Maria Kammur: ALC ChangeMakers Podcast Interview
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Audio Only - All Participants: [00:00:00] Hi everybody. Welcome to the ALC Changemakers Podcast. I'm your host, Jennifer Sconyers, and today I have Maria Kammur. Maria and I were in the same 10 KSB cohort. You know, I've got a lot of my friends on, they're in the cohort, amazing group, and I'm so excited to have Maria. Welcome. Thank you so much, Jennifer.
I'm excited to be here. Absolutely. Well, for listeners, tell them about your journey and stradaji and where that unique name came from. Yeah, I'm happy to answer that. So, um, I'm Maria Kor. I am from Columbus, Ohio, and grew up here, really traveled and studied in different places, and it really gave me a greater appreciation for our community here in Columbus.
I studied really, you know, um, I have a master's in public administration and love the humanities and studied in the [00:01:00] humanities. So naturally, you know, that route leads you to co-owning an IT consulting firm. Um, so my husband and I started stradaji in 2019. A uh, a fund marketer once told me stradaji rhymes with prodigy.
So stick to that. But really it comes from our family backgrounds. So strata is path. Italian and G is respectfully Yes. In du. So we have lumped these together to create a word because it's what we do. We create technology roadmaps. Yeah. And we journey with our clients. Yeah. And implementations to realize that so they can do better and scale.
Yeah. I love that. So, um, for listeners, just to understand your work, I remember in class you always had such an interesting, it was, I could see you did the technology piece, but you also like mapped the human experience and that feels [00:02:00] unique. I don't know if I've met too many folks who do both of those things well, or have a company that does both of those things well.
Can you tell our listeners a bit about the thinking and like the process of how you all. View your work and how you really engage with your clients. Of course. Thanks for that question. Yeah. So first I would say, you know, we curate technology solutions. Mm-hmm. So we're solving business problems with technology.
Mm-hmm. And everything that we do is really centered around for values. So we are attentive, we are intentional. We are precise and we are collaborative. Mm-hmm. But the technology is the tool, but it's really human-centered design. Those connections are important. Yeah. So when we are working with our partners, we wanna understand those pain points.
Yeah. Understand what are their business workflows. Yeah. Where do [00:03:00] they wanna go? So here you are today. We understand, you know, all those warts and inefficiencies. Yeah. But where is it that you're looking to go and, and you may know that we may also be able to say, as technologists, as subject matter experts.
Yeah. Have you thought about. X, Y, and Z, right? Yeah. Like today we have the data. Yeah. Let's put the data stradaji in place. Yeah. We can put together great visualizations and reporting for you. Yeah. What about predictive analytics? Hmm. How can we, you know, pull that piece in? Yeah. So really creating things that work for the teams, but also, you know, they can scale, they can grow.
Mm-hmm. They're future forward. Mm-hmm. You wanna make a, an important and great investment and it should add value. Yeah, I love that value add and it sounds like something that can grow with that business or entity that could be sustainable, that should, it's built, it's part of what they do, right. It's a part of like the rhythms and the systems.
[00:04:00] That's really interesting and fascinating. Um, what are some, when you think about the types of groups you work with, I'd love to hear like the types of clients, but are there just. Some, I don't know, like typical challenges that you'll see with them or are there certain ways people say, I need help with x?
Sure. That signals that they need stradaji. Yeah, that's a great question. So we work with nonprofits, we work with small and medium sized businesses, we work with government. And when I think about common challenges, one might be, you know, there's no shortage of platforms and tools to fix things. Yeah.
Those platforms don't automatically talk to each other. Mm-hmm. So integrating those systems so that they talk and you can gain efficiencies. Yeah, it helps reduce the manual work. Yeah. And we even automate workflows, you know? Yeah. Excel is a wonderful tool. Yeah. But the person need to be, you know, copying and pasting or [00:05:00] manually, you know, you have errors there.
Yeah. They could be doing other work. Right. Yeah. Integrating systems is something that we do a lot of. Mm-hmm. Um, you know, we hear a lot about artificial intelligence and Yes. Part of ai, right. Gen ai. Yeah. In order to, you know, really leverage those tools? Well, yeah. It's a, it's a data stradaji conversation.
