Application Guide

How to Apply for IT Needs Assessment: Survey Design and Market Analysis

at The Community Purchasing Alliance

🏢 About The Community Purchasing Alliance

CPA is a social-purpose cooperative that uses collective buying power to help community institutions lower costs while advancing sustainability, worker equity, and community organizing. It's a mission-driven organization where your work directly supports racial equity and economic justice.

About This Role

This contract role involves designing and executing a research process to assess IT needs across diverse member organizations. Your work will shape a pilot program that connects nonprofits with ethical IT vendors, making a tangible impact on community capacity and equity.

💡 A Day in the Life

You might start with a virtual listening session with 5-7 member organizations to hear their IT challenges. Then, you'd refine a survey draft based on feedback, research potential vendors aligned with cooperative principles, and analyze initial data to identify patterns. You'd also meet with CPA staff to align on pilot program goals and timeline.

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Interview Prep

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🎯 Who The Community Purchasing Alliance Is Looking For

  • Has experience conducting needs assessments or surveys for nonprofit or community-based organizations, especially with non-technical audiences.
  • Understands the IT service landscape for small to mid-sized nonprofits, including affordable solutions and common pain points.
  • Demonstrates strong relationship-building skills and comfort facilitating listening sessions with diverse stakeholders.
  • Aligns with cooperative values and is committed to racial equity and economic justice, as evidenced by past work or volunteerism.

📝 Tips for Applying to The Community Purchasing Alliance

1

Tailor your cover letter to explicitly mention cooperative values and how your work has advanced equity or community organizing.

2

Provide examples of surveys or listening sessions you've designed for non-technical audiences, including how you made them accessible.

3

Research CPA's existing programs (e.g., energy co-op) and suggest how IT needs assessment could complement them.

4

Highlight any experience with vendor analysis or market research in the nonprofit or social enterprise space.

5

Use concrete metrics from past assessments (e.g., response rates, actionable insights generated) to demonstrate impact.

✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter

["Your commitment to racial equity and economic justice, and how it aligns with CPA's cooperative model.", 'Specific experience designing surveys or needs assessments for diverse, non-technical audiences.', 'Knowledge of IT challenges facing community-based organizations and potential vendor solutions.', 'Your ability to build authentic relationships and facilitate inclusive listening sessions.']

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🔍 Research Before Applying

To stand out, make sure you've researched:

  • → Read CPA's website and annual reports to understand their cooperative model and past campaigns (e.g., solar co-op, energy efficiency).
  • → Look into the concept of 'community-centered' IT vendors and examples like TechSoup or solidarity economy tech.
  • → Review common IT pain points for nonprofits (e.g., cybersecurity, donor management systems, remote work tools).
  • → Understand the landscape of nonprofit technology assessments, such as NTEN's research or Idealware reports.
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💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics

Based on this role, you may be asked about:

1 How would you design a survey that educates respondents while capturing actionable data for a pilot program?
2 Describe a time you conducted a needs assessment with a diverse, non-technical group. What challenges did you face?
3 How do you ensure your research methods are equitable and inclusive?
4 What IT vendors or solutions do you think are well-suited for small nonprofits? Why?
5 How would you engage member organizations that are skeptical or time-constrained?
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⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Submitting a generic application that doesn't reference cooperative values or equity.
  • Focusing only on technical survey design without emphasizing relationship-building and facilitation skills.
  • Assuming all nonprofits have the same IT needs; avoid one-size-fits-all solutions in your response.

📅 Application Timeline

This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.

Typical hiring timeline:

1

Application Review

1-2 weeks

2

Initial Screening

Phone call or written assessment

3

Interviews

1-2 rounds, usually virtual

✓

Offer

Congratulations!

Ready to Apply?

Good luck with your application to The Community Purchasing Alliance!

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