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David Bruce McMahan

In the Sports World being accused of having 'more moves than Michael Jordan' is the one of the deepest possible compliments. It probably works as well in comparisons to Casanova, Fred Astaire, Mohammed Ali and even Ice T. Little known but equally as powerful would be the analogy of 'more moves than NCF' as a means of summing up someone's power to create value through action.

There is not a single piece of donated technology - not one of the millions of items passing through NCF over the last twenty years or so - that has not been moved from one place to another. There is a very important reason for this. One of the key elements that make NCF the value added process it is rests with the understanding of how relocation energizes the attractiveness and value of any donated item. Almost by definition, an item of technology has lost it usefulness in its initial location by the time it is available to be donated to NCF. The power of the NCF Network of Grassroots Partners is the ability to absorb these items into situations where they are desperately needed and are given a resounding new primary lease on a life of service.

The Magic of this Transformation however, is in the move of the item from the initial location, a place where service has ended, to a different location where it is as important and attractive as the day it first went on sale. Clearly the right move must be made to cause this to happen. Casanova, Jordan, Astaire, Ali and Ice T did not get their reputation for their moves by putting the wrong move in the wrong place. This simple understanding is the key to how NCF operates its Virtual Inventory - by making the right move for each donated item.

When the right move has been determined, it then becomes a problem of how the cost of this transport is to be paid. With rare exceptions, NCF and our Partners using our techniques are usually able to achieve this without a cash outlay. For the lazy, there is always someone's checkbook to be turned to; for the Jungle Fighter, the solution is in his or her surroundings and they will dig for it. No cost solutions include utilizing idle transport resources with volunteers on weekends, learning about and using the back-haul schedules of facilities in your area, locating transport facilities already making the trip and 'piggy backing' along and so on. The energetic Friends of Poland were able to use back-haul capacity in LOT Airlines; the determined Ministry of Education in Costa Rica back-hauls from the US on both produce trucks and ships and the intrepid State of Maryland uses trucks and buses temporarily not in service. You get the point: the magic of relocation is lost if you spend a fortune on the transport. Think like a Jungle Fighter - the solutions are all around you for the taking.