As the social sector navigates growing complexity in an era shaped by digital technologies and AI, one reality is increasingly clear: today’s challenges cannot be solved by technology alone. They demand a fundamental rethinking of leadership — how strategy is shaped, evidence embedded in decisions, and organisations built to continuously learn and adapt.

Digital transformation in nonprofits is often approached as an operational upgrade. Platforms are introduced, data systems implemented, processes digitised. Yet, underlying ways of working often remain unchanged. The result: underutilised and costly systems, frustrated teams, and leadership disconnected from the very tools meant to empower them.

At ILSS, we have repeatedly witnessed that transformation — digital or otherwise — is fundamentally a leadership journey. Technology enables efficiency, but sustained change takes root only when leaders make strategy inclusive, democratise learning and distribute authority with intention.

As nonprofits scale, leaders navigate distributed teams, linguistic diversity, uneven digital literacy, evolving regulations, and rising accountability expectations. Systems that enable shared ownership, visible decision-making, and responsible data use become essential.

This edition examines how leadership intent shapes digital transformation in practice. The cover story challenges organisations to reimagine value chains rather than simply digitise existing practices. The featured case studies span diverse contexts and show us how impact is amplified when leaders stay rooted in purpose, rethink roles, workflows, and accountability and not treat technology as a standalone solution.

We also explore how data, when thoughtfully integrated, moves beyond compliance reporting to actively inform strategy and program design. As organisations grow, ethical decision-making becomes critical, requiring leaders to balance innovation with responsibility. We further look at how patient capital helps unlock value, drive innovation with confidence and clarity and the roles individual and institutional philanthropy can play in driving greater collaboration across the sector.

Change of this nature brings discomfort. It challenges entrenched assumptions and exposes gaps in skills and confidence. This discomfort is not failure; it signals an organisation encountering the limits of older models and finding opportunity to evolve.

This edition invites leaders across organisations, philanthropy, CSR, and technology to reflect on what the evolving digital and AI landscape demands and why digital transformation should be inclusive, responsible, and firmly centred on beneficiaries. Sustainable social impact emerges not from isolated digital interventions, but from institutionalised systems designed to learn, adapt, and remain anchored to purpose.