Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB): Business Model Canvas [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're digging into the mechanics of a major enterprise software player, trying to see past the stock ticker to the actual engine driving the business. Honestly, looking at the late 2025 numbers for Blackbaud, Inc., what you find is a highly predictable, recurring revenue machine built for the social impact sector. With guidance pointing toward $1.120 billion to $1.130 billion in GAAP revenue for FY2025 and 98.1% of that Q3 revenue already locked in as recurring, this isn't just software; it's the financial backbone for nonprofits processing over $100 billion in annual giving. If you want to see exactly how they connect AI innovation, deep data, and mission-critical tools like Raiser's Edge NXT to generate an estimated $195 million to $205 million in Adjusted Free Cash Flow, check out the full Business Model Canvas breakdown below.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Key Partnerships

You're looking at how Blackbaud, Inc. builds out its ecosystem through strategic alliances, which is key to extending its reach in the social impact sector. These aren't just casual connections; they're deep integrations that add immediate, tangible value to the nonprofit and education customers using their core platforms like Raiser's Edge NXT.

The partnership with Anthropic, announced in December 2025, is a prime example of this strategy in action. They launched a fundraising connector for Claude for Nonprofits. This lets customers tap into Anthropic's AI platform directly within Blackbaud's environment, using intelligence built from over 40 years of nonprofit performance data. It debuted for Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT, and the plan is to expand this connector across Blackbaud's nonprofit, education, and corporate solutions. This move is part of a broader AI strategy that also includes Agents for Good, which are virtual team members designed to handle complex tasks.

Also, consider the strategic integration with Constant Contact, which saw its initial release in July 2025. This collaboration embeds Constant Contact's AI-driven digital marketing tools right into Raiser's Edge NXT. Honestly, this cuts down on manual data transfers, which is a huge time-saver for busy teams. It lets users create personalized, multi-channel campaigns using email and SMS, all powered by the constituent data already housed in Blackbaud's system. Full features require an active subscription, but a trial was made available to all Raiser's Edge NXT users.

The Blackbaud Partner Network itself is a massive component of the business model, bringing in technology and service firms to offer specialized, tailored solutions. Blackbaud recognizes these collaborators through annual awards, like the ones announced in October 2025. These partners help customers maximize impact through technology extensions available via the Blackbaud Marketplace. The network is designed to reduce barriers to entry, so more firms can build solutions using Blackbaud SKY Developer Tools and APIs. We're talking about hundreds of active partners extending capabilities in areas like fund accounting, event experiences, and mass notification systems.

Finally, the sheer scale of the financial ecosystem Blackbaud, Inc. supports through its integrated Payment Processors is a critical partnership function. The company reports that over $100 billion is raised, granted, or managed through Blackbaud platforms annually. This volume necessitates robust, secure payment infrastructure partnerships to handle the flow of funds for its customers across the social impact sector. It's a testament to the platform's central role in nonprofit finance.

Here's a quick look at the key players and the scale involved:

The focus on these alliances shows a clear path: integrate best-in-class specialized tools directly into the core platform. This means customers get advanced AI and marketing capabilities without having to manage separate, disconnected systems. It's about creating a unified, powerful experience for social impact organizations.

You should review the Q3 2025 results, where Blackbaud reported revenue of $281 million and Non-GAAP EPS of $1.10, to gauge the financial health supporting these ongoing partnership investments. The company is definitely doubling down on making its platform the central hub for nonprofit technology.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Key Activities

You're looking at the engine room of Blackbaud, Inc. as of late 2025; these are the core actions that keep the lights on and drive that mid-single-digit organic growth. Honestly, it's all about execution on a focused, post-divestiture strategy.

Developing purpose-built, cloud-based SaaS solutions

Blackbaud, Inc. is clearly doubling down on its cloud platform. For the full year 2025, the company is guiding for GAAP revenue between $1.120 billion and $1.130 billion, with a non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA margin targeted between 35.4% and 36.2%. The core of this is the recurring revenue base, which was 98.0% of total GAAP revenue in the second quarter of 2025, hitting $275.6 million for that period. This transition to recurring revenue is supported by significant investment in the platform itself; capital expenditures for 2025 are expected to be between $55 million and $65 million, with capitalized software development costs estimated to consume $50 million to $60 million of that.

