Before the portal was introduced, ELCA’s remittance workflow was highly manual. Synods relied on spreadsheets, email, PDFs, and offline processes such as paper forms and fax submissions to report remittances and mission support declarations. 

This created several operational and compliance challenges: 

• High administrative overhead: Monthly reconciliation required 4–6 hours per synod. 
• Error-prone workflows: Manual data entry and inconsistent formats led to mismatches and inaccuracies. 
• Limited visibility: Bishops and finance leaders lacked centralized reporting and real-time oversight. 
• Security concerns: Sensitive banking information and ACH details were not consistently handled through secure, auditable systems. 
• No unified identity management: User access varied across systems, with no centralized authentication or permissions model. 

ELCA sought a secure, standardized digital solution that would integrate with ECIS/Blackbaud, operate within a unified portal architecture, and eliminate manual processes. 

Konabos designed and implemented the ELCA Financial Synod Portal using Umbraco Cloud CMS on .NET 9, deployed as the first production portal on ELCA’s new multi-portal framework. 

Key Solution Highlights 

Auth0 Single Sign-On (SSO) 

Centralized authentication with role-based access. User data is synchronized on a schedule from ECIS → Umbraco Cloud → Auth0, ensuring accurate permissions based on synod, congregation, and assigned duties. 

Fund Mapping Management 

A flexible administration interface for managing synod fund IDs and mapping them to Churchwide Organization designations. Supports bulk import with validation, duplicate prevention, and configurable attributes. 

Remittance Data Processing 

High-performance file importer capable of processing up to 10,000 records per file. Handles complex CSV data, quoted fields, and special characters. Includes inline validation and detailed error handling. 

Automated ECIS / Blackbaud CRM Export 

When users submit remittance batches, the system immediately exports data to ECIS/Blackbaud, triggering downstream batch creation. (This is not real-time synchronization; it is submission-time export.) 

Mission Support Intent Forms 

A digital workflow for annual declarations, supporting percentage- or amount-based commitments, revision tracking, and automated notifications. 

Secure ACH Banking Module 

ACH stands for Automated Clearing House, the U.S. electronic banking network used to move funds between accounts securely. The portal includes: 

• Encrypted ACH setup forms 
• Approval workflows 
• Audit trails for all financial changes 
• Secure storage and access restrictions 

Audit Trails & Compliance 

Comprehensive logging of all critical actions, including financial submissions, user role changes, and ACH updates. 

Accessibility & Usability 

WCAG 2.1 AA–compliant interface optimized for desktop and tablet use. 

Efficiency Gains 

• Processing time reduced from 4 hours to 30 minutes (87.5 percent faster) 
• Automatic validation eliminated data entry and formatting errors 
• Workflow automation removed the need for fax, email attachments, and manual reconciliation 

Accuracy Improvements 

• 99.9 percent data accuracy achieved through validation and duplicate detection 
• Reliable handling of complex CSV formats, including quoted fields and special characters 

Security & Compliance 

• Fully encrypted handling of financial data, including ACH information 
• Complete audit trails across all operations 
• Strong role-based access controls enforced via Auth0 

Adoption & Satisfaction 

• 100 percent of active synods onboarded 
• 75 percent reduction in support requests related to remittances 
• 99.9 percent uptime in production