Assessing movement technology needs

Some thoughts:

It is much harder to migrate to non-corporate tech in the US, than Europe. Here is the base of the sneak, easier to lobby.

People are usually very committed then go back the office and do not follow up.

Go around: Thinking on Orgs that you would like to get off Big Tech. Why do you think your org is a good candidate to move?

and what makes it a bad candidate

What’s makes them a good candidate:

• Political commitment
• Necessity
• Serious security concerns
• Social Impact
• Signed IT support
• No vendor locked in
• Supporting Open Tech
• Funding Big tech is funding the systems we fight
• There is awareness
• More control of customization if we have more say on our own tech
• Design to protect communities
• Aligned Values
• People already have experience with tech
• Small group

What makes them a bad candidate for the change:

• Standards of control that are present on big tech, aren’t necessarily on alternatives
• security concerns
• Good marketing from the big ones
• Free services offered, hard to resist for non-profits
• Microsoft is in the curriculum at schools
• No budget/no time
• Everyone else they work with uses google
• Usability, features, prettiness
• Training of new workers
• Doesn’t know where to move to
• Big urgency to solve financial management issues

It helps when the Internal advocate is higher in the hierarchy of the org

Big Blue Button -> alternative to zoom

Is Mayfirst more secure than Google? Maybe Google is safer sure, but the will give your data no problem. - some discussion here about what been “secure” really mean.

Q: Is there a document that really goes into: This is what is easy and what can be replicated?

A: Some of it is not easier, but they wanted to do it. It is a longer process.

How to have a successful transition from Big Tech

• Step 1 is to talk Politics. Empowering Political education
• Step 2: Data Pruning (like prepping before moving to a new house) also better for the environment. Data audit mandated . Data rotation. files not accessed /Auto
• Gradual shift, not move everything at the time. Prioritize. Maybe something stay like slides.
• Recognize that this is real work.
• You could have your data erased
• Step 3: Privacy and availability + findabilty
• Moving into a system could fill like your data is gone. Naming convention and General Data Strategy/Policy
• Step 4. Provider checklist

How to evaluate alternatives? until you decide what are your politics.

At any point we should have all the files and everything we need to work.

Telling orgs that In all aspects of digital security, you are protecting your people, you’re protecting your community and the movement, tends to make people buy-in the shift.

Certification that your org handles data securely is $20k/year ….

Should we have a movement certification or a checklist with best practices?

That alternatives providers could come up with. Few things at the beginning, what’s most important.

The security question involves many factors… specially for the long term.

If you could do the political education, then the pieces will follow into place

The people handling these systems are smart people, that chose to work here and will protect your data with all their power.

It is a multifaceted project. Not one size fits all type of solution or journey.

• policy->integration
• 0 magical thinking

It is challenging but we should do it anyway. If we get together and sit down and make it happen, having conversations and finding solutions together.

Security/Privacy doesn’t exist.

• Sock? And org control who can access client data
• There is a basic control internally