An Interview with Jim Manis of the MGF
A couple months ago, the Mobile Commons blog published an interview with Jim Manis, the Chairman and CEO of the Mobile Giving Foundation. The content is still very relevant, so we wanted to link to the original post.
In the interview, Jim discusses his background, the role of the Mobile Giving Foundation, some of the operational hurdles getting mobile giving off the ground, plus some optimistic closing thoughts.
He does a very nice job explaining the role of the MGF and exactly where they fit into the mobile giving ecosystem:
The operational layer facilitates the ability for nonprofits to interact with their donors through the mobile channel, regardless of what phone service donors use. The MGF provides the technical connectivity layer and the business agreements that transmit messages and billing events, and frames the standards and best practices by which money can be raised where a billing event occurs on the carrier bill. The Mobile Giving Foundation extends this operational layer to a broader ecosystem that includes application providers like you, the wireless carriers, and the nonprofit organizations. Fundamentally, it’s a way for nonprofits to reach their donors. Those donors are also customers of the wireless carriers.
And his closing thoughts are also worth repeating:
I’m very pleased that we can make available a whole new fundraising channel to nonprofits, and just as importantly, help provide a channel for a new, younger demographic to explore, learn and give to causes of interest to them. I’m particularly delighted that the wireless carriers see the value of supporting this effort, and doing so on a no cost basis. They have been generous in helping pioneer this new channel. Of course, we love the fact that companies like Mobile Commons and others have stepped up and leveraged their technology in the giving space. Our collective efforts will literally help change to face of giving today.