Where is your data today? How can we help prepare you? And then identify those use cases. Yeah. So, you know, in order to leverage that. So, um, it could also be maybe there's a, you know, a portal or a system that needs. You know, more robust functionality. Yeah. Could be things like this. Yeah. Um, but another, you know, piece is with platforms.
Yeah. Um, think about the pain point or the problem. Mm-hmm. Then the platform, you know, the platform comes. Yeah. So another piece is just whether we are adding bandwidth or adding that technical expertise to [00:06:00] say, we now understand your organization because we've taken that time to build the relationship you've told us.
Who are those key stakeholders to interview? Mm-hmm. And so then we can go into conversations. With, you know, the technology piece to say you can serve as your technical representative, you know, you know your business better than anyone. Yeah. But we'll be able from the technology side to vet it and say, yes, this can be leveraged.
Or maybe this commercially off the shelf solution works to a certain point, but needs to be customized. Yeah. And then we journey with you to figure that out. Yeah, I love all that. It's just, it's just so thoughtful, you know, in terms of the steps that you all are taking. And I'm hearing when you say, you know, understanding like the challenge and then, then you can figure out what's the technology solution as a verse as opposed to the opposite.
People might want a technology solution, but it doesn't. Match or meet their need or their challenge. [00:07:00] Yeah. Um, it's credited to our team. I mean, we really have a wonderful team. They, they communicate well. We're curious, we ask questions. I was in a meeting this morning and it's just really neat to hear, you know, different roles and perspectives.
'cause they have, you know, different piece of that project. Right. But teamwork makes the dream work. So yeah. In action. I love that. Well, we we're all about cohesive teams here at a LC relationship. That's the core of our work. So loving to hear that that's also really true for you all. Um, you mentioned ai.
I am curious, you know, in terms of there's this AI conversation, so for listeners. Well, I have, um, we have a guest you've already heard from Cheryl Contee who talks about AI for nonprofits. So get her a book, understand that that's, you're in that space. But I'm really curious from your vantage point, what does the AI conversation look like for you all when you're working with an entity or a client?
Like in terms of how they're maybe wrestling? Yeah, corporate, their systems. Yeah. [00:08:00] I think, um, it's a great point. You know, AI has really been our largest shift since the cloud. And it has been around. Yeah. But I think it's more, you know, it's more available, right. For the day-to-day person. So, yeah. You know, we think of AI as like a system that kind of mimics that human decision making.
Yeah. And when you have gen ai, it's really creating something new. Hmm. And in order to leverage this technology, you know, we have to think first about data. Yeah. So what is that data stradaji? And then to understand there are many tools out there, but do they serve your needs? Yeah. And if you bring them in.
What's the cost? What's the maintenance cost for those? Mm-hmm. And, and certainly being mindful of budgets, it's also what's the expertise needed for that maintenance. You know, is it something that a team can be upskilled to then do in-house or not? So we have those important conversations to understand like, [00:09:00] is it an AI chat bot?
You know what value is added there. Mm-hmm. And can we do, you know, a proof of concept, right? So maybe it's an executive director that is asking for some questions because they don't readily have a dashboard or reports for X, Y, and Z. Yeah. We can, you know, implement like a test proof of concept case to say, let's enable this.
Yeah. So your, you know, executive team. Yeah. Let's see what questions they ask. Yeah. It's your organization's data that has been, you know, put into that system. And then we can also log those questions to determine is this, is this a good spend moving forward? You know, how, what is that? ROI? Mm-hmm. So we're really about doing that groundwork first.
Yeah. Or just jumping in and then crossing our fingers. We don't love, you know. I love it. It's such like a thoughtful, tactical, practical approach to find the [00:10:00] right set of solutions. And I can only imagine, Maria, like as you are doing some inquiries, there's a lot you could learn that could really inform what that solution ultimately is.
Yeah, absolutely. I love that. Um, well you mentioned you work a lot with, um, nonprofits and small businesses. Um, we're an interesting timeline where we've had so many things happening. Um, for listeners recording this during what's gonna be the government shutdown, so that has an impact. There were doge cuts.
I know the groups that we've supported ALC who are nonprofits have been impacted, um, in terms of federal funding. Uh, that's a, that's a thing happening, right? Um, so I'm curious if there's any ways that. That's been impacting you or if you've had to adjust or just maybe shift or change how you do the work, just given some of these things happening.
