Why Nonprofit Tech Tools and Projects Fail—And How Change Management Can Help

Technology is often hailed as a game-changer, capable of transforming the way organizations work. Yet, time and again, even well-funded, well-intentioned technology projects fail to deliver on investment. Staff aren’t using the tool, or the tool creates more problems than it solves.

The culprit? It’s not the software. It’s not the timeline. It’s not that you didn’t spend enough. It’s people. People have difficulty changing. More specifically, it’s probably a lack of change management.

Can you rescue a technology project with change management? View this video with Debbie Cameron from Build Consulting for a more in-depth discussion of change management techniques that can help.

Technology Alone Isn’t Enough

This mindset, “build it and they will come”, is perhaps the biggest fallacy in tech implementations. In reality, simply installing new software doesn’t transform organizations. People do. And when they’re not ready, equipped, or supported through change, the tech becomes just another underused tool.

By some accounts, over 50% of nonprofit technology projects fail for this reason. The technology may be working perfectly, but if the people impacted by the change aren’t brought along for the ride, adoption suffers.

What is Change Management, Really?

According to ProSci, a leading authority in the field, change management is the process of preparing, equipping, and supporting individuals to successfully adopt change.

Crucially, it’s not about making everyone happy. It’s about making sure they’re ready, supported and heard.

Too often, organizations treat change management as a side job, something a project manager squeezes into an already packed schedule. But this isn’t sustainable.

Change management needs to be its own dedicated work stream, handled by someone whose sole focus is guiding people through change.

Why Projects Go Off Track

The top five reasons why projects struggle:

  1. Lack of Stakeholder Engagement
    Stakeholders feel left out of the decision-making process, leading to resistance and loss of trust.
  2. Low Change Readiness
    Teams aren’t prepared for how their work will change, resulting in widespread resistance post-launch.
  3. No Adoption Planning
    Organizations focus on launching the tool but forget to plan how users will actually adopt and engage with it.
  4. Missing Feedback Loops
    Without consistent opportunities for feedback, concerns go unheard, and disengagement grows.
  5. Leadership Misalignment
    If leadership isn’t unified in vision and messaging, teams get mixed signals, stalling progress.

Many organizations launch tech projects without a change management plan, not out of neglect, but because they’re overwhelmed, under-resourced, or simply don’t know about the practice of change management. Happily, it’s never too late to introduce change management principles – even long after go-live you can still use change management best practices to re-assess and re-think what your staff need.

How to Turn a Failing Project Around

Even if your project is already live or struggling, there are steps you can take right now to turn things around.

1. Create a Vision

Articulate where the organization is going and why. Use tools like a Change Vision Board to map out the current state, desired future state, and the rationale for change. Transparency builds trust, and trust drives adoption.

2. Re-Engage Stakeholders

Use stakeholder matrices to identify who is impacted and how. Conduct listening sessions to hear their concerns, validate their perspectives, and bring them back into the process.

3. Assess Readiness and Sentiment

Run pulse surveys or short interviews to gauge how people are feeling. Are they confused? Frustrated? Optimistic? This data will inform your change plan and help you identify where to focus your efforts.

4. Create a Mini Change Plan

You don’t need a 50-page strategy. Just answer these basic questions:

Lightweight plans are better than no plan at all.

5. Structure Your Adoption Planning

Develop an adoption plan with clear expectations for usage, training, and leadership behavior. Define success metrics and evaluate progress. If adoption is lagging, plan targeted interventions.

Real-World Lessons: Two Case Studies

Debbie Cameron shared two insightful client stories in our recent webinar:

Salesforce Gone Stale

A client’s Salesforce implementation failed, not due to technical limitations, but because only two people were involved in the rollout. Unsurprisingly, they were the only ones using it. By holding a Change Vision Board session with a broader team, the organization rebuilt engagement, clarified goals, and achieved a successful implementation.

Ticketing Trouble in the Arts

An arts organization launched a new ticketing system but neglected to include all relevant roles in the design process. When those roles were brought in during testing, they rejected the system. Build stepped in, conducted stakeholder mapping, and facilitated inclusive re-design and testing. The result? A smooth rollout and a huge lesson learned: inclusion isn’t optional, it’s essential.

Building a Culture of Listening

If people aren’t involved, they won’t adopt the change. Listening sessions, done right, help rebuild trust. They need to be authentic, empathetic, and focused on real concerns. Tools like QR codes in sessions can encourage real-time anonymous feedback, giving a voice to those who might not speak up otherwise. By identifying what’s helping and what’s getting in the way, organizations can tailor interventions to meet real needs.

Leadership may be very nervous to open up listening sessions. This is where an outside consultant or board member may be able to help get the feedback you need more effectively than internal staff could. Facilitators and consultants also may have more tools and know how to provide feedback that is actionable.

Key Takeaways

If your technology project has veered off track, don’t panic. You’re not too late. Start now, focus on the people, and you can still change the ending.

Ready to get strategic about your IT?

Community IT has been serving nonprofits exclusively for almost twenty-five years. We offer Managed IT support services for nonprofits that want to outsource all or part of their IT support and hosted services. For a fixed monthly fee, we provide unlimited remote and on-site help desk support, proactive network management, and ongoing IT planning from a dedicated team of experts in nonprofit-focused IT. And our clients benefit from our IT Business Managers team who will work with you to plan your IT investments and technology roadmap if you don’t have an in-house IT Director.

We constantly research and evaluate new technology to ensure that you get cutting-edge solutions that are tailored to your organization, using standard industry tech tools that don’t lock you into a single vendor or consultant. And we don’t treat any aspect of nonprofit IT as if it is too complicated for you to understand.

We know change management can help save nonprofit tech projects even after the fact. We are often called in to a new client to help sort out an existing tech mess left over from multiple cooks in the kitchen over time. One of the benefits of working with an MSP is a comprehensive view of your IT from the ground up, and the expertise to help you form your strategic vision and create an IT Roadmap to get there.

We think your IT vendor should be able to explain everything without jargon or lingo. If you can’t understand your IT management strategy to your own satisfaction, keep asking your questions until you find an outsourced IT provider who will partner with you for well-managed IT.

If you’re ready to gain peace of mind about your IT support, let’s talk.

As advocates for using technology to work smarter, we’re practicing what we recommend. This article was drafted with the assistance of an AI, but the content was reviewed, edited, and finalized by a human editor to ensure accuracy and relevance.

Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash