04 Dec 2023
9 min read
Technological Support for Those Who Support Others: How CRM Automation Strengthened the Work of the Dobrodiy Club
The Dobrodiy Club is a nationwide charity foundation that has been creating meaningful change in the lives of children and teenagers since 2016. Founded by Mariia Todorchuk, the foundation — together with her team and partners — transforms charitable work into effective development tools, nurturing an emotionally resilient and conscious generation. Over the years, the Dobrodiy Club has implemented more than 70 projects, raised over UAH 196 million, and positively impacted approximately 300,000 young lives across Ukraine. The foundation’s main areas of focus include mental health, career guidance, prevention of gender-based violence, support for orphans and teenagers without sufficient parental care, and mentorship programs for young people with vulnerable life experiences. The foundation’s activities cover all regions of Ukraine, from frontline to recently liberated territories. The Dobrodiy Club team professionally transforms charitable resources into large-scale change while transparently communicating outcomes to partners.
- Industry: Nonprofit/Charity
- Country: Ukraine
- Website: dobrodiy.club
Software and services
CRM based on Microsoft Power Platform
Charity is not just about emotions, empathy, and reporting. It requires strategic action, forward thinking, and building sustainable solutions even in unstable environments. Traditionally operating with limited resources, the sector now demonstrates flexibility, technological openness, and readiness to adapt. Today, it operates at the edge of its capacities: war, humanitarian crises, and economic instability only increase the demand for support. The trend is clear: needs grow daily, while resources remain scarce. In such a context, automation and systematic approaches cease to be optional perks and become critical for the survival and growth of organizations that take responsibility daily for supporting those without adequate assistance. In this success story, we share the mission of the Dobrodiy Club and how the SMART business team helped optimize their processes so they could focus on what matters most — helping children.
From Google Forms to a CRM: The Drivers Behind the Search for a New Solution
At the onset of russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Dobrodiy Club focused its support on temporary shelters where families with children were forced to relocate, saving their lives from the combat operations. By May 2022, the foundation recorded a sharp increase in requests from individual families in direct need of assistance — primarily food packages, medications, hygiene products, and temporary housing.
This demand grew as the war spread to smaller towns and settlements, where it was difficult to organize stable support. Many requests came through social media, highlighting the need for a systematic approach to processing them: information was getting lost, it was hard to track the status of applications, and each minute spent processing a request took away precious time, as the well-being of specific families was at stake. These factors created an urgent need for a structured system for data collection and management.
We felt that requests for help were growing exponentially, and every minute could be decisive for families across Ukraine. It was clear that we needed to act immediately and find effective solutions to systematize requests, respond quickly to each inquiry, and provide families with the support they needed without delay. Fortunately, the SMART business team stepped in quickly and provided us with a system that brought the foundation’s work to a new level of efficiency.
Before implementing a CRM system, the Dobrodiy Club team introduced Google Forms to bring order to the many requests that were getting lost in the foundation’s social media chats. This step solved one issue — gathering all requests in one place. However, it was only a temporary fix, as it left a number of critical challenges unresolved. Right from the launch of the first form, the foundation received more than 10,000 applications, immediately revealing the massive scale of needs and the workload that had to be processed.
Subsequent launches of the forms exposed the limitations of this approach: the system couldn’t handle the load, technical issues arose, and data processing remained highly labor-intensive, threatening the timeliness of aid delivery. In addition, to consolidate data from multiple spreadsheets and create a complete picture of requests, the team had to do everything manually, which consumed significant time and resources.
People trying to register for assistance often faced technical difficulties: they couldn’t upload documents, the form would crash, and the status of their application remained unclear — adding stress in an already difficult time. At one point, when the number of requests spiked, one of the forms completely collapsed under the load and stopped working. That’s when it became clear we needed a radically new approach.
This is how the idea emerged to implement a modern CRM system that would automate data processing, increase efficiency, and accelerate the foundation’s response to families’ needs.
In search of a tool that could maximize process automation and ensure effective handling of requests, the foundation turned to SMART business. The vendor’s team proposed a CRM solution built on Microsoft Power Platform — a low-code/no-code platform that enables organizations to quickly tailor CRM functionality to their specific needs without lengthy development from scratch.
