How does agentic AI work for charities?

Much of the talk in the charity sector around artificial intelligence (AI) has centred around generative AI: our ability to create images, code, text, and video from seemingly nothing (note: it’s not nothing, it’s a Large Language Model (LLM)), nudged by a simple prompt explaining what it should look like. But generative is not the only branch of AI that can help the sector. The appetite for AI support in completing laborious tasks and boosting productivity beyond content is strong. According to the 2025 Charity Digital Skills report, the most common use of AI in the sector is administration and project management, indicating that what charities really need from their technology is more time. 

This is where agentic AI comes in. Agentic AI refers to systems that act autonomously to achieve specific goals. As Charity Digital’s Head of Content Ioan Marc Jones writes: “It can make decisions for us, plan actions, and adapt to its environment without the need for constant human input.” Agentic AI may be more useful than its generative counterpart in giving charity professionals more time back to dedicate to other areas of their cause. 

For Microsoft users, agentic AI may already be at their fingertips. Microsoft’s latest e-guide, Copilot Agent Playbook for Nonprofits, explains how agentic AI works in conjunction with Microsoft 365 Copilot to support charities in delivering more impact for their communities.  

The e-guide explains: “Copilot Agents are AI-powered assistants that provide you with the ability to deliver tailored and automated solutions to help with repetitive tasks and processes. Whether working alongside or on behalf of a person, team, or organisation, agents streamline operations, allowing nonprofit staff to focus more on their mission and less on administrative tasks.” 

The e-guide walks charities through practical use cases of Copilot-powered agentic AI, showing how it can enrich staff experiences, engage supporters and fundraising, and support teams across service delivery, finance, IT, and much more. Below, we explore three examples from the e-guide to share how agentic AI can enhance charity work.  

Download the full e-guide 

How can agentic AI help charities? 

Coaching 

Microsoft 365 Copilot has a range of ready-to-use AI assistants, known as agent templates, to help charities complete common tasks such as summarising emails and document drafting. These AI agents are designed to work with an organisation’s data and workflows, “delivering immediate productivity gains without the need for custom development”.  

Many agents are designed to help Microsoft users develop their skills quickly to achieve their goals. For example, the Writing Coach agent provides detailed feedback on writing, helps users change the tone of messages, and translates text. The Idea Coach helps users ideate and map out their ideas, while the Career Coach provides personalised career development suggestions including skill gap analysis and learning opportunities.  

There is even a Prompt Coach agent to help charities use AI more effectively, enabling users to create well-structured prompts for Copilot. Whatever your coaching needs, there is an AI agent able to assist you.  

Recruitment and onboarding 

There are agents that are also built using the agent builder in Copilot Chat. These agents can review contracts, assist with research, answer enquiries about company policies, and more.  

Charities can also build agents that help with recruiting and onboarding new members of charity teams. The Onboarding Buddy agent assists new hires with onboarding processes, answering questions, providing training, and setting up meetings to make everything run smoothly during the initial weeks of starting a new role.  

Before onboarding even starts, the Resume Reviewer agent helps charity leaders compare CVs and resumes against their job descriptions, scoring candidates according to their qualifications. This can help charities assess who to take through to interview and ensures that they have the very best chance of finding the right fit for the role they need to fill. 

Volunteer management 

The e-guide refers to several practical examples of how agentic AI can be used specifically for charities. One such example is volunteer management. Using the aforementioned onboarding tools are the tip of the iceberg – AI agents can also assist with collecting feedback, providing quick answers to common questions, and using volunteer data to improve the overall experience. 

Microsoft’s e-guide shares a step-by-step guide to building an agent that can help with these tasks and more, with examples for those just starting out with AI and one for more advanced organisations. It also sets out measurable goals to help charities ensure they get the most from their AI agents.  

To find out more about how Microsoft’s AI agents can help your charity, download the full Copilot Agent Playbook for Nonprofits below. 

Download the e-guide