Case Study: Goodwill of the Olympics and Rainier Region achieves streamlined operations and frees staff to focus on the mission with Microsoft Power BI

Optimizing internal operations frees Goodwill staff to focus on the mission

Goodwill of The Olympics and Rainier Region faced fragmented, aging systems that kept store sales data slow, manual, and error-prone — forcing staff to spend hours each day compiling reports and preventing managers from making timely merchandising and pricing decisions. The Tacoma-based nonprofit needed a modern, secure platform to automate accounting, deliver real-time store insights, and free staff to focus on job-training programs; they turned to Microsoft technologies, including Microsoft Power BI, Dynamics 365 for Finance and Retail Operations, and Windows 10.

Using Microsoft Power BI alongside Dynamics 365, Goodwill automated daily reporting, delivered real-time sales dashboards to handheld devices, and improved retail operations and security. The change saved roughly 22 hours of manual work per week, moved reports up to 7:20 a.m. (from 10 a.m.), reduced outages with redundant circuits and automated security patches, and helped stores generate an additional $167,000 in sales in February — all enabling staff to redirect time and funds back into the organization’s mission.

Goodwill of The Olympics and Rainier Region

Lori Forte Harnick

Chief Executive Officer