The nonprofit AI gap: Bosses are bullish, staffs are wary

Nonprofit executives are far more optimistic about their use of artificial intelligence than are frontline staff members, according to a new report.

More than 60 percent of executives view AI as a way to reduce staff burdens and increase efficiency, compared with fewer than half of staff members. However, the report also finds that most groups lack written policies for the use of AI or a road map for rolling out the technology.

The report, by NTEN, a network of nonprofit professionals, and the consulting firm Bridgespan, tries to go deeper than many existing surveys of how nonprofits use AI. Authors David Figueroa and Jacob Dwelle surveyed more than 900 people — about 60 percent of whom were executives. They examined whether charities have enough financial and technical support to employ AI, evaluated what guardrails are in place, and looked closely at the differing perspectives of leaders and staff.

Some of those differences are stark — 44  percent of executives strongly agree that they have meaningful untapped opportunities to use AI, compared with just 23 percent of staff.

“There really were some significant differences, and I think that’s a point of reflection for us as a sector,” said Amy Sample Ward, NTEN’s CEO. “The closer you are to your community — whether you’re a program staff person or doing direct service — the more likely you are to say, ‘I will never use generative AI tools.’ And the further you are from the community impact — the executives — the more likely you are to say, ‘Oh yeah, I use them and they’re great.’”

Few are fully integrating AI

The most common use of AI, cited by 70 percent of respondents, was for marketing and communications. Half of respondents said they were using AI for program delivery and fundraising. And 40 percent said they used AI in strategic planning.

While nearly all groups surveyed were using AI in some way, the percentage who are really integrating it into their work is much lower. Only about 60 percent said their organizations were using AI in a structured way, and half of those groups said it was used in small teams or  pilot programs. Just 4 percent said their nonprofit had “fully integrated” AI into their operations.

Most groups lacked written policies on safe and responsible AI usage — fewer than 40 percent had them in place. Nearly 60 percent of those surveyed said they had no one- to two-year road map for AI implementation.

More than half of executives cited data, privacy, and security concerns as the biggest barrier to greater AI adoption. Staff members had different concerns. They were most worried about the technology’s environmental impact. Only 36 percent said they were significantly concerned about job loss or being forced into a different role.

“We’re seeing real concern about environmental impacts and less concern about ‘Is this tool going to take my job?’” Sample Ward said.

A lack of financial support

Very few executives have been able to find outside sources of financial support for AI use, and more than half of executives surveyed said they had no AI budget at all. Only 12 percent had received a grant for an AI project, and just 15 percent said they’d received in-kind donations of tools, training, or services.

AI companies have indicated a willingness to support the sector, but their approach has changed so rapidly that charities are having trouble figuring out how to get help, Sample Ward said.

“I think we’ve seen some recognition that nonprofits might need a different pricing model,” Sample Ward said. “But what that model is, and how it’s accessed, has already changed three times.”