Nonprofits, charities and non-governmental organisations face a multitude of challenges that require agility, digital innovation and resilience to navigate effectively. From the accelerating pace of technological change to fundraising uncertainty, nonprofits must reconsider adopting new strategies in order to respond to the increasing demands of the communities they serve and support. 

These impact-focused organisations are responsible for finding solutions for some of the toughest challenges we face in society today. From addressing poverty to environmental protection and supporting vulnerable communities in need, it is these organisations that need the tools that improve capabilities the most.

It has become more difficult to protect from cyber security risks, increasing costs of conducting business, seeking new sources of funding, and responding to the demand for more transparency and accountability. 

Digital transformation and innovation can help organisations make accessible optimisations to amplify the impact of the causes they support. 

Here are three examples of nonprofits adapting new strategies this year — we hope these inspire new ideas for your organisation to generate more impact.

Segmenting fundraising and communications strategies in a digital world 

One organisation exemplifying the transformative power of new strategies via technology is Indonesian-based Alam Sehat Lestari (ASRI). Dedicated to identifying new ways to encourage landscape reforestation, ASRI has built a unique incentive mechanism in local Indonesian communities. 

The organisation identified that extreme poverty, inadequate healthcare accessibility and limited livelihood options compelled individuals to resort to illegal logging, exacerbating deforestation. ASRI collaborates with governments and local community members to provide vital health services in exchange for a commitment to reforest landscapes. For example, locals can contribute tree seedlings instead of cash payments for health services. 

Also Read: Asia’s role in climate change: Risks, rewards, and the road to net-zero

In 2023, ASRI collected more than 150,000 seedlings from medical payments, forest “guardians”, and partners, nurturing seedlings in nurseries before planting them in degraded forests. However, many of ASRI’s reforestation projects have come to a standstill due to tighter budgets, restricted project funding allocations and a reduced capability of donors to donate.  

Funding is often allocated for specific projects, making it difficult for organisations like ASRI to continue their work. The team’s total reforestation target was 52 hectares, but a reduction in income meant that the organisation now only has the capacity to reforest 10. 

“It’s so important for us to diversify our income sources – not just from grants, but identifying other sources. We never know when a donor might cut off their support – this makes it difficult for us to run our activities, and we’re forced to seek new avenues for donations,” shared Febri, Director of Resource Mobilisation of ASRI. 

Evita, Grant and Partnership Manager of ASRI, shared the need to communicate the importance of donating to operational funding. 

“It is also difficult for us to get funds for operational costs. Many donors just want to fund the key and eye-catching projects but forget that operational funding is very important to support the success of all projects,” said Evita. 

To respond, ASRI built out a digital communications and fundraising strategy with segmented goals and targets to bring in new funding. Avenues include crowdfunding campaigns, coordinating events with advisors and supporters, reaching new and existing donors via digital marketing campaigns through social media and email marketing, and identifying at least 10 new grant opportunities to diversify income. 

By expanding their communications efforts to bring funding in for operational and non-restrictive funding pools, ASRI is building a longer-term, more sustainable approach to their fundraising efforts. 

Strengthening cybersecurity to prevent loss of income 

While increasing avenues for funding is critical in order for nonprofits to survive, preventing loss in income is equally as important. Cyber security is one of the biggest risks facing nonprofits – in Infoxchange’s 2023 Asia-Pacific NGO Digital Capability Report, 1 in 6 organisations reported they experienced a cyber security incident in 2022. Organisations must take an approach of prevention for ‘when’ they will be attacked, not ‘if’. The risks cannot be ignored. 

Many nonprofits have smaller budgets than private, corporate and government organisations. This often means vital areas like cyber security are deprioritised – or assumed to be the role of IT staff. Cyber security is every staff member’s responsibility, particularly for nonprofit staff who are stewards of highly sensitive data, including personal and financial information. 

The Singapore Association for the Deaf, an organisation committed to providing support for deaf and hard-of-hearing community members, recently underwent a cyber security assessment program amidst rising cyber security concerns. 

The team developed a roadmap to consolidate their cyber security capabilities to update outdated systems, improve policies and processes and prepare them for potential breaches. This involved ensuring only authorised users have access to systems, applications and data, implementing risk management and compliance processes to ensure information is managed and appropriately governed, and undergoing a “tabletop security exercise” – preparing them for a crisis via a simulation that examined opportunities for data breaches. 

“Our process of digital transformation has highlighted the importance of prioritising data protection and security in today’s digital landscape. Organisations must stay vigilant and adapt their practices to evolving threats, technological changes and regulatory requirements,” shared Hock Sik, IT and Facilities Manager of the Singapore Association for the Deaf. 

By embracing stronger cloud solutions, retiring outdated systems and implementing robust cybersecurity protocols and plans, the association has managed its ability to mitigate the risk of financial loss, ensuring the continuity of its ability to generate impact.

Streamlining collaboration to better clean up the environment 

For many non-profits, often one of the biggest challenges is not having a streamlined, collaborative environment. Cloud collaboration technology, more commonly known as Microsoft SharePoint or Google Workspace, can dramatically improve an organisation’s ability to increase productivity and collaboration to create impact. 

Also Read: Why these startups focus on informal plastic waste workers in the fight against climate crisis

Zero Waste Malaysia is a 49,000-strong member community organisation based in Malaysia that is advocating for sustainable development whilst aiming to increase the local community’s awareness of sustainable living. Teams provide resources, education and access to advocacy groups as a part of their mission to build a waste-free and sustainable future, and drive social and system change in Malaysia. 

But managing thousands of people across the country is no easy feat – operations, onboarding and training for such a large entity is a formidable task. This year, Zero Waste Malaysia underwent a comprehensive overhaul of its digital platforms via a digital transformation plan that involved a process of migration to fully cloud-based platforms. This has dramatically reduced unnecessary time needed for administration so they can better focus on their mission. 

“We work predominantly online and have no office, so we produce a lot of online educational content for groups, teachers and others. With only four full-timers, none of whom are experts on data security, we needed to come up with a more time-effective system that takes into account data security and access for different groups,” shared Tasha, Senior Programme and Communications Officer, Zero Waste Malaysia. 

By centralising resources and enhancing the security measures of these resources, the team has been able to improve their collaboration among volunteers, optimising their workflows, increasing their time to execute advocacy and membership growth, and bolstering its impact on waste reduction initiatives.  

Embracing innovation for enhanced impact 

Digital transformation is about far more than just introducing new and innovative tools like ChatGPT. It’s about digitalising, automating and improving processes and systems, creating more efficient ways to generate impact. 

These case studies underscore the transformative potential of technology and communication strategies in order to empower nonprofits to navigate contemporary challenges and maximise their social impact. By embracing a culture of learning and innovation, nonprofits can utilise these tools to make a bigger difference for the communities and causes they support. 

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