Yeah. Um, absolutely. Thank you for this question. And yes, we have to not be tone deaf to the times, right? Yeah. And so understanding that budget, which is always critical in every organization, [00:11:00] but certainly, um, you know, nonprofits, right? Anytime you are responsible to those, you serve mm-hmm. To the board, like you wanna have that fiscal responsibility and accountability.
Yeah. And so for us, again. Um, you know, we're, we're taking that time to do the due diligence upfront, but there are budget cuts and, and you know, we, we see what's that scope? What can we deliver that's a value add given the constraints. Yeah. And I, I feel really proud of our team for being able to do that.
Yeah. Um, part of strata, right? The path stradaji, you're not creating a transformation in a day. It takes right. And it can also be phased. So we understand the constraints around this needs to be spent, you know? Before fiscal year end. Yeah. Or can we prepare so that we understand, so that we can appropriately budget for the next fiscal year.
Like we are doing that and, and none of that is new. [00:12:00] Yeah. I mean, we're always doing it. So I think certainly we, you know, we understand from, from our. Um, partners that this is a difficult time and we do just check in to say, Hey, you know, um, we created that technology roadmap. Yeah. It's a living document, right?
That compliments your, your strategic plan, but we also recognize this is a difficult time, you know? Yeah. More so than. Than others, perhaps. Yeah. Yeah, I totally get that. And you mentioned strategic plans. I know at ALC we do strategic planning, um, yeah. Oftentimes for nonprofits. Um, yeah. And what's interesting is in a normal situation, normal times and times are not normal.
Right. Um, you know, you do the plan. It's maybe three to five years. Mm-hmm. You do, you know, every six months there's an update to check in on the plan. You know what I mean? It's, it's kind of like very methodical and there's a way that we would do planning that I think attuned to that in, in the [00:13:00] past.
Right. And so you'd have like, we do a landscape analysis interviews and then we do the vision, mission values, and those were tight. And then we set the goals. And I have to be honest. In looking at the current timetable timeline we're on, um, it's not to say that those things aren't important. You should know your mission.
You should really know your values and how to operationalize them. That's how we look at ALC. Um, you should set goals, but it also feels like what's required is a nimbleness, number one. And also what we're noticing is it's not just about like, here's the plan. People are asking their own way. Like, how do we.
Pivot in the plan, like can we have benchmarks that we know we can pivot or adjust given the timetable? I'm super curious. I know we haven't worked together yet, but I know we want to sometime in the future. Yeah. I'm super curious. On the technology side, if there is a [00:14:00] way to really do that, because I, what I'm picking up on is the, the, the nimbleness and agility people are hungry for.
Um, that was always needed, but it just feels like it's really it now. So I'm just super curious in the technology side, if there's a way to really support that for organizations. Yeah, it's a great question. So we love to work with organizations that have that strategic plan in place. Yeah. Because you know, you're getting everyone to row in the same direction.
Yeah. So we can have that champion that we're talking to, but we also wanna understand from others, like, are we going in the same direction? Yes. So that as we hear those pain points, as we put together the solution. We know that it's going to support the future that this organization, you know, wants to drive in.
So I would say yes, you know, understanding the times when we put together, um, that technology roadmap, you know, that compliments the strategic plan. Yeah. We're really looking at short-term wins [00:15:00] and long-term gains along the way. Right. So we don't really wanna be in a situation where it's months and months and months of work without seeing that return.
Yeah. It's important. And we also know with our partners, like doing more with less, you need to see that value add. Mm-hmm. So there is always an opportunity to be flexible and adjust. I mean, it's really part of the, like the software development life cycle too. Yeah. We have accountability built in. Yeah. We have a project manager, you know, we're really, you know, checking in to say, where are we?
How much time is left, like holding that accountability is, is really at the forefront. Yeah. And having those conversations. So we have been in implementations where we've had our project champion say, Hey, we planned to totally get this piece and this piece live, but it is no longer possible, you know, in this quarter.
So how can we adjust and what can we do? Right? Yeah. And so we have those conversations and you know, as a good partner. [00:16:00] We make that work in the most responsible way possible. We let them know, you know, if you don't implement this, like we don't wanna have any sort of cybersecurity risk. Yeah. We don't want good money spent.
