Host: Max Sabet, Senior Consultant in Customer Strategy & Digital Transformation
Partner: Graph Social School
Date: 20 September 2025
Format: Online Webinar
This webinar was designed to help Iranian NGOs and social organisations explore how they can start their digital transformation journey with accessible, low-cost tools. More than 50 participants from across Iran joined the session — including managers and activists from Tehran, Isfahan, Shiraz, Bushehr, and Lorestan.
“Digital transformation is no longer optional for NGOs; It is the foundation of transparency, sustainability, and impact.”
— Max Sabet
Agenda & Key Points
- Why digital transformation is now a necessity, not a choice, for non-profits
- Global benchmark: only 12% of NGOs have achieved digital maturity, yet they are 4x more effective (Salesforce 2023)
- Introducing the Microsoft Nonprofit Digital Maturity Model:
- Strategy & Governance
- Donor, volunteer, and stakeholder management
- Fundraising and resource management
- Marketing, communications, and brand
- Program delivery and impact measurement
- Technology infrastructure: CRM, cloud, AI, and security
- Practical self-assessment exercise: identifying gaps and prioritising quick wins
- Case study: Heart Foundation of Australia — how digital tools improved transparency, fundraising, and programme impact
“Digital transformation doesn’t begin with buying tools; it starts with clarity of purpose and recognising the core capabilities your organisation truly needs.”
— Max Sabet
Personal Note
For me, the highlight was seeing how quickly participants connected the frameworks to their own daily challenges. Their questions about donor data, anonymous contributions, and system limitations showed both the urgency of the problem and the determination to find solutions.
👉 Full webinar details are available on the Graph Social School event page.