The AI enthusiasts want to move fast.
The skeptics want to slow down.
What’s a team to do?
"Should we use AI?" is the wrong question. Your team is already answering it for you — in three different directions. Some are racing ahead, some are sounding alarms, and some have drawn a hard line. You need a strategy to guide AI use that supports your values, flexes as technology changes, and lowers the temperature in the staff meeting
AI is reshaping mission-driven work, but most of the guidance out there isn't written for us. It's written for startups, for-profits, and people chasing efficiency at any cost.
Your work is different: you serve communities that trust you. You have a mission. When AI goes wrong in your context, the people who pay the price are often the ones you set out to help.
Amplify Good Work is the guide you've been looking for.
Releases March 20, 2026
What changes after you read this book
You’ll stop guessing about what AI can and can't do. Amplify Good Work explains how the technology works in plain language so you can evaluate tools and claims yourself instead of relying on your most tech-savvy staff member or a vendor's sales pitch.
You know where to draw the line. Privacy, equity, sustainability, job displacement, accessibility, governance, and much more: the book walks through each value not as an abstract principle but as a specific decision: Should we use AI for this task, with this population, under these conditions? You'll learn a framework to help you make values-centered, context-dependent AI decisions consistently.
You walk into the board meeting with a plan. From selecting and piloting your first tools to training your team, managing the culture clash, and communicating with your community, you'll build an implementation strategy that fits your mission-driven work, not a Silicon Valley startup.
Who this book is for
Amplify Good Work is for nonprofit, government, and social impact workers who want to use AI confidently and, just as confidently, identify and defend human-only tasks. It’s for leaders who are trying to bridge the gap between enthusiasts and skeptics on their teams. And it’s for orgs who feel paralyzed trying to write policies, develop practices, and pick a vendor and need a concrete action plan.
"But…"
"I'm not a tech person." Neither are most of my clients and trainees. This book includes no code, no jargon, no assumed background. If you can follow a board report, you can follow this book.
"We're a small org. We don't have the budget or staff for an AI strategy." The book’s recommendations scale well and includes options for organizations without a dedicated IT team, let alone a Chief Technology Officer. The framework starts with free tools and small experiments: things a two-person shop can do this month. You don't need a budget line for AI to make a plan, write a policy, and develop safer AI practices.
What people say about Karen's approach
"Your ability to explain concepts like machine learning and large language models in plain English was truly impressive and kept everyone fully engaged." — Event organizer
"This session has encouraged me to start using AI. I have been very hesitant, because it didn't feel like my own work, but you've shown me that there are a lot of ways to use it and how to make it my own." — Workshop participant
"Took a huge, overwhelming topic and really distilled it down." — Anonymous feedback
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The ebook is available for pre-order on Amazon and releases March 20, 2026 in ebook, paperback, and audiobook.
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The Mission-First AI Starter Kit includes a simple AI use policy template, a safe-start prompt pack, a vendor evaluation checklist, and email templates for communicating about AI with your staff, board, and community.