the top.
This method also makes future cleanup much easier. For example, you can sort by creator and quickly identify everything associated with ZUser_Name, then decide whether any of those queries or assets should be deleted.
Re: Constituent Criteria Options Available in Workflows
@Kathleen Scaglione That is the only option in the “Select criteria” option when setting up a new workflow. What you will likely want to do is use the “Select list” option and have a constituent list that is based on birthdate or some other criteria than making a gift. The caveat I want to make sure people know about these workflows is that once someone goes through the workflow, that workflow will not send to them again. This means that for a birthday process like you alluded too, you would have to create a new one each year or so. Anyway, hope that helps a bit.
Re: Updating Credit Card Information for Automatic Recurring Gifts - CVC now required
Hi All,
I hope to add some clarity on the payments side of this.
When a constituent's existing card token is on file, recurring gifts will continue to process without any changes.
Where the new behavior applies is when a staff member enters a new/updated card for a constituent, whether for a one-time gift or to update a recurring gift's payment method. That flow now runs through Blackbaud's updated checkout experience, which collects the card security code (CSC/CVV) and postal code at the time the card is stored/processed. This is aligned with card network and issuer expectations for new card entry, and collecting CSC & postal code at that point improves authorization outcomes leading to higher approval rates and fewer unnecessary declines.
The CSC requirement for new card entry is not configurable, it's a required part of the new checkout flow. For more detail, see the New Checkout FAQ.
If you run into issues or your experience differs from above, please reach out to Support directly and they can help investigate.
— Jake Gaston, Senior Product Manager, Payments
Re: Tributes as new Constituents...adding deceased people and pets to database
@Amber Mullins This is a tough one, because the tribute module is acting as expected. It wants to attribute a tribute to a constituent, whether deceased or not. I've seen several workarounds for this, but the one I'm most familiar with is using a dummy account like Anonymous and creating the tributes to that record. That way, all of the tributes are on that record.
However, I think it might be better in this case to create the tribute on the record of the pet owner, if known. That would give you better gift tracking for you. You can use the Anonymous record for pets with unknown owners.
Re: Penny Shortage
Hi all,
Altru has asked me to have a call with their software team to discuss needs for this penny shortage issue. For us at Tulsa Zoo, I am going to ask them to create a solution in the software that rounds all cash transactions down to the nearest $0.05.
With that said, I have always wanted a much more user friendly way to "round up" on all transactions for cashiers. Whether for a capital fund or for a conservation fund, a simple round up feature can be great for fundraising for our organizations.
I am not sure when the call will be scheduled, but if you have any other items you would like to me ask, please comment here or email me at pweisz@tulsazoo.org and I will compile the commons questions and see if I can get more information for the group.
thanks!
Pat Weisz
VP of Guest Experience
Tulsa Zoo
The Buzz: March 2026 Edition!
Hi Community,
March is here and we’ve got a lot going on in The Buzz this month – so, let’s get started!
March Monthly Challenge:
This month we are focusing on marking questions as answered.
It’s a great way to thank your peers who took the time to respond! It also signals to others that a response was correct, and they can leverage that solution if they are in a similar situation. Marking a question as answered also saves time when searching and it helps reduce duplicate posts.
Here’s how it works:
When you ask a question – you will see this appear under the responses:
It’s easy to mark a question as answered – just click yes!
(Note: This only applies to Questions/Discussions posted after our platform migration in August of 2025, if posted before that - you will not see this option)
This month’s challenge is to mark your questions as answered. If you don’t have a question, feel free to start one!
Once you mark the question as answered you can request this badge:
If you are the one who responded and they marked your reply as answered– you can also request the challenge badge!
You’ll be prompted to say why you should receive the badge. In the box, just say I marked a question as answered, or I answered a question that was marked as answered!
Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT PowerUp Challenge #11: Now Live!
This is it—the final challenge, marking a year of learning and growth together. This last challenge focuses on Grid View Batch in Raiser’s Edge NXT web view, a tool designed to make data entry faster and simpler. Ready to improve your skills? Take the 11th PowerUp Challenge!
Extended Deadlines: Call for Speakers!
We’ve extended our deadlines for Call for Speakers for both bbcon 2026 and bbdevdays.
bbcon: The bbcon call for speakers is now open through tomorrow, March 12. If selected, you’ll receive a complimentary full conference pass—plus the opportunity to connect, learn, and lead the conversation with your peers. Submit your proposal to speak now.
bbdevdays: You now have until this Friday, March 13th to submit your speaker submission for bbdevdays and share your tips and tricks or game-changing ideas - accepted speakers will receive a complementary Developer’s pass to attend bbdevdays on June 2-4, 2026. Need inspiration? See the areas where additional submissions would make an impact!
