Is Your Nonprofit Afraid of AI? Charly Jarrett Tell Us Why It Shouldn’t Be

Nonprofit leaders are being told that artificial intelligence is a high-risk gamble—that it’s an energy-guzzling, data-leaking technology that will make their fundraising feel inauthentic and could render their teams obsolete. But what if that’s completely wrong? What if AI is actually the most powerful tool available to reduce burnout, deepen donor relationships, and supercharge your mission?

Charly Jarrett, a digital nonprofit specialist and Senior Consultant at Hewitt & Johnston Consultants (HJC), is challenging these long-held fears. In her recent appearance on the Print to Pixel podcast, she dismantled the myths surrounding AI and laid out a clear, data-driven case for why nonprofits can—and should—embrace this transformative technology. For any fundraiser, marketer, or executive feeling stuck between the promise of AI and the fear of the unknown, Jarrett’s insights are a game-changer.

From Personal Mission to Industry-Wide Disruption

Charly Jarrett’s passion for nonprofit innovation is deeply personal. Her journey began after losing her mother to cancer and surviving her own battle with the disease. This experience ignited a fire to make a tangible impact, leading her to a fundraising role at the BC Cancer Foundation and later to the BCSPCA, where she grew the digital program from one million to ten million dollars annually.

“In fundraising, we’re selling a product as well,” Jarrett explained. “It’s just that we have the best product of all, which is feeling great about yourself and getting connected to the thing you’re passionate about.”

This perspective drove her to constantly look for smarter, more efficient ways to connect donors with causes. She recognized that the nonprofit sector often lags about five years behind the for-profit world, missing out on crucial technological advancements. Now, as a consultant and leading voice on AI, she’s on a mission to close that gap and empower nonprofits with the tools they need to thrive.

Confronting the Three Biggest Fears About AI in Fundraising

During her conversation with Postalytics CEO Dennis Kelly, Jarrett addressed the most common anxieties she hears from nonprofit leaders and offered a new way to think about them.

1. The Fear: “AI is bad for the environment.”
   Many mission-driven organizations immediately shut down the idea of AI due to its reported energy consumption. Jarrett’s response is refreshingly pragmatic. She encourages leaders to consider the scale of the internet itself and recognize that individual organizational footprints are minuscule compared to the global picture. The real power, she argues, lies in advocacy and shaping policy—not in avoiding a technology that is already here.

“If you embrace it early, you’re gonna have a lot more [impact],” she stated. “It behooves you to share everything with AI. Because if you’re putting quality stuff in, if you really believe in your mission… other people that are aiming to do the same thing are gonna have more of that information available.”

2. The Fear: “AI will compromise our data security.”
   Data privacy is paramount for nonprofits. However, Jarrett argues that if your current policies don’t already account for the security level required for AI, they aren’t strong enough to begin with. The biggest risk isn’t the technology; it’s human error.

The solution is a people-first security policy. This includes robust training on increasingly sophisticated phishing scams and a strict protocol for anonymizing data. “You should never ever be putting in individuals’ people’s data,” Jarrett cautioned. “But anonymized data, you’re going to get so much information.” By using anonymized IDs, nonprofits can safely analyze their data to uncover insights without compromising privacy.

3. The Fear: “AI is coming for our jobs.”
   The most pervasive fear is that AI will replace human roles. Jarrett flips this narrative on its head. The true power of AI, she argues, is its ability to eliminate the mundane, soul-crushing tasks that lead to burnout, freeing up your team to focus on the strategic, creative, and passion-driven work they were hired to do.

“Ask your staff, ‘What do you hate doing?’” Jarrett advised. “That is such an important thing… we want to create space for you.”

From Fear to Action: Charly Jarrett’s Practical Roadmap for AI Implementation

So, where should a nonprofit start? Charly Jarrett offers a simple, powerful framework.

First, automate the administrative burden. Think of the hours spent on expense reports, updating job descriptions, or answering repetitive HR questions. By creating a secure, internal knowledge base with a tool like ChatGPT or Claude, you can offload these tasks and give your team back valuable time and mental energy. This directly combats the burnout that is rampant in the nonprofit sector.

Second, unleash your data’s potential. Most fundraisers are sitting on a treasure trove of data they don’t have the time or expertise to analyze. AI makes data analysis accessible to everyone. Instead of relying on spreadsheets and manual analysis—a practice Postalytics was built to eliminate for direct mail—you can use plain-language prompts to understand your donors on a deeper level.

Jarrett highlights the concept of a donor’s “spark point”—the initial point of acquisition that reveals their core motivation. Was it a petition about animal welfare? A specific fundraising event?

“We’ve seen people segment by source code, segment by spark point, that can give you a two to 10% lift right there,” she revealed.

This level of data-driven insight is the bedrock of modern omnichannel fundraising. When you know a donor’s spark point, you can tailor your messaging across every channel, from email to direct mail. Imagine automatically triggering a personalized postcard from Postalytics that speaks directly to the cause a donor first supported, reinforcing their initial passion and dramatically increasing the likelihood of a response.

The Future of Fundraising is Human-Centered, AI-Powered

Charly Jarrett’s message is clear: AI isn’t a threat to be feared, but a co-pilot that can make your fundraising more strategic, your operations more efficient, and your team more fulfilled. By automating the tedious and analyzing the complex, AI allows your organization to focus on what truly matters: the human connection at the heart of your mission.

The question for nonprofit leaders is no longer if they should adopt AI, but how they can start leveraging it to free up their teams for the creative, high-impact work that drives results.

Want to connect with Charly and learn more? Find her on LinkedIn and check out the groundbreaking insights in the Digital Outlook Report.