This book is a step-by-step tutorial with practical examples, introduced by a planning framework and illustrations of good relationship management techniques for a variety of situations. We begin with basics such as installation, low-level implementation, and CiviCRM's core modules before covering CiviCRM's advanced features and issues such as customization of CiviCRM and integrating it with Joomla! and Drupal. You should be able to quickly grasp and implement the basic elements of CiviCRM before moving on to the more advanced features and tools. This book is for project implementers, organization leaders, staff, and volunteers in advocacy, non-profit, and non-governmental organizations, elected officials, professional/trade associations, political campaigns and parties, government agencies, and other similar organizations who want to implement CiviCRM in a manner tailored to their organization's size, culture, and needs. It addresses CRM strategists, implementers, administrators, and end users looking to become power users in communicating, fundraising, managing events, memberships, grants, cases, and people-resource management.
Brian Shaughnessy Brian Shaughnessy is the owner and principal of Lighthouse Consulting & Design, a web development firm specializing in Joomla! and CiviCRM implementations. For over ten years, Brian worked with an association management company providing services to not-for-profit professional, trade, and charitable organizations. Upon starting his own business, he channeled that experience into effective implementations of CiviCRM for not-for-profits. He has worked with organizations around the world, helping to achieve greater efficiencies and expand functionality through CiviCRM.
Brian has served on the CiviCRM Community Advisory Group and helped author the first edition of Understanding CiviCRM (later renamed CiviCRM: A Comprehensive Guide). He has worked with the core development team to provide end user training and maintains a strong working relationship with the project leaders. Brian has also been active in the Joomla! project, serving on the Google Summer of Code program as a Joomla! mentor. He has provided professional Joomla! training through TechnicalLead.com.
I'd like to thank my family for their support while writing this book, and to Joe for helping spearhead the project and partnering as co-authors. I'd also like to give particular thanks to the core development team and CiviCRM community for helping make a terrific piece of software. Lobo, Dave, Kurund, and the developers spread around the world - thanks for bringing the power of an open source CRM to the not-for-profit community.
Joseph Murray
Joseph Murray is the owner and principal of JMA Consulting, specialists in e-Advocacy, e-Consultation and Citizen Engagement for progressive organizations. He has extensive experience on non-profit boards, at senior levels of government, and running electoral, referendum and advocacy campaigns. JMA Consulting has provided CRM systems to hundreds of political campaigns tracking interactions with tens of millions of voters, as well as providing Drupal and CiviCRM strategy, implementation, development and training services to numerous non-profit and advocacy groups.
Joe has served on the CiviCRM Community Advisory Group, and is a Director of the Toronto Drupal Users Group.
