How to Set Your Nonprofit Technology Programme Up for Success – Key Takeaways from Our Webinar 

Published 17/02/25 under:

Over 100 nonprofit leaders signed up to hear from our experts at Kerv, making for a fantastic and engaging session filled with insightful discussions and great questions from the audience. It’s clear that digital transformation is a hot topic across the sector, but also one that comes with its fair share of challenges. 

If you missed the webinar, don’t worry—you can catch up on the recording here. Or, if you’re short on time, here’s a quick recap of the key themes we explored and some practical takeaways for making your technology investment a success. 

Good Ideas and Good Technology Are Not Enough 

Rob Meehan, our Managing Director at Kerv’s Consultancy practice, kicked off the session by challenging the idea that having the right technology automatically leads to success. He drew a comparison to Hollywood blockbusters—some films take years to get off the ground despite a brilliant concept, while others flop despite having everything in place. The same applies to technology programmes: momentum, buy-in, and execution matter just as much as the solution itself. 

One of the big mistakes nonprofits make is focusing too much on the technology decision rather than the outcomes they actually need. The right system is important, but without a clear strategy, stakeholder alignment, and the right governance in place, even the best platform can become a costly frustration.

The Unique Challenges Nonprofits Face in Digital Transformation 

Gous Uddin, Head of Consulting for Nonprofits at Kerv’s Digital Transformation practice, walked us through some of the sector-specific challenges that can make technology transformation particularly tricky. Many organisations are stuck on legacy systems that don’t quite work but are too risky (or expensive) to change. Teams are often working across disconnected platforms, struggling to integrate donor, volunteer, and service data while balancing varying levels of digital literacy. And then there’s the ever-present question of funding and mission alignment—how do you justify investment in tech when every penny is expected to go toward frontline impact? 

The discussion made it clear that nonprofits need to shift their approach: start with strategy, not with technology. Instead of asking, “Which system should we buy?” organisations should be asking, “What outcomes do we need to deliver, and how do we get there?” That shift in thinking is critical for making the right long-term decisions. 

Managing Change is Just as Important as Managing Technology 

Ricky Harvey, Head of Projects & Programmes, tackled one of the biggest reasons technology transformations fail: organisations underestimate the human side of implementing change. Many nonprofits often rely too heavily on implementation suppliers, assuming they will manage the transformation on their behalf, but this can often come too late in the change process, and going slow to choose the right delivery partner and agree governance internally first is the key to success. A delivery partner will work client-side, building the case for change, finding the right implementation partner, and preparing the organisation for the change. 

That’s why client-side strategy and governance are so crucial. Too often, organisations rely entirely on their implementation suppliers to handle implementation, adoption, process changes, stakeholder engagement. But without strong internal governance and oversight, programmes can quickly drift off course and nonprofits can lose control of their own journey, focused too much on the technology itself, rather than the measurable outcomes within the organisation it should deliver. Ricky walked through why using a methodology is key to retaining control of your own journey as a nonprofit, and how it can be used to ensure you have the right resources acting on behalf of your nonprofit to minimise the risks involved.  

Ricky broke this down into three phases: 

• Ahead of Delivery – Secure buy-in, align your internal teams, and set up proper governance before suppliers are even involved. 

• Alongside Delivery – Keep the focus on programme oversight, measure success at every stage, and avoid supplier over-reliance. 

• After Delivery – Ensure adoption sticks, continuously improve processes, and create a culture of ongoing digital maturity. 

A useful analogy? It’s like building an extension on your house. You wouldn’t just hire builders and hope for the best—you’d plan carefully, get sign-off from the right people, and oversee the project to make sure it meets your needs. Digital transformation should be no different. 

How to Make Your Programme a Success 

If there’s one takeaway from the webinar, it’s that technology is just a tool—success depends on how well you implement, manage, and sustain change. The best programmes are the ones that take the time to get the strategy right up front, engage the right people throughout, and focus on long-term adoption rather than just delivery. 

If your organisation is thinking about—or in the middle of—a technology transformation, take a step back and ask: 

• Are we clear on the outcomes we need before making technology decisions? 

• Do we have the governance and oversight to keep things on track? 

• Are we investing enough in the people and process side of change, not just the system itself? 

For those who joined us, thanks again for making it such an interactive and thought-provoking session. If you didn’t manage to attend, you can watch the full webinar recording here or get in touch with our team for a chat about your nonprofit’s transformation journey. 

📞 Book a consultation – Whether you’re in the early planning stage or mid-implementation, our experts can help you stay on track.