Unlock Your Low Code Potential: Toronto’s Power Platform Workshop Awaits:
Join Microsoft and Blackbaud experts in Toronto on April 21-22, 2026. Choose between two tracks—Power Automate or Power BI—and explore the integration possibilities of Blackbaud solutions, empowering you to streamline your workflows and data insights. Space is limited, so register now!
Can’t make it to Toronto? Mark your calendar for Silicon Valley, CA, on August 25-26, 2026, or Washington, D.C. on October 27-28, 2026. Registration details to be announced closer to the events.
Featured Content:
Don’t miss out on these must-read resources!
- “Give to Gain”—Celebrating International Women’s Day!
- Donation Form Tune-Up: 5 Smart Ways to Boost Online Giving This Year (ENGAGE)
- The Modern Monthly Close: Practical Ways AI and Automation Reduce Errors and Stress (ENGAGE)
- February InsideTrack: FAQ Recap on Chat for Blackbaud AI (Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT®)
What’s New:
ICYMI!
- Blackbaud's Education Management Solutions for Higher Education: What’s New for March 10, 2026
- Blackbaud's Education Management Solutions for K-12 Schools: What’s New for March 10, 2026
- Webinar Recap: What’s Next for K–12 at Blackbaud
- What's New in Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT®
- Introducing AI Strategy Assistance in Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT®
- The Grantmaking Post (Blackbaud Grantmaking™)
- The Financial Post (Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT®)
- Blackbaud CRM 4.0 SP42 is Now Available!
Events:
Don’t miss these opportunities to connect and learn!
- Blackbaud Development Agent: Live Walkthrough (March 17)
- There Is No Algorithm for Trust: What Leading with Trust Really Means for Funders in 2026 (March 19)
- From Principles to Practice: Introducing AI Responsibly in Mission Driven Work (March 26th)
Community Kudos:
Let’s celebrate the amazing contributions from our community members last month!
KUDOS to:
- Hallie Guiseppe for starting the most discussions with 4 convos started
- Alex Wong for answering the most questions with 54 replies
- Joe Moretti & Carlene Johnson also have 21 replies
- Elizabeth Johnson gave out 78 likes, awesomes, or insightfuls
- Elizabeth Grover handed out 49 reactions
Thanks to everyone who contributed to the community in February!
Birthdays:
A very happy birthday to all our Pisces and Aries! If you’re celebrating your birthday this month, let us know in the comments below for a special shout-out. We hope your day is filled with joy!
Re: Help Shape the Future of AI in Social Impact
We, Blackbaud clients and end users, really need Blackbaud to focus more on improving and fixing their core platforms and products, and focus less on implementing glitchy, unreliable AI. Not only does AI often deliver incorrect results, but it also creates more work by forcing us to double-check the data. When we do, the poor UX design and coding choices stymie us. Blackbaud staff have relied on "share it in the idea bank" to ignore our pleas for help - but all that postponing is now coming due. The product managers ignore decade-old requests for improved functionality throughout the idea banks. Blackbaud has a history of acquiring new companies to fill in functionality that's ancillary to their core products, instead of making the core product - and the support behind it - the best in the industry. And every industry that Blackbaud is part of is only growing, which will only make it more difficult.
The 2025 End-of-Year Fundraising Toolkit Is Here!
Planning your year-end campaign? Whether you’re a checklist lover or a last-minute miracle worker, the 2025 Ultimate End-of-Year Fundraising Toolkit is here to make your job easier—and your results stronger.
Inside, you’ll find:
- ✅ A detailed three-month campaign checklist
- ✏️ An interactive campaign brief template
- 💌 Ready-to-use email and social media templates
- 🌟 Best practices and real customer examples
Here’s what some of your peers said about last year’s edition:
“I love the sample templates that we can take and modify for our organization. This made content creation so easy for us!”
—Karen Ann Tuecke, Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
👉 Get the Toolkit now and tell us in the comments: What’s your favorite part of year-end planning? What’s your biggest challenge? Or share your best tip for a successful campaign—we’d love to hear it!
Re: Call for Speakers Now Open for bbcon 2026!
The Super User sessions that have been at past bbcon's are some of the best! I love it when there are a minimum of 2 of these sessions offered!
Re: Does Raiser's Edge has the capacity to give access to alums/donors to update their own contact records
The Donor Portal is an option but like others have stated, a cautious approach is suggested. Have donors been requesting this access? My organization generally allows donors to request to see what is in their record, but we don't widely give access to make updates. @Lee Grisham's suggestion of a staff or volunteer follow up is important, because changes without context can create confusion. (I did not plan that wonderfully alterative phrase, but hey…)
I've found that update forms with staff follow-up have worked better in my experience. If a donor wants a more thorough review, we can do that personally. It's a great stewardship touchpoint and a great way to create trust.