The raison d'être for most non-profit and non-governmental organisations is to drive one or more of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Digital innovation and technology are widely recognised to play a crucial role in the world’s ability to reach the SDGs by 2030.
As the main driver of digital transformation in their organisations, CIOs have the important task of identifying those innovations that can best help progress towards the SDGs and translate them into tangible and impactful digital solutions. However, those same digital solutions can also harm the environment, society and the economy as highlighted below. They may bring us one step closer to one of the SDGs, but one step away from achieving another.
To realise the full potential of digital innovation, CIOs need to comprehensively understand the impact of technology on sustainability, both positive and negative, as well as how to mitigate any potential downsides.
It is estimated that the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector will contribute to 20% of all progress towards the SDGs, but with this comes sustainability challenges:
Nonprofits deal with multiple external stakeholders, such as public and private donors, beneficiaries and the wider public, as well as with internal employees and volunteers. Technology and innovation can help them engage better. For instance, Customer Relationship Management solutions enable organisations proactively to build better relationships with donors. Digital channels, such as social media and owned or third-party websites, provide many opportunities for engagement with a wide ecosystem of stakeholders across the globe in a structured and effective way. For example, the WEF, supported by Deloitte, has developed UpLink, a digital platform bringing together innovators and funders to tackle some of the world’s toughest challenges. Through UpLink, innovators and social entrepreneurs can submit their solutions to global pressing issues and, if selected, get access to WEF events and network which help them scale their impact. A Salesforce-based, intuitive digital platform, together with engagement and communication on social media, is what made UpLink a success.
But without CIOs’ guidance and support on processes and state of the art solutions, it would not be possible to leverage the possibilities of innovative target user engagement.
With non-profit organisations focused on helping the world advance towards the SDGs, CIOs working in this sector should be at the forefront of creating a responsible and sustainable ICT sector. How? By embedding sustainability in their department’s strategy and becoming sustainability advocates in and outside of their organisations. Specific actions include:
While acting as digital innovation catalysts, CIOs in non-profit organisations should ensure that they’re doing so responsibly as their donors and their beneficiaries will increasingly expect this of them. They must be aware of the positive and negative impacts of digital solutions on sustainability and lead the way to where digital forms part of the solution rather than adding to the problem.
Thank you to Biancamaria Tedesco for her valuable contribution to this article.