Not-for-Profit Navigator
With Nicole Aebi-Moyo - SalesFix For Purpose Practice Lead
I was talking to someone recently who described their organisation as pretty tech-savvy. They had a client management system. They used Power BI for reporting. And when I asked about AI, the answer came back confidently: “Oh yes, we use it for lots of things.”
A little later in the conversation, they mentioned they were moving to a new client management system. The vendor had pitched it as offering “next-generation CRM capability.” I asked what that meant in practice.
“We’ll be able to add our own fields to the page layouts,” they said.
I smiled and moved on. But I’ve been thinking about that conversation ever since.
Because that organisation isn’t unusual. They’re not behind the curve in any dramatic way. They’re doing what thousands of For Purpose organisations are doing: making reasonable decisions with the information they have, from people who genuinely want to help them. The problem isn’t the decisions. The problem is the information available when those decisions get made.
And let’s be real, being able to add your own fields to a system is a very low bar and certainly not next-gen CRM.
Technically Literate vs. Technically Informed
There’s a difference between being technically literate and being technically informed. Literacy means you can use the tools in front of you. Being informed means you understand what’s possible, what’s emerging, and what choices you’re actually making when you choose one path over another.
Most boards and leadership teams in the For Purpose sector are technically literate. They use laptops, smartphones, spreadsheets. Many will have enthusiastically adopted some form of AI into their daily work. But very few are technically informed. And that gap is costing organisations dearly, not just in dollars, but in impact.
The trouble is, you don’t know what you’re missing until someone shows you. And if no one ever shows you, you’ll keep celebrating small wins, not reaching for the stars.
A Familiar Scene
I’ve sat in strategy sessions where the question “what are we doing with AI?” is answered with a confident list of tools people are using individually: ChatGPT for drafting emails, maybe a transcription tool for meetings, a few clever prompts someone bookmarked. All useful. None of it coordinated, governed, or connected to the organisation’s actual strategic goals. When I ask “how are you using AI to reduce your reporting burden to funders?”, “how is AI helping you identify donors about to cancel their regular gift?”, or “what’s your plan for AI-assisted case notes?”, the room goes quiet. That silence is the gap I’m talking about.
The “We’ve Got It Covered” Trap
One of the most dangerous places for an organisation to be is comfortable. Comfortable with the tools they have. Comfortable with the processes they’ve built around those tools. Comfortable enough that the question “is there a better way?” doesn’t get asked very often.
Why did the organisation above have to use Power BI to create the reports it needed? Why couldn’t their CMS do it already? Why did they have to upgrade to get access to AI tools that should have been baked into the solution through some amazing releases?
“Next-generation CRM capability” turns out to mean custom fields. That’s not next-generation. That’s 2005.
The problem isn’t that people are making bad decisions on purpose. The problem is that they’re making decisions without the context to know what a good decision looks like.
What Good Technology Governance Actually Looks Like
You don’t need every board member to be a technologist. You don’t need your CEO to understand the difference between a flow and an Apex trigger. What you do need is:
- A framework for making technology decisions. What criteria do you use to evaluate a new system? Total cost of ownership (not just licence fees). Integration with what you already have. Scalability as your organisation grows or changes. Vendor track record in your sector. A roadmap of innovation that will ensure you don’t need to migrate again. An implementation cost that has realistic allocations for training, project management, and data migration. These should be on a checklist, not left to whoever is most persuasive in the room.
- Someone in the room who can ask the hard questions. Not to block progress, but to protect the organisation from expensive mistakes. “What does that actually mean?” is one of the most valuable things a board member can say.
- A trusted advisor who stays current so you don’t have to. Not every organisation can afford a full-time CTO. But every organisation can benefit from a relationship with someone whose job it is to know what’s possible, what’s coming, and what questions you should be asking.
That last point is worth sitting with. The technology landscape in 2026 is genuinely complex. AI capabilities are evolving faster than most organisations can track. The difference between Salesforce’s Agentforce Nonprofit and a mid-market point solution is not just a matter of features: it’s a matter of philosophy, architecture, and long-term strategic fit.
