Created By: Steve Orr and Terry CangelosiJune 6, 2024 “Should we be budgeting for AI?” This question, posed most recently at Alliance Bernstein’s The Nonprofit Forum: Investing Internally to Thrive Externally, underscores a pivotal shift in the nonprofit sector. As tech companies continue to invest in expanding AI tools, along with the entry point for integrating AI technology into organizational workflows becoming more accessible, its potential return on investment grows exponentially. While embracing “AI on a budget” is a good introduction to the technology itself, we’re rapidly approaching the point where AI is no longer a “wish list” line item on an organization’s budget, but instead a “must have”. As nonprofit professionals, we know that the budgeting process can be painstakingly slow. Aligning the budget to the fiscal year, waiting for board approval, and remaining focused on driving the mission forward, is challenging enough. Making changes once the budget is approved adds yet another layer of complexity, often preventing an organization from being agile to changing tides. All of this, coupled with growing overhead costs, makes it nearly impossible to budget for things without a clear ROI. With AI’s explosive growth, nonprofits put themselves at risk of being left behind if they don’t start budgeting for – and implementing – these technologies now. Building A Budget for AI: Key Considerations So how do you budget for AI while keeping overhead costs low? The belief that overhead expenses should be limited to 15-20% of an organization’s total expenditures is a misconception. As Dan Pallotta highlights in his TED Talk, this ideology creates significant problems. It suggests that overhead is not a part of an organization’s mission, leading to underinvestment in crucial areas. Pallotta argues, “…we should be investing more money, not less, in fundraising, because fundraising is the one thing that has the potential to multiply the amount of money available for the cause that we care about so deeply.” AI is one of those critical fundraising investments, enabling nonprofits to increase their effectiveness, better fulfill their missions, and drive greater impact. However, allocating budget to AI should be done thoughtfully. Here are several key aspects that nonprofit executives should keep in mind when preparing their budgets for AI: Strategic Alignment: Ensure that any investments in AI align with the organization’s mission and strategic goals. This includes identifying specific areas where AI can drive significant impact, such as improving donor engagement, enhancing program delivery, or optimizing operations. AI Governance and Policy: Developing a robust AI policy and governance framework is a crucial step in the budgeting process, ensuring the ethical and responsible usage of AI at your organization. AI applications should adhere to the principles of transparency, accountability, and fairness and it’s important to consider allocating budget for ethical oversight, regular audits, bias assessments, and ethical training for leadership and staff. Cost-Benefit Analysis & Assessment: Conduct a thorough cost-benefit analysis to understand the potential ROI of AI investments. This includes immediate costs such as tools, training, and governance, alongside long-term benefits like improved efficiency, better outcomes, and increased revenue. If your organization lacks the capacity for this type of assessment, consider partnering with experts who can guide you through identifying AI investment opportunities and framing an ongoing budget. Phased Implementation: Start small by testing a handful of low-cost AI applications before committing to larger investments. This approach ensures that the organization can walk before it tries to run, helping to minimize risk and ensuring that resources are allocated effectively. Staff Training and Development: In addition to the cost of the tools themselves, it’s vital to allocate part of the budget for training staff on the tools. This includes both technical training for those who will directly interact with AI systems and broader training to ensure all staff understand the benefits and limitations of AI. Sustainability, Maintenace, and Evaluation: AI is not a one-time investment. Plan ongoing costs associated with maintaining and updating your AI tools and systems and assess its impact which will help guide decisions about future investments. By considering these factors, nonprofit leaders can make informed decisions about AI budgeting that maximize impact, minimize risks, and ensure sustainable growth. Organizations that strategically leverage AI are already seeing increased funding and growth. Now is the time to collaborate with your executive team to include AI in next year’s budget. Embracing AI will make your organization nimbler, more effective at engaging donors, and enable your staff to work more efficiently, ultimately driving greater impact. Don’t miss the opportunity to advance your mission and achieve sustainable growth through AI. At Orr Group, we’re enthusiastic about the future of AI and hope to share that enthusiasm with our nonprofit partners. We are ready to assist your organization in brainstorming ways to seamlessly and safely integrate AI into your fundraising and other operational efforts. Contact us to learn how we can help elevate your organization to new heights. Contact Us Steve Orr is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Orr Group. Steve draws from his investment banking and finance background to bring a problem-solving approach, a focus on metrics, and an outcomes-driven perspective to the nonprofit sector. Terry Cangelosi is a Senior Director and Head of Operations at Orr Group. Terry brings 10+ years of nonprofit operations experience to ensure the most efficient operations in Orr Group’s workflows, technology, and infrastructure. Terry is a member of Orr Group’s AI Taskforce.
