Strategy That Starts with Understanding
I'm Mike & I help charities and not-for-profits make sense of their digital strategy; not by selling technology, but by understanding what your organisation actually needs.
After years working across the third sector, I've seen the same pattern repeat: organisations with brilliant missions making reactive digital decisions because they lack a structured way to think about technology, data, and change.
The Gap Between Good Intentions and Good Governance
Most organisations I work with have good people doing good work. But when it comes to digital strategy, they're often operating on instinct rather than evidence. They know they need to "do something about digital" but aren't sure what, why, or in what order.
That gap - between intention and governance - is where risk lives. It's where data breaches happen, where investments fail to deliver value, and where trustees face personal liability they didn't know existed.
I bridge that gap. Not with jargon or technology-first thinking, but with a structured, evidence-based approach that puts your mission and your stakeholders at the centre of every decision.
How I Work
Every engagement follows the same principle: diagnosis before prescription. I don't arrive with pre-packaged solutions. I start by understanding your organisation - your culture, your constraints, your ambitions - and build recommendations from that reality.
Discovery
Comprehensive stakeholder consultation to understand your values, operations, and strategic context. I speak to leadership, operations, IT, and frontline staff to build a complete picture.
Diagnostic
Structured assessment of your digital maturity across multiple dimensions - from data governance and systems architecture to content strategy and stakeholder engagement.
Prioritisation
Evidence-based roadmap that sequences initiatives by value and feasibility. Every recommendation is tied to tangible stakeholder outcomes, not abstract technology goals.
Intervention
Practical, phased implementation guidance using the CORE framework. Each phase builds on the last, ensuring sustainable progress without overwhelming your team.
Why This Approach Works
The third sector has unique constraints that generic consulting approaches don't account for. Limited budgets, volunteer governance, mission-driven culture, and complex stakeholder relationships all require a different kind of thinking.
My approach is built specifically for this context. I understand that your organisation's strength often comes from its culture and relationships - and that any strategy must preserve those assets while building new capabilities.
The result is recommendations that are practical, proportionate, and aligned with your mission - not a wish list of expensive technology projects.
Every recommendation is grounded in data, stakeholder insight, and sector benchmarking - not assumptions.
Solutions are designed for your specific organisational culture, constraints, and ambitions.
Technology serves your mission, not the other way around. Every initiative connects back to stakeholder value.
Who I Work With
I work primarily with CEOs, Chief Executives, and Senior Trustees of charities and not-for-profit organisations - typically those with annual incomes between £1-3 million. These are organisations that have outgrown ad-hoc digital decisions but aren't large enough for a dedicated digital team.
You know you need a digital strategy
But you're not sure where to start, what to prioritise, or how to avoid expensive mistakes.
You're concerned about governance risk
Data protection, AI readiness, trustee liability - the regulatory landscape is shifting and you need to be prepared.
You want to grow sustainably
You've achieved success through passion and relationships, and now you need structured foundations to scale your impact.
Let's Explore If This Is Right For You
Every engagement starts with a conversation - no obligation, no sales pitch. Just an honest discussion about where you are and where you want to be.