The Impact of Automation on Performing Arts Non-profits

Written by: Steve Berg

The Need for Automations in Non-Profit Arts Organizations

Performing and creative arts non-profits today face intense pressure to accomplish more with fewer resources and achieve more significant growth and results. These organizations often juggle limited funding, high program demands, and heavy reliance on volunteers to perform the bare minimum of administrative upkeep.  At the same time, donor expectations are rising, and staff resources are strained well beyond their limits. In this context, operational efficiency isn’t a luxury – it’s a necessity. In fact, lack of process automation and organizational efficiency has been cited as the number-one frustration of non-profit leaders for several years running (equationtech.us). A recent 2025 sector survey found that 41% of non-profit finance leaders say insufficient automation and efficiency are their biggest operational challenges (sage.com). For arts organizations known to operate on lean budgets, streamlining workflows through automation can be transformative. Embracing automation is increasingly seen as essential for sustaining their missions amid staffing shortages, unprecedented job displacement,  and financial uncertainties.

Boosting Operational Efficiency and Cutting Administrative Overhead

Automation directly translates into time and cost savings for non-profits. By automating manual, repetitive tasks, organizations can reduce labour costs and reallocate staff effort to mission-critical work. Common benefits include faster and more accurate information processing (with fewer human errors), greater scalability to handle growing workloads across many areas without adding headcount, and real-time data visibility for better decision-making for the board of directors and operational staff. Non-profits that transitioned from fragmented systems to cloud-based solutions report saving approximately two full workdays per week, thanks to eliminating manual work and redundancies (scribd.com). These efficiency gains are crucial in the arts sector, where small staff often wear many hats.

Automating routine workflows also reduces administrative overhead that drags down staff and volunteers. Nearly all nonprofit employees (91%) report frustration with clunky, outdated work technology, and over half feel legacy systems actively hold them back due to rapid technological advancements (armanino.com). Volunteers likewise want to spend their time on impact, not data entry. In a Zapier/Harris Poll survey, 58% of Americans said they’d be more inclined to volunteer with nonprofits that use better tech tools to streamline volunteer work (zapier.com.) Automations can resolve several pain points experienced by volunteers, including repetitive tasks, scheduling challenges, and the need to report from multiple sources. By introducing modern automation (e.g., online forms feeding into databases, automatic scheduling notifications), performing arts non-profits can alleviate these burdens. This not only saves staff hours but also improves long-term volunteer retention and satisfaction. The message is clear: automating backend processes frees up human capacity and budget, allowing arts organizations to focus on what matters – delivering inspiring programs and experiences.

Automation Tools in Action: Airtable and Zapier for Arts Nonprofits

Modern automation platforms are making these improvements accessible to nonprofits of all sizes. In particular, no-code and low-code tools like Airtable and Zapier are game-changers for resource-strapped arts organizations. This is critical in the arts sector, where hiring software developers or purchasing enterprise systems may be out of reach. Instead, arts nonprofits are using Airtable – a flexible online database/spreadsheet hybrid – and Zapier – an automation workflow connector – to tailor systems to their needs at minimal cost.

Airtable has proven especially useful for organizing complex projects and data in the arts. In practice, this means when a new performance is scheduled, the artists, venue details, marketing tasks, and ticketing info are all linked in Airtable – accessible to the marketing team, tech crew, and box office alike, for example. The data only needs to be entered once and everyone works off the same real-time information, drastically reducing email back-and-forth, longwinded direct message conversations, and version confusion. Airtable’s built-in automations (like triggering notifications or updating fields when conditions are met) add further efficiency; for instance, when a show is marked “Sold Out” in the ticket sales table, an automation could instantly email an alert to the communications team to announce it on social media. The versatility of Airtable allows users to build CRM-like systems, volunteer trackers, and content pipelines without writing a single line of code.

Zapier, on the other hand, excels at connecting disparate apps and automating multi-step processes – essentially acting as the glue between various specialized tools and non-management tools that non-profits use. Performing arts organizations typically rely on a patchwork of software, including ticketing systems, donor databases, email marketing platforms, social media, and accounting software. Zapier can seamlessly tie these together in a cohesive manner. For instance, an arts non-profit could set up a Zapier “Zap”, which is a task comprised of a few or several steps, to automatically add new ticket purchasers from the ticketing system into the email marketing list, so that those patrons immediately start receiving the organization’s e-newsletters without any manual export/import.

Volunteer coordination can be automated as well – one non-profit (Victoria Jazz Society) used Zapier workflows to handle tasks like sending a welcome email with training materials when a volunteer signs up via a form, or scheduling volunteers by matching their availability to event needs and notifying them. Another organization, Stop 2030 Barclay (which collects petition signatures and promotes advocacy action), uses Zapier to automatically export daily and weekly newsletter and website reports, which can add up to several hours of work each month gathering and presenting information. These cases demonstrate the breadth of processes that tools like Zapier can streamline for arts non-profits, including event planning and marketing, CRM management, donor tracking, ticketing, and more.

Perhaps most importantly, automation tools amplify impact without adding overhead. They enabled a small arts administration team to achieve what would otherwise require many extra staff or expensive IT projects. Those who invested in new tech solutions found it worthwhile: organizations that transitioned to more integrated, cloud-based tech reported saving significant staff time (as noted, up to two days per week in time reclaimed from manual tasks (scribd.com). By leveraging platforms like Airtable and Zapier, performing arts non-profits can punch above their weight. They can automate the mundane tasks – such as data transfers, reminder emails, form processing, and report generation – and redirect human energy toward strategy, creativity, and relationships with artists, donors, and audiences. In an industry built on creativity and connection, this is a critical advantage. Harnessing these tools allows arts nonprofits to scale up their impact, whether it’s reaching a wider audience, raising more funds, or delivering more artistic programs, all while keeping administrative overhead in check.

Conclusion

Business automation is proving to be a powerful catalyst for change and improvement for performing and creative arts non-profits, driving improvements across virtually every facet of their operations. From internal efficiency and cost savings to external engagement and revenue growth, the data and examples available across several industries and work areas are compelling. Organizations that embrace automation – through accessible platforms like Airtable and Zapier – are seeing reduced administrative burden, higher staff and volunteer satisfaction, increased fundraising returns, more engaged donors and audiences, and even expanded artistic programming. In an era when arts non-profits must be exceptionally nimble and resourceful, automation is no longer a “nice-to-have” but a strategic imperative.

The tools are available and often budget-friendly, and as we’ve seen, even small steps, such as automating a subscription renewal or an email newsletter, can yield outsized benefits. For a digital services agency offering automation solutions, the message to arts non-profits is clear: investing in workflow automation isn’t about replacing the human touch in the arts – it’s about amplifying it. By streamlining the mundane, organizations free their people to focus on the creative and community-driven work that matters most, ensuring the performing arts continue to thrive in an increasingly digital age. In short, automation helps arts non-profits work smarter, allowing them to shine brighter.