Solidatech and Recherches & Solidarités have just published a barometer dedicated to "the place of digital in the associative project" : it highlights the evolution of uses from 2013 to 2016, the effects of digital within associations as well as the main levers to take advantage of it.
The study shows that associations already make extensive use of digital tools: to communicate internally, to give visibility to the association, to train its volunteers and employees, to develop projects for beneficiaries, members, vulnerable groups, etc.
- 73% of the associations surveyed have their own website.
- 62% of them use social networks; this is the top item for progress (+26 points since 2013).
Références :
Collaborative tools also increased significantly between 2013 (22%) and 2016 (43%), up 21 points.
"The latter are particularly well suited to the associative model, where the teams of volunteers, employees and administrators are often split up, with different work rhythms. They allow communication, exchange of documents or decision making in a participative way, more quickly and easily.41% of associations use open source software.
New uses with a promising future
9% of them have a mobile application.As for online training, it is at the top of the list of new uses (42% in the future and 8% today): "This gap shows the interest that associative actors have today in the skills to be acquired, always with a limited budget, and to be transmitted for a greater efficiency of their action.
Only 13% of associations currently collect donations online, while 41% say they may do so in the future.
Digital technology at the service of beneficiaries
35% of connected associations have implemented digital projects to serve their beneficiaries or a social cause. "The complexity of the projects varies and does not necessarily imply significant technical skills, the objective being to accelerate its social impact through digital. The digital inclusion of vulnerable groups (people in precarious situations, seniors, people with disabilities) has also become an associative project in itself.The majority of associations have a very positive view of digital. "It is the sharing of information that appears as the most positive effect (85%). It would strengthen team cohesion, efficiency, monitoring and evaluation of actions, as well as its positive impact on the involvement of members, volunteers or employees.
The mastery of digital tools is both a concern (49%) and a major challenge in the sense that it implies a global acculturation process (1/3 of the managers interviewed).
If financial means are essential to equip themselves (42%), associations are also aware of the need to seek funding to increase their skills, either by training (33%) or by benefiting from expert advice (22%).
The survey work took place in 2016 with 1,601 association leaders, 6,667 volunteers, as well as 1,084 "connected" associations that use the services offered by Solidatech.
Solidatech is a digital solidarity program launched in 2008 by the Ateliers du Bocage (ADB), an Emmaus integration company, to help nonprofit organizations invest in the digital field. Recherches et Solidarités (R&S) is a network of experts serving all forms of solidarity.
