The digital revolution has already happened, and we are living in the aftermath.

The scale of change that has taken place - in how people choose to communicate, watch TV, learn, bank, shop, and organise their lives - has been likened to the industrial revolution. And it’s not over yet. The pace of technology-fuelled change is still accelerating.

For the non-profit sector this process of digital transformation offers both exciting opportunities and significant risks. Those organisations who relish the task will find new ways to both revolutionise their internal operations, and to deliver high impact services to more people who need them.

“I would find it difficult to find an area of business where there’s not potential for technology to improve what we do” ”

— Simon Gillespie, CEO, British Heart Foundation

The insights from the New Reality study reveal that there is no magic wand to wave which can create digital transformation overnight. This is a journey with multiple potential paths, and some serious challenges to be faced. Some organisations have already made significant progress. Others are uncertain about where to begin. This study aims to provide some of the answers.

The New Reality offers a framework, examples, and specific guidance on how organisations can get further along this digital transformation journey - and reap the benefits along the way.

Four aspects to digital transformation

The four aspects of digital transformation

Contributors to this study offered a wide range of advice about how to prepare for - and implement - a change of this scale. To achieve digital transformation will take more than a greater adoption of technology - it requires us to make changes to four separate aspects of our organisations: Mindset, People, Process, and Tools.

The themes of the New Reality online report share insights, examples and recommendations on all four of these aspects.

Guidance on how to use the New Reality online report

The New Reality study is broken down into 6 key themes and a separate set of content takeaways. Each theme has a number of sub-themes or angles, and each is around the length of an average essay (but hopefully less dry!). The study is intended to be used as a one-stop-shop for guidance on how to approach digital transformation within established non-profit organisations. Some may only need insight from one of the themes, others may find all 6 of use.

A note on audience for this report:

This study has looked across and outside the non-profit sector to bring as broad a range of shared insights as possible. However, in order to deliver most value, the report is aimed at established organisations rather than the new or start-up non-profits who tend to be more digital by nature.

“This is where you need to start from scratch with your strategy. You need to park all of your current activities and start again asking questions such as who are your core beneficiaries? What are they really really doing in their lives?”

— Kay Boycott, CEO, Asthma UK