Nonprofit leaders are hearing two messages about artificial intelligence at once. One says AI will save small, overstretched teams enormous amounts of time. The other warns about privacy breaches, biased outputs, and embarrassing mistakes. Both are true. The organizations that benefit are the ones that adopt AI deliberately, with clear rules, rather than letting each staff member experiment on their own.
Five questions to answer before you adopt a tool
- What specific task are we trying to improve? “Use AI” is not a goal. “Cut the time it takes to draft our monthly volunteer schedule in half” is. Start with one narrow task you can measure.
- What data will the tool see? Many AI tools may store or learn from what you type into them. Decide in advance which information, such as client names, health details, immigration status, or donor financial data, must never be entered.
- Who checks the output? AI tools can produce confident, fluent text that is simply wrong. Anything that reaches a client, donor, or funder should be reviewed by a person who knows the facts.
- Who could be harmed if it gets something wrong? A flawed draft of a social media post is a minor problem. A flawed eligibility decision for a food program is not. The higher the stakes, the more human judgment is required.
- Can we stop using it? Avoid tools that lock your data in or that your team cannot maintain without an outside consultant. Prefer open formats and tools with clear export options.
Start with a one-page policy
You do not need a lengthy governance framework to use AI responsibly. A single page that answers the questions above, lists approved tools, and names who to ask when in doubt will prevent most problems. Share it with staff and volunteers, and revisit it every six months as tools and your needs change.
Be transparent with the people you serve
If AI plays a role in how you communicate with or make decisions about clients, tell them. Transparency builds trust, and it gives people a chance to raise concerns you may not have anticipated. Funders are also increasingly asking grantees how they use AI, and a clear, honest answer reflects well on your organization.
Through our Nonprofit Tech Capacity Grants, we support community organizations as they work through exactly these questions and choose tools that fit their mission and their budget. If your organization is considering AI and wants a thoughtful partner, we would be glad to talk.