About the Diligent Governance Outlook 2027 Report:
Mission-driven organisations operate in an environment defined by tighter funding conditions, rising stakeholder expectations, the risks and opportunities of deploying AI, and increasing pressure on boards to provide stronger strategic oversight. Diligent surveyed over 200 leaders from nonprofit and public-sector organisations to learn more about how they’re navigating these challenges.
The survey findings suggest boards understand current pressures clearly: Financial resilience, governance effectiveness, strategic planning and technology modernisation all rank high on the leadership agenda, even as many boards continue to report gaps in scenario planning, risk discipline and practical use of AI in governance.
This report is intended as a practical resource for nonprofit and public sector board leaders, executives, governance professionals and sector stakeholders seeking to understand how mission-driven boards are responding to current pressures and where they need to strengthen their practices next.
Across the data, one message stands out: Boards want to become more strategic and better prepared, but many still lack the time, structures and tools to do so consistently.
Methodology of the Governance Outlook 2027 Report
This report is based on survey responses dating from April-June 2026 of 230 mission-driven organisation stakeholders across nonprofit and public sector, including but not limited to board members, executive directors and board secretaries.
Respondents represent a mix of sectors, organisation sizes, roles and regions. A full demographic breakdown can be found in the Appendix.
Download the governance outlook 2027 and see how your board compares.
