This article compares five important elements that affect ICT for development between the following sectors: NGOs, corporations, foundations, and government/multilaterals. It explores how each sector's perception and institutional behavior related to these elements influence their ability to relate to or engage the other sectors in partnership. The five measurements discussed are:

1. the constituency each sector is responsible to,
2. how they perceive investment in capacity,
3. the "currency" of each sector (i.e. what they value),
4. how each measures time (i.e. speed of action and response), and
5. how each measures investment (either ROI or SROI).