Onboarding Slate provides an opportunity to reconsider the full stack of advancement business processes. Slate is process-built, allowing individual schools to customize every step of their operations. Approaching an implementation with a creative mind lets you move old processes beyond the limitations of previous technology tools, resulting in increased efficiencies.

Before you begin your implementation, we encourage you to review these principles:

Start simple and build over time

In the first year of implementation, focus on building processes and understanding the architecture of Slate. Avoid focusing on special cases and design your new processes for the 99%. As your knowledge of Slate grows, you can customize it as needed for the nuanced situations that may exist.

Use all available resources

Slate provides extensive documentation, webinars, and integrated help resources. Make a concerted effort to understand the functionality and underlying logic. Avail yourself of the Slate community through the user forums, our Community Conversations, and the Technolutions experts who stand ready to assist you.

Commit to creating a sustainable process

Slate’s out-of-the-box functionality immediately offers new and improved ways of doing business. Building processes using best practices will make future updates easier, with minimal time investment.

Be creative

Instead of simply recreating an old system within Slate, think carefully about how to structure current processes in an ideal world. Slate can support and foster many different, efficient business processes, so be creative—the possibilities are endless!