That is not, you know. Spend. So we just have those honest conversations. I think that's really, you know, trust and respect. So we've built that trust and respect. You have that honesty and say, okay, let's, let's pair it back. Here's what's possible, and then we can pick that back up and this is what it might look like.
Hmm. I love that. So that adaptability is what I'm hearing to make sure the client gets what they need. It's meeting their needs, you're being sensitized to where they are, the shifts that are occurring, budget changes, like all the things it sounds like your team is just super attuned to, which is really cool to hear.
Um, I'm really curious, Maria, for people like they've never maybe looked for a technology solution before, right? That's just like so outside their scope. [00:17:00] Yeah. They wouldn't know where to start. Yeah. Um. What would you recommend? Like what would be, I don't know, a pain point or a signal that maybe a technology solution might help?
Yeah, great question. So, um, you know, the signal, I think, and we really love to map things. Yeah. So think about, you know, what are those pain points that you have? And whether you're doing it mentally or you know, writing it down or whatever. Yeah. Um, what are those pain points? Yeah. And then how much time is that taking you?
Right. And can you have conversations with others to see like, what's that downstream impact? Because maybe as one single person, it's frustrating not to have like a grants management solution. Right. Because there are a lot of folks on in the mix. That are, you know, there's dependencies there, right? Mm-hmm.
But oftentimes there might just be one grant writer and they're, you [00:18:00] know, we need this by this state. All of those things, right? Yeah. So understanding the full scope of that pain point mm-hmm. By having that open dialogue. And if there are pain points where, you know, you're, you're finding them to be frequent.
Yeah. They take a lot of time. Yeah. You know, time's not free. What is the cost of that? And then also how does that drain an individual in their own joy for their work? Because sometimes, you know, like that can't really be quantified, but it's also important. Yeah. So we would really say, you know, quantify that.
Mm-hmm. Because when we look at hard and fast numbers, if we would be collaborating with a client and say, Hey. If you want a grants management solution, right? Yeah. Whether that is something, um, commercially off the shelf available, which we can help vet based on your needs. Mm-hmm. Or you want us to work with you and design a more customized solution.
Yeah. You know, free [00:19:00] award, post award, full auditing trail, all of those pieces. Mm-hmm. Understanding like, what's that cost, and then coming back to numbers to say. Is it worth it? Yeah. Well, when you're armed with, okay, it's costing this person this many hours in a day. Yeah. Or every week it's this bucket of hours or monthly and you know, you can quantify that, right.
Based on salary, benefits, those types of things. And then understand like, well, if those folks weren't bogged down in that work. How can our mission be louder? Like what can they do? What are they empowered to do? Yeah. If this solution is helping them Yeah. And having those conversations. Yeah. I think that might be, um, you know, a good way to be prepared to kind of see.
Now it's time to really, you know. Look at leveraging technology more for our operations. Yeah. I really love that because I think people don't know what they need until they like kind of name like, well, what has me, what has me challenged, or what has me bogged [00:20:00] down their energy, their team's energy? You know, where are you spending your time?
What do you wanna see? Like what's the outcome? Like if you wave a magic wand, what are you looking for? And then let's bring it down, you know, to reality. Yeah. I love that. Um, well, where, where can people find you, Maria? Like if they wanna learn more about stradaji and your services, where should they go?
Yeah, thank you for that question. So please visit our website. We are at stradaji.com, so that's. Strada. S-T-R-A-D-A-J-I.com. You can also find us on LinkedIn and you have my name, so connect with me. I'm a real human. Would love to make that connection and so what our team, I love that. Well, this has just been really awesome.
Thank you so much. Maria. Do you have any parting thoughts or words of wisdom before we close out? I just really appreciate the time today, and I think, you know, um, I know with your audience primarily being [00:21:00] our, our nonprofit partners, small businesses, like what you do is important, right? You're either starting an organization or working in an organization because you have that expertise and because you have that passion, but you don't have to go it alone, right?
So leverage those partners. When it's appropriate and, and best to you, keep up the good work. Love this. Well, thank you so much, Maria. And for our listeners, you can always find more information in this podcast episode on jennifersconyers.com. Until next time.
