A New Import Service For BBCRM Coming Your Way!
Published
We thank you!
We have been working to bring a new bulk import service to our Blackbaud customers, and, thanks to all the customer input we've received we are well on our way. Over 40 different organizations have participated in the building of our import service, from providing early research on import requirements, to reviewing screen prototypes, to testing the new service as part of our customer technical preview. Your feedback is critical to creating a successful import service that will serve your needs in the best way possible. Thank you to all those who have taken time out of their schedules to work with us.
What is the new service?
First, the new import service is just that - new. This service will not in any way change your current batch and import processes. This means that you can use the new import service for some files while still continuing to use the existing import tool for others. The new import service will support combining a broader set of fields from one file, in one import process. Today, users often have to break files up into different imports to accomplish this task. We want you to be able to import your file in one process.
How will we do that? By delivering a more robust mapping tool that provides access to a wide array of field combinations, extensive translation and transformation functionality, and the ability to incorporate your custom fields, validation rules, and more. The goal is that this robust mapping tool eliminates the need to pre-process files or break files up into separate imports. We want to minimize the user steps needed to ensure clean data is imported into your database by allowing the data to be mapped and cleansed so that you are confident in the data that is posted to your database, and do not need to take labor-intensive steps to check or correct data throughout the process.
In addition to reducing the user steps required, we are also engineering the process to maximize performance. As a result, the overall time from file to import to posting data will be greatly reduced.
Lastly, but just as important, this is a service, delivered to you with all the awesome technology available on our SKY platform. This means you get updates and improvements delivered to your door fast. You will not need to wait for an infinity release in order to take advantage of improvements to the import service.
Progress, progress, progress!
We’ve been on quite a journey. First, from our research, we gathered hundreds of requirements. Next, we organized those into working development stories and prototypes. Then, our designers and engineers got busy turning your feedback into Blackbaud CRM product reality. We recently released an early version of the service to a group of customers that volunteered their time to be early testers as part of the customer technical preview (CTP). Now, those customers are hard at work testing the service and sending us feedback so that we can fine tune the import experience. The CTP will continue for a 3-4 month period as we iterate on testing and respond to feedback. All this is to ensure we have a solid and complete service to offer our customers. Stay tuned for more updates as we progress closer to having a service that is available to more customers.
Find out more….
The import service will be discussed in three upcoming bbcon sessions. Join to find out more!
· Blackbaud CRM Roadmap Review (Tuesday, 10/17, 1 - 2 PM): An overview of the service and where it fits amongst the BBCRM roadmap
· Building Blackbaud CRM for the Future: A Technical Deep Dive (Tuesday, 10/17, 4 - 5 PM): A dive deeper into the import service functionality and architecture with our engineers
· The Evolution of Integration (Tuesday, 10/17, 4 - 5 PM): An overview of where the import sits amongst the import methods available
We have been working to bring a new bulk import service to our Blackbaud customers, and, thanks to all the customer input we've received we are well on our way. Over 40 different organizations have participated in the building of our import service, from providing early research on import requirements, to reviewing screen prototypes, to testing the new service as part of our customer technical preview. Your feedback is critical to creating a successful import service that will serve your needs in the best way possible. Thank you to all those who have taken time out of their schedules to work with us.
What is the new service?
First, the new import service is just that - new. This service will not in any way change your current batch and import processes. This means that you can use the new import service for some files while still continuing to use the existing import tool for others. The new import service will support combining a broader set of fields from one file, in one import process. Today, users often have to break files up into different imports to accomplish this task. We want you to be able to import your file in one process.
How will we do that? By delivering a more robust mapping tool that provides access to a wide array of field combinations, extensive translation and transformation functionality, and the ability to incorporate your custom fields, validation rules, and more. The goal is that this robust mapping tool eliminates the need to pre-process files or break files up into separate imports. We want to minimize the user steps needed to ensure clean data is imported into your database by allowing the data to be mapped and cleansed so that you are confident in the data that is posted to your database, and do not need to take labor-intensive steps to check or correct data throughout the process.
In addition to reducing the user steps required, we are also engineering the process to maximize performance. As a result, the overall time from file to import to posting data will be greatly reduced.
Lastly, but just as important, this is a service, delivered to you with all the awesome technology available on our SKY platform. This means you get updates and improvements delivered to your door fast. You will not need to wait for an infinity release in order to take advantage of improvements to the import service.
Progress, progress, progress!
We’ve been on quite a journey. First, from our research, we gathered hundreds of requirements. Next, we organized those into working development stories and prototypes. Then, our designers and engineers got busy turning your feedback into Blackbaud CRM product reality. We recently released an early version of the service to a group of customers that volunteered their time to be early testers as part of the customer technical preview (CTP). Now, those customers are hard at work testing the service and sending us feedback so that we can fine tune the import experience. The CTP will continue for a 3-4 month period as we iterate on testing and respond to feedback. All this is to ensure we have a solid and complete service to offer our customers. Stay tuned for more updates as we progress closer to having a service that is available to more customers.
Find out more….
The import service will be discussed in three upcoming bbcon sessions. Join to find out more!
· Blackbaud CRM Roadmap Review (Tuesday, 10/17, 1 - 2 PM): An overview of the service and where it fits amongst the BBCRM roadmap
· Building Blackbaud CRM for the Future: A Technical Deep Dive (Tuesday, 10/17, 4 - 5 PM): A dive deeper into the import service functionality and architecture with our engineers
· The Evolution of Integration (Tuesday, 10/17, 4 - 5 PM): An overview of where the import sits amongst the import methods available
News
Blackbaud CRM™ and Blackbaud Internet Solutions™ Blog
10/13/2017 10:24am EDT
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These sessions were for in person bbcon attendees. However, you will get a chance to see and hear the BBCRM roadmap presentation in an upcoming Quarterly BBCRM Roadmap call on November 7 at 1 PM ET. In addition, after the November 7 roadmap call, a recording of that call will be posted to this community site.
Ellyn
Is there an on-line summary of the Deep-dive into the import service "Building Blackbaud CRM for the Future: A Technical Deep Dive"? I'd like to catch up on this- even if I missied the session
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James Tullett - BHF [London]
Thanks
Sue- UCL (London)