New research uncovers sparse digital skills funding options for non-profits

Author Sharlene Gandhi

Non-profits have few options to fund digital skills training, according to new research. 

“Funding options non-profits were aware of often focused on individual upskilling rather than organization-wide capacity building,” according to the Futureproofing the Community Service Workforce research project. 

In this phase of their research, the team partnered with eight non-profit organizations around the country to better understand challenges in the funding landscape for digital skills and training, including YMCA/YWCA Winnipeg, the Women’s Economic Council, and Yukon Learn. 

They found four types of digital skills funding opportunities: innovation grants with a digital skills component, individual training grants or subsidies, wage subsidy programs for employers to hire skilled workers, and tax credits for employees pursuing skills development.  

Based on this knowledge and the priority skills gaps found in previous research, Futureproofing the Community Service Workforce has developed a framework to help organizations assess their digital maturity. 

This includes identifying digital skills needs, improving data management processes, building data privacy and security awareness, and encouraging skilled staff into mentoring and coaching opportunities. 

In early 2025, the non-profit partners will review and test each of these prototypes. 

Futureproofing the Community Service Workforce is made up of five organizations: Imagine Canada, the Canadian Centre for Nonprofit Digital Resilience, Blueprint, The Dais, and the Digital Governance Council. 

Previously, in an analysis of 300,000 job descriptions in Canada, they found that there is less demand for more technical skills in the non-profit sector, and where there is, technical staff tend to be vastly underpaid compared to the private sector. 

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  • Sharlene Gandhi is the Future of Good editorial fellow on digital transformation.

    Sharlene has been reporting on responsible business, environmental sustainability and technology in the UK and Canada since 2018. She has worked with various organizations during this time, including the Stanford Social Innovation Review, the Pentland Centre for Sustainability in Business at Lancaster University, AIGA Eye on Design, Social Enterprise UK and Nature is a Human Right. Sharlene moved to Toronto in early 2023 to join the Future of Good team, where she has been reporting at the intersections of technology, data and social purpose work. Her reporting has spanned several subject areas, including AI policy, cybersecurity, ethical data collection, and technology partnerships between the private, public and third sectors.

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