How Nonprofits Can Use AI and Automation to Reclaim Time and Realize ROI AI Published Date 2025 How Nonprofits Can Use AI and Automation to Reclaim Time and Realize ROI When workflows are automated with AI, nonprofits can reinvest their time into more strategic and ROI-focused tasks. Explore real-life use cases of AI and automation to improve your effectiveness.
AI for Nonprofits: 10 Tools and Best Practices to Know Published Date 2025 AI for Nonprofits: 10 Tools and Best Practices to Know Created by: CJ Orr May 19, 2025 In today’s technologically driven world, artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed various industries, including fundraising for nonprofit organizations. AI tools have proven to be significant game-changers, enhancing efficiency, creativity, and personalization in donor engagement. To capitalize on these opportunities, over 60% of nonprofits have started embracing AI in their operations. However, despite these high adoption rates, 92% of nonprofits feel unprepared for AI implementation. To prepare your team to fully leverage AI, let’s understand the landscape and discuss the benefits and challenges of using popular AI-powered tools in nonprofit work. Overview of AI for Nonprofits Leveraging AI: Best Practices for Nonprofits Top AI Tools for Nonprofits Overview of AI for Nonprofits What is AI? AI is any technology that can perform intricate tasks and mimic human intelligence. While AI has become a hot topic in recent years, it’s been around for a while, performing simpler duties like sorting emails or scheduling appointments. However, recent advancements in AI have allowed machines to better understand language, process more complex tasks, and generate original content. In the nonprofit world, organizations typically use AI to enhance and streamline: Prospecting and fundraising by analyzing existing donor data for trends, and identifying new prospects with high potential to give Donor communication by analyzing donors based on shared characteristics and tailoring outreach to them for increased engagement Grant writing by quickly reading applications and generating drafts responses, based on previous applications and organizational materials Human resources by automating interview scheduling, onboarding, training, performance management, and more Graphic design by creating visually appealing infographics or mockups Administrative functions by automating repetitive tasks like data entry, timekeeping, and record maintenance Data insights and reporting by analyzing large datasets to forecast trends and enable better decision-making Types of AI Tools for Nonprofits The library of AI tools is vast and ever-growing. While each organization may have its own needs and goals that AI can support, below are several common types of AI tools you may encounter: Generative AI: consists of machines that create new content based on user prompts and training data. Nonprofit applications: Content creation for grant proposals, social media posts, and impact reports. Large Language Models (LLMs): systems designed to understand and generate human language by learning from vast datasets. LLMs are a subset of generative AI focused primarily on creating and understanding text. Nonprofit applications: Automatically answering routine questions via chatbots or summarizing content. Predictive AI uses statistical models and machine learning to identify patterns in large datasets to forecast future outcomes. Nonprofit applications: Prospecting for fundraising and future financial growth. Advantages and Challenges of Using AI Advantages Increased efficiency. With AI handling mundane tasks, nonprofits can focus on more pressing mission-critical work. Easy data reporting. Humans are more prone to making errors when reporting on and analyzing data. AI can easily—and accurately—report on important data. Better decision-making. AI can provide context and information that allows nonprofits to make more informed choices faster. Scalability. Advanced AI solutions can easily adapt to a growing nonprofit’s needs, enabling organizations to handle increased workloads without overburdening staff. Proactive growth. Most nonprofits have adopted AI, and it’s only getting more prevalent. Your nonprofit should leverage similar technology to keep up with others in the field. Challenges Data privacy/security. Nonprofits must confirm that their chosen solution complies with relevant data privacy laws, like GDPR and CCPA, to keep supporter data safe and maintain their trust. Research which regulations apply to your constituents based on their location, and ensure that AI usage is transparently communicated when necessary. Requires human oversight. AI can make mistakes in researching and synthesizing information, so nonprofit teams need to actively maintain their solutions (more on that later). Initial and ongoing costs. Like any other software solution, AI solutions have costs associated with them, both financial and in time to implement and onboard staff. Ethical concerns. AI can reinforce biases based on the datasets it's trained on. There are also concerns about Generative AI solutions trained on user data, which can plagiarize information from other sources. Loss of human touch. Nonprofit outreach relies on forging deep personal connections with supporters. While AI can emulate human thought, it lacks the emotional depth needed to reinforce relationships, so it still requires staff to ensure the final product aligns with an organization’s values. Leveraging AI: Best Practices for Nonprofits Establish parameters for AI privacy and ethics. Your entire team should be aligned on ethical best practices while using AI. Adopt an AI usage policy and supporting