Why did the Constituent search shortcut field in Atru go away?

It's definitely weird and a little jarring to see the Blackbaud interface bar atop the Altru interface. They definitely clash. But I've often thought Altru could use a make-over of sorts, design wise. I'm wondering if this is baby steps towards that? Regardless, it is weird and sort of hostile to do this without any warning. (Or if there was warning I missed it.)

Outlook is a program that has recently overhauled it's interface, but is currently letting users choose between the old and new one. (With the assumption that eventually the old one will be going away.) I wonder if this is a tactic Altru/Blackbaud could use with larger changes like this? There are probably advantages to changing the interface, but if the first thing a user has to do is click twice when they used to click once it's not a good first impression.

Hi Everyone,

We can still access the Constituent Search shortcut through the search icon (magnifying glass) in the upgraded menu in a single click. You can also access the application features shortcut, as well as all the other options that were present in the previous menu bar.

Also, I apologize that you weren't made aware to this new change. A post was made in the announcements section of the community, and included a link to the new features guide for this change. We try to post information regarding our releases and changes to the system in that section of the community. To ensure that you don't miss out on future updates you can follow the steps below to set up announcement alerts if you haven't already done so:

• After you're singed into the community, click on your profile in the upper right hand corner of the screen
• Click My Account > Click on the subscriptions tab
• Scroll down until you see the Blackbaud Altru Announcements alert within the Blogs section
• Choose the frequency of your alerts
• Click save changes

Best,

De'Andre

We haven't had the update yet, but from the announcement, I was worried that the search was moving and it looked like it was going to be an extra click or two. We've been using Altru for over 5 years so that is not going to be an easy change when our hands are so trained to type in the constituents in a specific location. In a world that is so difficult right now, sometimes the little things really matter. Crossing my fingers we will like the change!

The location would be alright with me if it was still an open field and didn't require the additional click to open it up. I'd like to see this changed.

This is not an upgrade by any means. It now takes longer and is more inconvenient to do a simple name search. Do better, Blackbaud.

I agree the only notable thing about this “update” is that it does NOT work well for users who search for constituent records all day. The development, accounting, and membership teams are finding it an unnecessary change for the worse.

I think the majority of what a person needs to do in Altru starts with searching for a constituent record. In light of this Altru should consider making the search bar open (not drop down or click to access) and front and center.

When I go to google's website I don't have to click an icon to do a search.. the search bar is the portal to using the entire search engine!

Comparatively the Altru search bar is the portal to using the whole database.

Where is the Idea Board?