Digital lessons for charities navigating a post-COVID-19 world

If the charity sector has learnt one thing from the pandemic, perhaps it is the importance of digital transformation. When workforces moved home, donors moved online, and services had to be delivered virtually, suddenly there was little choice about putting digital technology at the heart of our operations.

Some organisations had bigger leaps to make than others when it came to embracing digital technology, but since 2020, there has been significant progress. Two in five non-profit organisations told Blackbaud that they planned to begin digital transformation projects post-COVID-19, after 87% said technology had helped them work more effectively during the pandemic. Two thirds said their organisation had plans to invest more in it going forward.

It’s time for organisations to seize the digital day. Blackbaud’s new e-book Digital Futures outlines the importance of digital transformation and change management within the non-profit sector, complete with advice and inspiration from organisations who have already been through the process of ’going digital’.

Section one of the e-book covers the ways in which digital skills are changing across the sector and includes case studies from organisations such as bereavement charity Grief Encounter. Prior to the pandemic, Grief Encounter had a reputation for holding large, successful face-to-face events, which were then rendered impossible by lockdown.

In the e-book, the charity’s Head of Fundraising Lou Scott explains how the organisation turned to virtual events and built a strong online community, while balancing limited resources and funding.

The story doesn’t stop there. Digital transformation has to lead to lasting change in the way an organisation operates, and that means bringing everyone involved in it along for the ride. Change management is a crucial step of the transformation process, looking at internal culture and processes, how they interlink, and using this knowledge to ease in necessary adjustments, with minimal upheaval.

Section two of the e-book features lessons on how to guide your organisation through digital transformation and navigate culture change, among other topics.

Emily Casson, Digital Marketing Manager at Cats Protection, known as the ’Queen of flexible working’ by her colleagues, offers advice on how to manage teams remotely. Her tips include ways to establish trust within teams and how to encourage staff to switch off at the end of the day.

With nine in ten fundraising professionals saying they want flexible working to continue long-term after the pandemic, understanding how to engage teams digitally is a priority for charities, now and for the future.

Indeed, more than 40% of professionals working in the non-profit sector say they will never apply for a job that doesn’t offer remote working opportunities in the future.

While COVID-19 fast-tracked the digital transformation of many charities, the progress made has been invaluable for organisations working amid a global health crisis.

But, even as normality (hopefully) beckons, there’s no going back to how things were before. When it comes to digital transformation, the future is now.