Using Microsoft Power Platform opened up a range of advantages for the Dobrodiy Club: flexible configuration, integration with other tools, easy scalability to meet growing demand, and transparent analytics for faster decision-making.
Drawing on its experience in similar projects, SMART business organized the implementation so that the CRM did more than just collect and store data — it became a tool that supports an individualized approach to each request. In the nonprofit sector, it is crucial that teams can focus on people’s real needs rather than routine operations. Thanks to automation, the foundation was able to free up resources for direct work with families, respond to requests faster, and distribute aid more effectively to those who needed it most.
Integration, Centralization, and Control: Functional Benefits of Implementing a CRM Solution
At the start of its Verification Center operations, the foundation relied almost entirely on human resources — more than 20 volunteers manually reviewed documents, called families, and cross-checked information. This required significant amount of time and effort.
With the implementation of a CRM solution from SMART business, routine processes were optimized. Now, applications are reviewed and processed much faster, and for applicants, the document submission process has become much simpler and clearer. Among the key capabilities enabled by the system are:
- Convenient online registration — the CRM is integrated with the foundation’s website, allowing aid recipients to easily submit applications without unnecessary steps or delays.
- Centralized database — all individual records are stored in a single system, which helps avoid duplication and immediately filters out repeated requests.
- Automated document verification — required files (such as copies of documents) are attached directly to the recipient’s profile, simplifying volunteers’ work and accelerating the verification process.
- Systematic communication with aid recipients — each stage of the application process is accompanied by automated notifications. People immediately receive confirmation that their request has been accepted, can see its current status, and know when to expect results. This level of transparency eliminates uncertainty, demonstrates the foundation’s accountability, and builds trust with aid recipients.
- Real-time shipment tracking — CRM integration with the postal operator’s system enables instant access to parcel status information, which is critically important for families awaiting assistance.
- Fast reporting to donors — structured data allows reports to be generated much more quickly. Donors receive a clear and transparent picture of how resources are used, strengthening their confidence in the foundation’s work and encouraging further support.
The results speak for themselves: in a year and a half since the start of the full-scale war, Dobrodiy Club has supported more than 90,000 children and delivered around 200 tons of food to families with children. And this is not just about dry statistics. Behind every number are real family stories — people who received timely assistance and felt they were not left alone with their challenges. All this became possible thanks to the combination of modern technology with the dedication of the team and volunteers, who together transformed aid into a systematic and effective process.
Once we connected the questionnaire to the website form, it immediately became clear how much simpler and faster the process could be. Previously, we needed up to three days for verification, data export, and preparing lists for SMS mailings. Now, thanks to the CRM system, all these steps take just one day. At the same time, we save not only time but also human resources, which we can redirect to more important tasks — thereby increasing the capacity of our charitable activities.
Providing assistance on such a scale requires flawless coordination and transparency at every stage of the process. That is why continuous improvement of existing workflows has become a key condition for the foundation’s effective growth and sustainable operations.
The next stage in collaboration with SMART business for Dobrodiy Club is the creation of a full-fledged support service. This service will also be built on Microsoft tools, enabling even broader and higher-quality interaction with aid recipients at every stage — from application confirmation to the completion of assistance delivery and follow-up with the family. Such an expansion of technical capabilities will allow the foundation to ensure consistent communication and a sense of care throughout the entire support process.
Once again, Ukrainians have demonstrated their ability to respond quickly in times of crisis and to support those who need it most. It is inspiring that organizations like Dobrodiy Club operate systematically, creating opportunities for everyone willing to contribute their skills, resources, and experience to provide real help.
And when the scale of support reaches tens of thousands of beneficiaries, it is crucial to maintain clear and consistent communication with each person in need, to process requests efficiently, plan new essential fundraising campaigns, prepare transparent reports, and keep all participants informed. Without this, it is easy to lose the trust of both aid recipients and donors. This is precisely where smart automation proves invaluable — it increases efficiency at every stage and accelerates the delivery of support
It is important to note that SMART business provides not only technological solutions for commercial and non-profit organizations but also the long-standing expertise of its team, helping optimize internal processes and scale operations as effectively as possible. The team of experts selects tools tailored to address each organization’s specific challenges and tasks, ensuring fast and productive project implementation and support. By requesting consultation, you receive a prompt response and an individual approach to every challenge, enabling you to find the optimal solution for any need.