Accelerating AI innovation, including Agents for Good™

This is where Blackbaud, Inc. is spending to widen its competitive moat. They unveiled a massive array of new embedded AI capabilities at bbcon 2025, specifically rolling out over 70+ sector-specific AI features. The flagship is the agentic AI suite, Agents for Good™, which acts as a virtual teammate. For instance, the Development Agent is in early access, designed to proactively manage donor portfolios and unlock new revenue streams, positioning the company to capture incremental annual recurring revenue. To give you a sense of the data foundation, Blackbaud AI currently generates more than 30 billion predictions annually to help customers find the right prospects.

Acquiring new enterprise logos and driving cross-sell

Management has made it clear that after completing migrations, the focus is sharply on winning new logos and expanding within the existing base. The sales structure supports this with dedicated prospect account executives and customer account executives focused on the "land and expand" model-selling additional products to current customers. They cited momentum in the higher education vertical with enterprise wins like California Polytechnic State University, and success with large corporate customers on the YourCause solution, including NASDAQ and Tyson Foods in the second quarter of 2025.

Maintaining and securing the core data platform

Keeping that massive, interconnected data platform secure and operational is a non-negotiable activity. The company's non-GAAP financial definitions still account for costs related to the major Security Incident discovered in May 2020, showing this is an ongoing financial consideration factored into cash flow analysis. The overall goal is to drive operational efficiency, as seen by the projected non-GAAP EPS of $4.30 to $4.50 for 2025, which reflects cost controls and productivity gains.

Managing a high-volume transactional payment engine

Transactional revenue is a key component, with transactional revenue showing a 9% increase year-over-year in the first quarter of 2025. Blackbaud, Inc. is actively managing this through its payment solutions. They announced Blackbaud Integrated Payments to expedite giving from corporate customers and employees to nonprofits. Furthermore, features like Donor cover & Complete Cover™ are designed to help mitigate processing fees, which directly impacts the net funds reaching the mission.

Here's a quick look at the key financial performance indicators supporting these activities through the first half of 2025:

The company's sales focus is definitely on bringing in new enterprise logos while simultaneously driving expansion through cross-selling the breadth of their portfolio. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Key Resources

Blackbaud, Inc. relies on a foundation of deep domain expertise and proprietary technology assets to serve the social impact sector.

The scale of the data processed through Blackbaud platforms is a significant resource, with over $100 billion raised, granted or managed annually across its solutions. This data intelligence underpins the company's AI strategy.

The Intellectual Property component is centered on the Intelligence for Good® AI commitment, which includes the launch of over 70+ embedded, sector-specific AI capabilities and agentic virtual teammates called Blackbaud Agents for Good™ at bbcon 2025. The existing Blackbaud AI infrastructure already generates over 30 billion predictions annually to assist customers.

The technology infrastructure has largely transitioned to the cloud, with only two of the company's own data centers remaining as of the Q3 2025 filing.

For the flagship products, Blackbaud committed to having 100% of critical workflows in Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT available in a single, unified view by the end of 2025. The first Agent for Good, the Development Agent, was slated for an Early Adopter Program with Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT® customers in Q4 2025.

Here's a quick look at the latest financial guidance supporting these resources:

The core Key Resources are:

• - Proprietary data layer from 40+ years of social impact, supporting over $100 billion managed annually.
• - Intellectual property: Intelligence for Good® AI platform, featuring over 70+ new AI capabilities.
• - Cloud-based software and technology infrastructure, operating with only two remaining private data centers.
• - Adjusted Free Cash Flow guidance of $195 million to $205 million for FY2025.
• - Flagship products like Raiser's Edge NXT, targeting 100% critical workflow unification by end of 2025, and Financial Edge NXT.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Value Propositions

You're looking at the core reasons why organizations in the social good sector choose Blackbaud, Inc. for their technology stack. The value proposition centers on mission enablement, financial predictability, and technological advancement.

Blackbaud, Inc. offers comprehensive, mission-critical software for the social good sector. This isn't just off-the-shelf software; it's purpose-built for nonprofits, educational institutions, and corporate social responsibility programs. This deep focus allows for specialized functionality that generalist software often misses. For instance, the company helps pump more than $100 billion annually into the social sector via funds that are raised, granted, and invested by its customers.

