Review: Infoxchange’s 2024 Digital Technology Report Launch Webinar

This year's in-depth discussion of the report findings covered the state of technology in our sector, cyber security, data, artificial intelligence, and plenty of practical advice for digital transformation in the not-for-profit sector.  

We were fortunate enough to be joined by :

- Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP, Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury

- Sue Woodward AM, Commissioner, ACNC 

- David Crosbie, CEO, CCA 

- Doug Taylor, CEO, The Smith Family 

- Beth Worrall, National AI Centre

- David Spriggs, CEO, Infoxchange

- Sophie Souchon, Digital Transformation Hub Acting Lead, Infoxchange

Watch the full session here: webinar recording (watch on Vimeo)

Read the full report here: Digital Technology in the Not-for-Profit Sector Report (PDF)

Access our comprehensive resource page for tips, policies, guides, and more here: Technology Resources for the Sector resource article

Key points from this year’s report:

- The majority of respondents do not have the required infrastructure, systems and software in place to effectively support their work, protect sensitive information, or understand the impact of their services and outcomes.

- Cyber security has slightly improved but the majority of organisations are still vulnerable to cyber attacks.

- When NFPs prioritise tech capability uplift across data, AI, cloud, automation and other innovative technologies, they can increase their ability to improve impact and make more data-driven, evidence-based decisions. 

- AI adoption has greatly increased, but there is a critical need to implement policies and frameworks to ensure these technologies are being explored safely and securely.

Key findings of the report include:  

- Only 1 in 3 organisations have effective processes to manage information security-related risks;  

- Just 1 in 5 organisations regularly conduct cyber security awareness training for staff and volunteers on security-related threats and risks;  

- Data and reporting for evidence-based decision making has become the #1 priority for NFPs in the year ahead, with only 1 in 4 organisations agreeing the quality of their data is good and readily supports their reporting requirements;  

- 77% of organisations don’t have systems that allow them to effectively understand the impact of their services and outcomes;  

- AI adoption has increased significantly, with 76% of organisations using generative or conversational AI tools compared to only 24% of organisations last year; 

- Budget and funding remain the biggest challenge to organisations in building their digital capability.

Key quotes from this year’s report launch:

“Not-for-profits play a vital role in responding to and supporting vulnerable communities but are increasingly overwhelmed in trying to keep pace with digital technology. Cyber security threats are rising by the day, and the sector is not adequately prepared. Data and information systems allow organisations to effectively measure their impact and provide insights to improve service delivery. Organisations that prioritise their digital technology capabilities can make stronger data-driven and evidence-based decisions. At a time where inequality is deepening, we need greater investment in data and technology capabilities so we can help staff on the front line and enable organisations to effectively respond,” shared David Spriggs, CEO of Infoxchange.

ACNC Commissioner Sue Woodward shared, “It’s great to see that the top priorities for 2024 is data and reporting for evidence-based decision making. This has increased by 20% since 2023 – so this stat makes me really excite for those organisations focusing in this space. The use of generative AI has blossomed, from 24% to 76% [but] it doesn’t seem governance has matched that interest. We’ve all maybe got access to these tools and can play around with it … I would really encourage people … to have some sort of policy or framework that is being actively engaged with. If something goes wrong and you can’t point to a policy, framework or process, you are more likely to lose that very hard fought-for reputation.”

Sophie Souchon, Acting Digital Transformation Hub Lead, shared, “You may have staff using free generative AI tools – policies and AI use policies are there to protect your staff and information from being exposed. That’s where we’re a little bit concerned – currently, only 12% of organisations have a guideline framework or policy in place. We have templates available on the Digital Transformation Hub so you can protect your information, [which] comes to Step 2 with that policy implementation – it’s important to support your staff to conduct safe and secure generative AI tool exploration so they can go away and test, gain that productivity value and explore potential ways for greater impact.

 

CEO of CCA David Crosbie shared, “people don’t focus enough on the fact that we are not the end. We’re not trying to build charities and not-for-profits for their own sake. We are trying to build them to strengthen and build flourishing communities and build a better Australia. Using data is very important – and the fact that the sector is now focused on that is wonderful. The barrier to realising our potential and better fulfilling our purpose and strengthening the communities we serve is that we’re not factoring in the costs and the budget requirements needed to deliver services in a way that is safe, secure, and uses technology appropriately.”

 

Doug Taylor, CEO of The Smith Family shared, “We’re investing a lot in digitising our work. We want to be where our supporters are, our families are, and support and engage them in the best way possible. Technology is a great enabler in efficiency and effectiveness, so in terms of the families we support, 90% of those are now engaging with us through an online portal. That’s removed around 15,000 hours of work from our frontline team’s administration so they can do other, greater value-adding activities.”

“The other big opportunity is how we share data across the sector and between government and for-purpose, not-for-profit organisations. Access to data is unbelievably powerful for our frontline team members to intervene early when there are challenging times for families, but also knowing which families to support.”  

 

 

The National AI Centre’s Beth Worrall said, “we are really optimistic about what AI is going to do for our communities and organisations. But we’re also not completely naïve and know there will be some challenges – so let’s prepare ourselves, our communities. How do we use this as an opportunity to level-up some of those digital exclusion problems that have been around for a really long time? We’re trying to support organisations to understand how they might get the most out of these technologies, to have it enhance services, but do so in a safe and responsible way.”

“Start with the lower risk use cases, and stay there for as long as it takes to feel confident you can start using AI in more services that you provide. Start by looking at internal systems, perhaps experimental opportunities where staff can feel empowered to come up with ideas or start using tools to help, for example, edit grant applications or prepare drafts of newsletters or something small along those lines. You wouldn’t necessarily start with an AI chatbot that was interacting with vulnerable clients.”

 

 

“Think about how AI can strengthen the business case of your organisations, for example, with The Smith Family, they know the power of early intervention and the cost of this in keeping children in school, supporting them to complete their education and into ongoing employment. The economic cost of that, not to mention the social cost, is significant in terms of what it saves the government. Using AI to enhance some of those predictive analytics to determine at what point you’re actually investing in services and building out those economic cases for earlier intervention, and how avoiding this may cost the government money later, not to mention the social cost.”

 

Resources: 

- Download the Digital Technology in the Not-for-Profit Sector Report (PDF)

- Watch the launch webinar recording (watch on Vimeo)

- Access tips and resources through the Technology Resources for the Sector resource article

 

About this report:

The Technology in the Not-for-Profit Sector report is an annual research project conducted by Infoxchange, a not-for-profit social enterprise delivering technology solutions to more than 38,000 organisations across Australia and New Zealand.

The report aims to recognise areas of strength, growth and improvement by understanding how not-for-profit organisations across Australia and New Zealand use technology.

Now in its ninth edition, this report provides a benchmark for not-for-profit organisations to ensure they are making the most effective use of technology to achieve their mission.