Workshop 13: What's Next: AI on the Horizon | beneAI
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Workshop 13

What's Next: AI on the Horizon

Emerging Trends Scenario Planning Futures Thinking
90 minutes All levels In person or virtual
Session Description

AI is reshaping how we work, how organizations operate, and how communities are served. This session looks at what is coming next, both the opportunities and the risks, and helps your team prepare for a future that is already taking shape.

The changes AI is bringing go far beyond new software tools. The nature of work itself is shifting. Roles are being redefined, entire industries are reorganizing, and the relationship between humans and technology is entering new territory. For mission-driven organizations, this creates enormous potential: the ability to serve more people, make better decisions, and stretch limited resources further than ever before. But it also introduces real risks around workforce displacement, deepening inequity, data exploitation, and the concentration of power in systems that not everyone understands or controls.

This session takes an honest, clear eyed look at both sides. We explore the emerging trends most likely to affect your work and the communities you serve, from autonomous agents and real time analytics to the broader shifts in employment, public trust, and social infrastructure. We do not shy away from the hard questions: what happens when AI changes the jobs your staff do, the expectations your funders have, or the way your community members experience the world?

You will leave with a practical framework for tracking what is coming, evaluating new developments through the lens of both opportunity and risk, and a set of scenario plans your team can use to stay adaptive no matter which direction the future takes. This is the capstone of the series: the session that helps your organization face what is ahead with clarity, not fear.

What We Cover

Topics Covered in this Session

Each topic examines both the opportunities and the risks ahead.
No hype. No fear. Just clear thinking.

01
The Opportunities Ahead: What AI Makes Possible

We start with the upside. Emerging AI capabilities are opening doors that were closed even a year ago: real time program analytics, hyper-personalized outreach, intelligent grant matching, predictive modeling for community needs, and tools that let small teams operate with the capacity of much larger ones. We explore the specific opportunities most relevant to mission-driven work and help your team identify which ones are worth pursuing now versus watching for later.

02
The Risks and Threats: What Could Go Wrong

Every powerful technology carries risk, and AI is no exception. We take an honest look at the threats organizations need to take seriously: workforce displacement and the anxiety it creates, algorithmic bias that can deepen the inequities you are working to solve, data privacy vulnerabilities, growing dependence on systems you do not fully control, and the risk of moving too fast without adequate safeguards. Understanding these risks is not pessimism. It is preparation.

03
The Future of Work, Society, and the Communities You Serve

AI is not just changing organizations. It is reshaping the world your organization exists in. We zoom out to explore the bigger shifts: how work itself is being redefined as roles evolve and new skills become essential, how public trust in institutions is being tested by automation and misinformation, and how the communities you serve may be affected by job market changes, digital divides, and new forms of inequality. For mission-driven organizations, understanding these societal shifts is not optional. It is core to staying relevant and responsive.

04
Scenario Planning: Preparing for Multiple Futures

The future is not one thing. It is a set of possibilities, and the best prepared organizations have thought through several of them. We guide your team through a structured scenario planning exercise that considers different trajectories: rapid AI adoption that transforms the sector, a slower evolution where adoption stalls, a regulatory shift that changes the rules, and a future where AI deepens social divides rather than closing them. For each scenario, you will develop strategies that keep your mission on track.

05
Your Futures Playbook: Staying Adaptive

We close by pulling everything together into a futures playbook: the opportunities you want to pursue, the risks you need to monitor, the societal shifts that will shape your context, your scenario plans, and a schedule for revisiting and updating your thinking over time. AI will keep evolving, and the world around it will keep changing. This playbook gives your organization a structured way to face that change with intention rather than reaction.

Session Details

Designed to Meet You Where You Are

Every session is interactive and tailored to your team's experience level and goals.

Duration

90 Minutes

Enough time to go deep without overwhelming. Includes trend analysis, scenario planning exercises, and collaborative discussion.

Delivery

In Person or Virtual

Available on-site in Colorado or via live video for remote teams anywhere.

Audience

No Prerequisites

Built for teams who want to think strategically about the future of AI in their work. No technical background needed.

Who This Is For

Built for Your Team

This session is designed for anyone in a mission-driven organization who wants to stay ahead of the curve and prepare for what AI brings next.

Executive directors and leadership teams
Program managers and coordinators
Development and fundraising staff
Communications and marketing teams
Operations and administrative staff
Board members and volunteers

Ready to Get Started?

Details forthcoming in March 2026.
Reach out now to reserve your session or learn more about pricing and availability.