A major component of the value is the high degree of financial certainty Blackbaud provides its stakeholders. This is reflected in the revenue structure, which is heavily weighted toward subscriptions and recurring services. For the third quarter ended September 30, 2025, GAAP recurring revenue represented 98.1% of total revenue, which was $275.8 million out of total GAAP revenue of $281.1 million.

Here's a quick look at some of the financial context supporting the value of their platform as of late 2025:

Blackbaud, Inc. is delivering AI-driven tools to accelerate mission impact and fundraising. At its October 2025 bbcon conference, the company announced a significant array of new embedded AI capabilities. This includes the launch of Agents for Good™, which are virtual team members designed to proactively handle complex tasks. The first agent, the Development Agent, is already in early access, with monetization expected to begin in Q4 2025, positioning Blackbaud to capture incremental annual recurring revenue.

The company promotes A connected Ecosystem of Good® for all stakeholders. This vision is built on three key initiatives: Unleash the Power of Data, Drive Radical Collaboration, and Catalyse Individual Impact. Collaboration is supported by integrating elements like the Global Goals taxonomy into the software, allowing organizations to map outcomes against a shared roadmap for deeper insight into shared progress.

For corporate social responsibility clients, Blackbaud, Inc. provides Expedited Giving for YourCause® to speed up donation disbursements. This functionality is designed to deliver donations made through corporate employee giving programs directly to nonprofits up to 95% faster than other market options. When connected to Raiser's Edge NXT and the Blackbaud Verified Network, funds can reach the nonprofit in as little as two business days, which shortens the cash conversion cycle for the receiving organization.

You should keep an eye on the ongoing capital return program; year-to-date through Q3 2025, the company had repurchased more than 5% of its common stock outstanding as of December 31, 2024. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Relationships

Blackbaud, Inc. focuses its customer relationships on securing long-term, high-value recurring revenue streams and enabling customer success through digital resources.

Dedicated account management for enterprise customers.

• New AI capabilities, like the Development Agent, are debuting in Teams and Enterprise plans for Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT.
• The company's intelligence layer is built from over 40 years of nonprofit performance data.

Blackbaud Community and Blackbaud University for self-service support.

• Blackbaud expertise supports guides on measuring alumni engagement metrics.
• The company provides resources like the Blackbaud Community and Blackbaud University for user support and learning.

High-touch renewal program with a focus on multi-year contracts.

The renewal strategy emphasizes longer contract durations and built-in price escalators to secure predictable revenue. The product-first approach is cited as driving 90%+ retention rates. As of Third Quarter 2025, GAAP recurring revenue represented 98.1% of total GAAP revenue, amounting to $275.8 million for the quarter. Non-GAAP organic recurring revenue grew 5.5% in the same period.

Embedded support and help directly within product workflows.

• New AI integrations, such as the fundraising connector for Claude for Nonprofits, are being embedded directly within platforms like Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT.
• The company is expanding its Blackbaud AI capabilities integrated within its solutions, including Chat for Blackbaud AI.

The number of shares of the registrant's Common Stock outstanding as of July 28, 2025 was 48,509,032.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Channels

You're looking at how Blackbaud, Inc. gets its software and services into the hands of the social impact sector-the crucial delivery mechanism for their business. As of late 2025, the strategy is clearly multi-pronged, balancing direct relationship building with ecosystem enablement.

Direct Sales Force: Primary channel for new logo acquisition.

The direct sales force remains central for landing new customers, which the CEO explicitly highlighted as a core focus area for 2025. This team is structured to focus on signing new logos, alongside driving upsell and cross-sell opportunities within the existing base. To be fair, the internal structure reflects this split: about 50% of the sales team focuses on cross-selling activities. Sales lead generation and qualification are supported by a dedicated team of sales development representatives, supplementing leads generated by the customer success organization. The appointment of Bill Fort, formerly of Salesforce, Oracle, and SAP, as Head of North American sales in 2025 signals a significant push to upgrade competitive capabilities in new logo acquisition.

The overall performance context for these channels is strong; for instance, Q2 2025 saw Non-GAAP organic revenue growth of 6.8%, and Q3 2025 followed with 5.2% organic growth, contributing to a raised full-year 2025 GAAP revenue guidance range of $1.120 billion to $1.130 billion.

