A³

AI is quickly transforming business worldwide, producing dramatic gains in productivity and profit.

A recent report from the MIT Sloan School of Management estimates that trained users of AI will improve their productivity by 40%.

This means that for every three employees using AI well, an organization can gain exponential productivity – the equivalent of a fourth, full-time employee.

This has enormous implications for the field of nonprofit arts management, one perennially consumed by capacity concerns.

However, recent research shows that while 89% of nonprofits recognize AI’s potential, only 28% have taken steps to integrate it.

This is not for lack of interest. While overwhelm and ethical concerns are a factor for many, it’s a lack of knowledge, training, and resources that are the most commonly-cited barriers to adoption for nonprofit leaders.

Given the perennial constraints faced by the sector, the innovation required is not likely to be prioritized over day-to-day needs without a catalyst, and a clear path to return on investment.

Today, amidst increasing geopolitical and economic uncertainty, the sector faces substantial business challenges characterized by decreasing audience demand and relentless, upward cost pressure from labor, real estate, and services.

An exponential breakthrough is needed – and AI, properly harnessed, presents that opportunity.

In response, the DeVos Institute of Arts and Nonprofit Management has launched A³ (Arts x Admin x AI), a 7-month “sprint” research and innovation initiative. Phase one of a three-phase effort, this phase is designed as a partnership with ten participating organizations.

The program will deliver training and support to the ten participating organizations through seven sessions over as many months. In these sessions, participants will learn to use available AI tools to immediately impact their operations, achieving quick wins in areas such as automating repetitive tasks, improving communication, building deeper relationships with patrons, conducting donor prospect research, and generating marketing content.

These sessions, framed in relation to the Institute’s management philosophy, The Cycle, will cover:

1. Safe, Ethical, Exponential: Creating AI Strategy and Policy for your Organization
2. The AI Swiss Army Knife: ChatGPT and other LLM Applications
3. AI x Marketing and Communications
4. AI x Fundraising and Development
5. AI x Boards and Family
6. AI x Financial Analysis and Planning
7. Case Use Roundtable

Intensives will be facilitated by DeVos Institute President Brett Egan and Senior Consultant Ben Dietschi and feature field-leading experts in each topic.

At the conclusion of the program, participating organizations will contribute case uses to a Roadmap for Safe, Ethical, and Exponential uses of AI in the nonprofit arts and culture sector. By documenting practical usages of AI, these case studies will serve as a resource to help the sector respond proactively to AI’s growing influence, equipping organizations with strategies to integrate AI tools effectively and sustainably into their work.

There are no budget or FTE requirements for the program.

The program and its tools will be offered at no cost to participating organizations.

The program is open to any US-based non-profit arts, culture, or humanities organization. Questions pertaining to eligibility can be directed to [email protected].

Applications for the program are open now. The deadline to apply is April 11, 2025 at 8:00 pm Eastern / 5:00 pm Pacific. The application must be completed online. The form can be accessed HERE.

Successful applicants will be notified the week of April 21, 2025. The first group session will be on May 30, 2025 from 1:00 – 3:00 pm Eastern / 10:00 am – 12:00 pm Pacific (please hold this time should you choose to apply).

In reviewing applications, the Institute will consider internal capacity and ability to commit to the program’s activities, including identification of personnel (both staff and board) who will participate in the program. For this reason, organizations are encouraged to articulate whom exactly will engage with the program at the staff and board levels.

Additional primary consideration will be given to thoughtfulness in response to questions regarding the potential future usage of AI within the context of the organization’s administrative needs. Applicants should demonstrate a commitment to exploring AI’s potential and be prepared to engage actively in group sessions and collaborative learning.

We will be looking to assemble a cohort of organizations that are complementary in size, geography, internal capacity, discipline, and communities served. In other words, in this endeavor as in all, we believe that organizations of different focuses, backgrounds, experiences and capacities can learn from each other, and that a strong cohort will include a representative cross-section of the arts, culture, and humanities sector in the United States.

Questions may also be directed to Marie Gossman Thomas at [email protected].