Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre + Jotform Enterprise: Results at a glance
Money saved annually
$100,000
# of form submissions
35,000+
# of form integrations
4 (Microsoft Power Automate, Mailchimp, Google Sheets, and webhooks)
Since 1967, Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre (KWMC) in Ontario has served as a hub of support for immigrants, refugees, international students, and community members across the region.
The organization offers settlement services, employment assistance, language programs, and interpretation and translation services. It also hosts one of Canada’s largest multicultural festivals each year, bringing tens of thousands of people together to celebrate diversity.
Behind all that impact is a small nonprofit team committed to reducing barriers and helping newcomers thrive. Like many organizations in the sector, they need systems that could keep up with the growing scale of their work.
That’s where Jotform Enterprise came in.
Removing barriers that slow down mission work
Before adopting Jotform Enterprise, KWMC’s interpreter service requests were largely handled by phone.
Staff would field calls, jot down details, follow up with interpreters, and document everything afterward. It worked for a time — but as demand increased, the process became inefficient and difficult to manage.
The organization needed a better way to collect the right information up front. Details like appointment length, language requirements, scheduling needs, and location were essential for coordinating interpreter services effectively.
At the same time, as a small nonprofit, the organization had a straightforward procurement philosophy. As Director of Finance and Business Services Mac Summers explains, the staff’s approach was simple: go with the market leader. In the forms and workflow space, that leader was Jotform.
I’d absolutely recommend it.
Mac Summers, Director of Finance and Business Services, Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre
Automating manual processes to speed up workflows
With Jotform Enterprise, KWMC built a system that allows partner agencies and clients to request interpreter services online.
Instead of relying on phone calls, requesters now submit an online form containing all of the necessary information. That alone significantly reduced back-and-forth communication and administrative overhead.
But the real transformation happened when the team implemented automated workflows.
We use [Jotform Enterprise] in almost every department.
Mac Summers, Director of Finance and Business Services, Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre
Once a form is submitted, the appropriate emails, approvals, and notifications are triggered automatically and routed to the right people. Requests move smoothly through the system without requiring constant manual oversight.
The organization calls this system the Language Interpreter Services Application, or LISA for short. It functions like a gig platform for interpreters, who work as contractors rather than employees.
Thousands of workflows are automated through LISA every year. Without automation, managing that volume wouldn’t be possible with the same number of staff.
“It works really well,” says Summers.
Empowering teams across departments
What started as a solution for interpreter services quickly spread across the organization.
“We use it in almost every department,” says Summers.
Forms are now used for client intake, internal processes, program coordination, and more. Different sections of forms can be shown or hidden to better match the audience filling them out. Intake staff, interpreters, and clients see only the information that’s relevant to them.
Interpreters, for example, can log worked hours directly through the form, as well as report expenses for parking or travel. This eliminates extra paperwork and keeps all records organized in one place.
The system also integrates with other essential tools in KWMC’s toolkit.
Using Microsoft Power Automate, form submissions automatically trigger the creation of purchase orders and sales orders in the organization’s general ledger. When an invoice is approved, journal entries are generated automatically.
This level of automation is especially valuable for programs funded by government grants. For example, the organization provides interpreter services to domestic violence shelters, work that’s partially funded by the province of Ontario. Those funders require detailed reporting on how services are delivered.
Because Jotform feeds directly into their financial and reporting systems, that information is already structured and accessible.
For nonprofit leaders who otherwise would need to spend countless hours preparing reports, this kind of automation can be a game changer.
Implementing systems that scale
Since adopting Jotform Enterprise, KWMC’s efficiency gains have been significant.
According to Summers, without the LISA system powered by Jotform Enterprise, the organization would likely need to hire two additional full-time staff members just to keep up with the workflow.
For many nonprofits, hiring two new employees — with annual salaries of approximately $50,000 each in KWMC’s case — simply isn’t realistic. Automation effectively gives the team the capacity they need without stretching the budget.
Beyond workflow automation, KWMC has found other creative ways to use the platform.
With Jotform AI Agents, they built an AI chatbot on their website to help field incoming questions about the annual Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Festival, which attracts around 65,000 attendees each year. The chatbot answers common questions from visitors, vendors, and community members. If it encounters something it can’t answer, it automatically emails the event coordinator for follow-up.
The organization also connects Jotform with Mailchimp to streamline email communications. When clients fill out intake forms, their information is automatically added to the appropriate email lists. This helps the team connect newcomers with relevant programs and communities — like their Conversational English program, which pairs participants with volunteers for weekly language practice.
Built with nonprofits in mind
Security and accessibility are equally important in nonprofit environments. KWMC uses single sign-on (SSO) to manage user access, allowing their staff to log in securely without any complicated setup.
“The SSO is a nice touch,” says Summers.
For an organization that manages its own IT internally, ease of implementation matters. When technology works smoothly in the background, KWMC’s teams can stay focused on what matters most: serving their communities.
Amplifying community impact
Every nonprofit leader understands the trade-offs between administrative work and mission-driven work. The more time teams spend managing spreadsheets, chasing approvals, and processing requests manually, the less time they can spend helping people.
Tools like Jotform Enterprise help rebalance that equation.
For the team at Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre, the results speak for themselves.
“I’d absolutely recommend it,” says Summers.
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