Blackbaud Marketplace: App store for partner integrations.

The Blackbaud Marketplace functions as the digital storefront where customers can easily access and deploy third-party solutions that extend the core Blackbaud offering. Thousands of Blackbaud customers are actively leveraging these third-party solutions to quickly extend their software capabilities. The Marketplace visibility is a key benefit for partners, as seen with FundMiner winning the 2025 Marketplace Growth Award.

Blackbaud Partner Network: Referral and implementation partners.

This network is vital for providing tailored services and expertise alongside Blackbaud's software. The refreshed Partner Network, which started rolling out updates in August 2023, aimed to reduce barriers to entry, resulting in the addition of more than 40 partners in the quarter following that refresh. These partners deliver essential services like implementation, consulting, and technical integrations. The value is clear: customers gain expanded capabilities that fit their specific mission needs.

Here's a snapshot of the 2025 Partner Network recognition:

Digital Channels: Online giving and peer-to-peer fundraising platforms.

Digital channels are critical, especially given the sector's increasing digital maturity. Blackbaud reports that over $100 billion is raised, granted, or managed through its platforms annually, underscoring the scale of its digital transaction capabilities. The company has been actively embedding new technology into these digital touchpoints. For example, the Raiser's Edge NXT platform is a key recipient of these digital channel enhancements. You see this in the strategic integration rolled out with Constant Contact, embedding email, SMS, and social media functions directly within the platform. Furthermore, a new partnership with Anthropic was announced in late 2025 to create a fundraising connector for Claude for Nonprofits, integrating Blackbaud's data intelligence with Anthropic's AI platform to enhance fundraising intelligence for Raiser's Edge NXT users. This aligns with the trend that over 80% of nonprofit professionals reported using AI in their daily work in 2025.

The success of these digital tools is tied to the sector's adoption of technology; organizations with higher digital maturity were significantly more likely to report income growth in 2025 research.

• Non-GAAP organic recurring revenue growth in Q3 2025 was 5.5%.
• The company's Rule of 40 score reached 40.6% in Q3 2025.
• AI use among surveyed professionals rose to 82% in the ANZ region in 2025.
• In the UK, 77% of organizations were using AI in 2025.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Segments

You're looking at the core of Blackbaud, Inc.'s business-the organizations that power social impact. Honestly, their customer base is highly specialized, focusing on entities that manage significant donor or constituent relationships. As of late 2025, the company is still laser-focused on this niche, which is why their financial performance, like the reaffirmed full-year 2025 GAAP revenue guidance of between $1.120 billion to $1.130 billion, is so tied to the health of these specific sectors.

The overall reach is substantial; Blackbaud, Inc. enables more than $100 billion in donations annually across a customer base exceeding 40,000 organizations operating in over 100 countries. This scale gives them unique insight, as seen in their Blackbaud Institute data, which benchmarks the average nonprofit experience using a subset of over 8,500+ nonprofit organizations that process more than $55 billion in fundraising revenue.

Here's a breakdown of the key customer groups they serve:

• - Nonprofit Organizations: Core fundraising and relationship management.
• - Educational Institutions: K-12 schools and Higher Education.
• - Foundations: Grantmaking and financial management.
• - Corporations: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and employee giving.
• - Healthcare Organizations: Donor and patient relationship management.

For the nonprofit segment, which is their bread and butter, the sector is actively adopting technology. A recent 2025 report showed that 82% of nonprofits are using AI tools, though much of that is on free, generative platforms. This presents a clear conversion opportunity for Blackbaud, Inc.'s enterprise solutions, especially since only 14% of those organizations have formal AI policies in place yet. If onboarding takes 14+ days, churn risk rises, so speed to value is key here.

The Educational Institutions segment, particularly K-12 schools, remains a growth area. For instance, in 2024, key new logo wins included Notre Dame High School, American Heritage Schools, and San Diego Jewish Academy, showing continued success in acquiring new logos in this vertical. The Healthcare Organizations segment is also showing strong donor engagement; in 2024, the average healthcare organization saw an 11.3% increase in overall giving year-over-year, the highest growth rate among subsectors analyzed.

