Grants talk:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/General Support Fund/Wikimedia Italia Capacity Building Initiative

Feedback from the NWE Regional Funds Committee

Dear Wikimedia Italia team,

Thank you for submitting your request to the General Support Fund. The Regional Funds Committee reviewed your proposal, and has some questions, mainly to allow us understand better the budget, as cost items seem higher than average, especially in the website development section:

• Are these prices based on procurement quotes from external service providers, or will these tasks be covered by in-house developers? Which items are fixed prices vs estimates?
• Can you please provide us with a breakdown of hours spent on these per line items?
• Project Coordination: What specific deliverables are included in the coordination (e.g., reports, timelines, documentation)? How is this different from coordination already included in design/development phases? Where are responsibilities overlapping between design, development, and features of this coordinator?
• UX / Information architecture: Does this include UX research, or only structure redesign? Is this work reused directly in the development phase? Are revisions of the information architecture included, and how many rounds?
• WordPress theme development: Does this include implementation of the wireframes developed earlier? Is content migration (blog/news) automated or manual, and how many hours does it represent?
• What costs would be removed if you chose a simpler setup (e.g., fewer custom features, more off-the-shelf plugins)?
• CRM integration: what is the calculated or expected return on investment of these developments, in terms of the level they would improve donor contributions?
• Legal analysis of the extension of copyright for non-artistic photographs and preparation of a publication explaining the new framework, including clear guidelines for stakeholders. What is the dissemination plan of this publication?

In terms of the schedule for our review process, please be so kind as to complete your responses to Committee feedback by 17th April  202.

Thank you very much!

On behalf of the NWE Regional Committee  == ABruszik-WMF (talk) 05:31, 9 April 2026 (UTC)

Dear NWE Regional Committee,

thank you for your detailed review and for the opportunity to further clarify our proposal. Please find below our responses to your questions, structured by topic.

- Pricing and service providers

Pricing is based on procurement quotations from external service providers, including a specialized agency with expertise in nonprofit communication and fundraising, ensuring alignment with engagement, donation, and communication objectives. The website will be developed based on WordPress, using the Elementor editor, providing a flexible, scalable, and easy-to-manage solution. This will enable efficient content publishing and ongoing updates, as well as the development of dedicated landing pages for fundraising campaigns. The project is structured primarily on a fixed-price basis, with variability applying only in the event of scope changes or additional requirements.

- Breakdown

Strategy 1: Improve digital presence and communication - Activity 1: Website redesign and development

The new website will be delivered over an estimated period of 11 working weeks. The workplan is structured as follows:

Week 1 – Kick-off & Analysis: requirements gathering, audit of the existing website, and definition of project objectives

Weeks 2–3 – UX & Information Architecture: structural review, content rationalisation, and wireframing

Weeks 4–5 – UI Design: visual design development, iterations, and refinement

Weeks 6–9 – WordPress Development: custom theme implementation, block development, page building, and content migration

Week 10 – Testing: cross-browser, device, and responsiveness testing

Week 11 – Final Review & Deployment: final adjustments and production release

This breakdown reflects an estimated allocation of effort across project phases and does not correspond to detailed per-task time tracking.

Strategy 2: Improve digital infrastructure and fundraising capacity - Activity 2: CRM and fundraising system setup

- CRM configuration and integration improvements: €60/hour + 22% VAT – 67 hours allocated

- CRM and fundraising system – ongoing support: €45/hour - 136 hours allocated (commercial discount has been applied)

- Project Coordination

Website project coordination covers overall planning, timeline management, progress monitoring, risk management, and alignment across all workstreams. It is distinct from coordination activities embedded within individual workstreams (e.g. UX, design, and development), which focus on execution and task-level delivery within each specific phase. Deliverables include: overall project plan and timeline management, organisation and facilitation of project meetings and follow-ups, consolidated progress tracking and status, centralised communication and coordination between all project stakeholders and implementation teams

- UX / Information architecture

This phase focuses on sitemap definition, user flows, and wireframing of key templates. It is informed by best practices and provides the foundation for design and development. The scope includes up to two revision rounds.

- WordPress theme development

Yes, this includes the implementation of the wireframes produced in the previous phase. This means translating the approved UX structure and layouts into a lightweight custom theme with responsive behavior and reusable components. Regarding content migration, this is planned as a semi-automated process: existing content will be imported using WordPress tools where possible, with manual adjustments required to ensure formatting consistency and proper assignment to the new structure.

- Cost optimisation scenarios

Replacing advanced custom features (e.g. donation flows, 5x1000 reminder logic, custom editorial blocks) with standard WordPress plugins or simpler configurations, and using a pre-built theme instead of a custom lightweight theme, could reduce costs. However, these options would result in reduced flexibility in customisation and may limit optimisation of communication performance, fundraising effectiveness, and long-term scalability.

- CRM integration

The most immediate and measurable impact of CRM integration is typically on operational efficiency. In particular, it allows: reduction of manual administrative work for staff, automation of key workflows (e.g. donor follow-ups, acknowledgements, newsletters, and recurring communications), improved data consistency and centralization of donor information, and more efficient internal processes, enabling teams to focus more on fundraising and engagement activities rather than manual tasks. While a precise ROI in terms of increased donations cannot be determined in advance, CRM integration enables better donor tracking, segmentation, and personalized communication, which support improved engagement and long-term fundraising performance.

- Legal analysis dissemination

Wikimedia community

The publication will be shared through established Wikimedia channels, including direct outreach to active contributors, community noticeboards and Village Pumps, mailing lists, and relevant community spaces (e.g. Telegram groups and meetings).

External stakeholders

The publication will also be disseminated via the organization’s website, social media channels, and targeted outreach to relevant partners and institutional stakeholders.

We remain available for any further clarification.

Kind regards,

WMIT Francesca Pinto (WMIT) (talk) 15:10, 17 April 2026 (UTC)

Round 2 2026 decision

Congratulations! The Northern and Western Europe Regional Funds Committee has recommended your proposal for funding!

The Wikimedia Foundation has approved the committee's recommendation to partially fund your proposal for 20,000.00 EUR.

Next steps:

1. You will be contacted to sign a grant agreement.
2. If you have questions, you can contact the Regional Program Officer for the Northern and Western Europe Region.

Posted on behalf of the Northern and Western Europe (NWE) Funding Committee, –ABruszik-WMF (talk) 14:12, 20 May 2026 (UTC)