The Cost of Flying Blind
A few years ago, an organisation in the disability sector chose a case management system on the basis of a vendor demo and a competitive licence fee. It looked good. It ticked most of the boxes on their (fairly short) requirements list. What they didn’t have was anyone to ask: “What happens when your reporting requirements change?” or “How does this integrate with your finance system?” or “Who owns your data if you want to leave?”
Three years later, they were spending more time on manual workarounds than they had before the implementation. The vendor’s answer to every “can we change that?” was some version of “that’s core architecture.” They’re now looking at migrating to a platform. That migration will cost significantly more than doing it right the first time.
The Advisor You Didn’t Know You Needed
I want to be careful here, because this isn’t an argument for spending more money on consultants. It’s an argument for investing in the right relationships.
There’s a common assumption in the For Purpose sector that if someone works in technology, they must understand all of it. That’s a bit like assuming your cardiologist can also do your knee reconstruction. Technically they’re both doctors. But you’d want the right specialist in the room.
Our router died recently. I work in technology. I specialise in Salesforce, and more specifically in helping For Purpose organisations get the most out of it. I’ve been doing this long enough that I don’t really build things anymore: I focus on strategy, outcomes, the big picture. None of which helped me in the slightest when it came to setting up a new router, sorting the switch connections, and making sure the kids could get online to do their homework (let’s be real, they were just worried they wouldn’t be able to get online with their phones!)..
I got there in the end (thanks, Gemini) but there were more wrong turns than I’d care to admit.
The point is: technology specialism is narrow. Even within SalesFix, we each have our areas of depth: architecture, configuration, integrations, strategy, sector-specific knowledge. That’s one of the genuine advantages of working with a partner rather than a single administrator: you can bring the right expertise to the right problem at the right time, rather than hoping one person covers it all.
For a For Purpose organisation, the same principle applies. You don’t need one person who knows everything. You need a collection of people you trust across different domains: someone who understands your infrastructure; someone who can interrogate a vendor proposal; someone who knows what good CRM practice looks like for organisations like yours; someone who’s navigated an NDIS reporting integration before, for example.
That network might come from your board, your external partners, your peers in the sector, or the user group community. The NFP sector is famously generous with advice: there are very few questions someone hasn’t already wrestled with and would be happy to talk through.
The call to action is simple: don’t rely on one person, one vendor, or one Google search to make your technology decisions. Build the network. Ask the questions. And when someone says “next-generation CRM capability,” make sure you’ve got someone in your corner who knows exactly what to ask next.
If you need any assistance understanding anything in this edition of NFP Navigator please reach out at [email protected], I am always happy to help.
Until next time,
Nicole
Useful Resources
- Salesforce Security changes got you stumped? Take a look at the SalesFix resource to make sure you’re sorted. Check out our Security Hub.
Coming Up in 2026
- Fundraising Has Changed webinar, 16 July 2026, 10am AEST: with Mo Ravi from Amnesty International New Zealand.
- True Blue Blazing: 20 October 2026. Marvel Stadium. Tickets on sale now
- Agentforce Learning Day Melbourne July 16th: Join us for an immersive, hands-on experience as we explore the next frontier of AI. You can register your interest and learn more about the event here: Agentforce Learning Day
- Salesforce 101: Master the Basics, Unleash the Power Webinar July 20th: Feeling a little “volun-told” to be a Salesforce Admin? Or are you simply curious about what Salesforce is and why it’s such a game-changer? This hands-on workshop is designed specifically for you! You can register your interest here: Salesforce 101 Webinar
- Nonprofit Trends Report 2025: Download the report here to see how nonprofits are finding new ways to meet rising demand for their services.
Australian Salesforce user groups
If you use Salesforce and you’re not part of a user group, you’re missing out! There’s over 30 groups in Australia and New Zealand alone, and many now meet online so there’s no excuse for not joining in and finding out more.