To give you a clearer picture of the financial context surrounding these segments as of late 2025, look at the recent performance:

The focus on the social impact sector is absolute; the company's Q3 2025 non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA margin hit 35.4%, up more than 200 basis points year-over-year, which speaks to the efficiency of serving this defined customer base. Also, the company is seeing success in securing larger deals, with average Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) increasing over the past few years, and contracts are commonly three years or more.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Cost Structure

You're looking at the major outflows that keep Blackbaud, Inc.'s software platform running and growing for the social impact sector. The cost structure is heavily weighted toward product development and getting that software into new hands, which makes sense for a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider.

The investment in research and development (R&D) remains a core cost driver, especially as Blackbaud, Inc. pushes its embedded Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities. You saw them launch a massive array of new AI features at bbcon 2025, and they noted incremental investments in AI and innovation are expected to total approximately $7 million between Q3 and Q4 of 2025. Cybersecurity, inherent to protecting sensitive donor and constituent data, is baked into this significant R&D spend.

The company's commitment to its cloud delivery model means substantial, ongoing operational costs related to hosting and infrastructure, though specific figures for cloud hosting are often bundled within Cost of Revenue or R&D in public filings. To give you a clearer picture of the scale of investment, here's a look at some key expense categories and guidance figures for the full Fiscal Year 2025.

For new logo acquisition, the Sales and marketing expenses are clearly a major component of the operating costs. For the first nine months of 2025, the spend in Sales, Marketing and Customer Success hit $132,795 thousand. This spend supports the go-to-market strategy for their cloud solutions.

The required capital outlay for maintaining and improving the platform is quantified through the CapEx guidance. Capital expenditures for the full year 2025 are expected to land between $55 million and $65 million. It's important to note that the bulk of this, approximately $50 million to $60 million, is earmarked for capitalizing software development costs, which is the direct investment in future product features and platform stability.

Financing costs are also a predictable drain on cash flow. The latest guidance for Interest Expense for the full year 2025 is set in the range of $66 million to $70 million. This figure reflects the impact of capital allocation decisions, such as the incremental interest expense related to the 2025 repurchase program.

You can see the breakdown of recent operating expenses below, which helps frame the scale of the ongoing costs:

• Research and development for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, was $104,352 thousand.
• Sales, marketing and customer success for the same nine-month period totaled $132,795 thousand.
• General and administrative costs for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, were $120,579 thousand.

Blackbaud, Inc. (BLKB) - Canvas Business Model: Revenue Streams

You're looking at the core ways Blackbaud, Inc. brings in cash as of late 2025. The business model is heavily weighted toward reliable, recurring income, which is what you want to see in a mature SaaS player serving the social impact sector.

The overall financial expectation for the full fiscal year 2025 is clear from the latest guidance. Blackbaud, Inc. projects its FY2025 GAAP Revenue Guidance to be between $1.120 billion to $1.130 billion. This guidance was reiterated after the third quarter results were announced.

The primary engine for Blackbaud, Inc. is its recurring revenue base, which directly maps to your Subscription Revenue component. This covers the recurring fees customers pay for cloud software access, like their core CRM and fundraising platforms. For the third quarter ended September 30, 2025, GAAP recurring revenue hit $275.8 million. This figure represented 98.1% of the total GAAP revenue for that quarter, showing just how central this stream is to the business.

Next up is Transactional Revenue, which covers fees from payment processing and digital giving activities. While the latest quarterly reports combine services and other one-time revenue into a single, immaterial category, historical data points suggest the scale of this stream. For instance, one projection indicated transactional revenue could reach $279 million for the full 2025 period, up from $259 million in 2024, driven by momentum in consumer giving and payment processing rate increases.

Your third category, Professional Services Revenue, which includes implementation, consulting, and training, is now reported as part of a combined category. As of 2025 reporting, Blackbaud, Inc. combined 'recurring' and 'one-time services and other' revenue due to the immateriality of the one-time services and other revenue component. This means you won't see a large, separate line item for professional services.

Here's a quick look at the revenue composition based on the Q3 2025 snapshot to show you the weighting:

To give you a clearer picture of the recurring revenue strength, here are some related metrics from the Q3 2025 results:

• Non-GAAP organic recurring revenue increased 5.5% year-over-year.
• Non-GAAP organic revenue growth was 5.2%.
• The company is focused on monetization starting in Q4 from new AI features, which will impact future revenue recognition.