AI governance infrastructure to ensure you’re fulfilling promises to stakeholders and protecting their sensitive information. Identify areas for AI application. While AI has many different uses, your nonprofit doesn’t have to rely on it for everything. To start, identify a few pressing areas where AI could help your operations, like content creation, data analysis, or task automation. Work with an expert to implement AI effectively. The stakes are high when implementing AI, so it’s worth consulting with a professional to cover all of your bases. Double-check AI’s work. While AI can generate human-like text, it’s not flawless. You must review and edit the generated content to ensure it aligns with your organization’s voice, mission, and fundraising goals. Properly train your team. AI can present a learning curve for teams, especially those less technologically advanced. Align everyone with comprehensive AI training and educational resources. Don’t completely replace human interaction with AI. As previously mentioned, AI can’t perfectly emulate your connections with supporters. Use AI to brainstorm ideas for communication (like an outline) and fill in the details yourself. Choosing the right AI systems, developing policies, and training your team are essential, but they take time and expert knowledge to get right. By working with a professional team like Orr Group, you can get up and running with new insights and ideal tools by your side. Top AI Tools for Nonprofits General Use/LLM: ChatGPT Use: ChatGPT is an advanced language model that has significantly influenced the nonprofit sector’s fundraising strategies. It utilizes machine learning algorithms to generate human-like text based on the input it receives. Best features: Live web search, DALL-E image generation, and access to a growing dataset. Cost: Limited free tier $20 Plus tier $200 Pro tier $25/user Team tier Pro-tip: Eligible nonprofits can receive a 20% discount on ChatGPT Team and a 50% discount on ChatGPT Enterprise through OpenAI for Nonprofits. AI Chatbot: Cody Use: Cody is a chatbot that uses organizational content to answer HR-related queries for employees based on defined knowledge sources. Best features: Easy user interface, customizable knowledge base, task automation, and specific features for IT support, business consulting, marketing, HR, and more. Cost: $29/month for the Basic tier, $249/month for the Advanced tier Writing: Grammarly Use: Grammarly is a browser extension that enhances grammar and generates written content. Best features: Tone suggestions, auto-completion of writing, and extensive user-supplemented knowledge base. Cost: Free tier, $12/month, $15/month Prospecting: Apollo Use: Apollo is a sourcing tool that collects contact information for prospective supporters. Best features: Automated outreach, meeting scheduler, and CRM enrichment tools. Cost: Free-$119/month Grantwriting: Grantable Use: Grantable is an LLM that automates aspects of the grantwriting and submission processes. Best features: Ability to train the system from writing samples, reference user-uploaded materials from a library, and include educational resources. Cost: Free-$89/month Graphic Design: Gamma Use: Gamma is a graphic design platform that facilitates the creation of presentations, documents, webpages, infographics, and more. Best features: AI-generated designs, customization options, and user-friendly interface. Cost: Free-$15/seat/month Administrative: Zapier Use: Zapier automates repetitive administrative tasks while connecting various apps and services. Best features: Configurable workflows, app integrations, and a large integration ecosystem. Cost: Free-$69/month Data Management: Microsoft Power BI Use: Microsoft Power BI is a Microsoft add-on tool that allows users to create reports, visualize data, and share insights. Can be combined with Microsoft Copilot 365 for AI data insights. Best features: User-friendly integrations with Microsoft Suite, interactive dashboards, and customizable reports. Cost: Free-$10/user/month Meeting Management: Zoom AI Companion Use: Zoom AI Companion simplifies meeting management by automatically completing tasks during the meeting. Best features: Real-time meeting transcriptions, agenda generation, and ability to assign next actions with a meeting summary. Cost: Free with paid Zoom account Now that you have a solid understanding of AI in the nonprofit world, it’s time to create and execute your own strategy! Developing policies, training your team, and staying updated on the newest best practices can be draining—but it doesn’t have to be. Having an expert team by your side allows you to play around with these tools, test them out, and see what works for you without compromising mission-critical activities. We suggest working with a team with a business-oriented mindset, embedded partnership approach, and AI-specific expertise, like Orr Group. Our well-rounded nonprofit experience and hands-on strategy can help your nonprofit become more comfortable with AI and develop a sustainable use policy in the long term. That way, you can adapt to the rapidly-changing world of AI with ease! CJ Orr is President and Partner of Orr Group. As an expert project and relationship manager with 10+ years of experience in the sector, CJ utilizes data and technology to execute on the development of strategies and tactics to drive effective fundraising plans that meet or exceed targets.
How to Drive Transformation with Strategic AI Implementation AI Published Date 2025 How to Drive Transformation with Strategic AI Implementation Learn how to strategize around effective AI implementation at your organization to responsibly address problems and create lasting results.