Whether you're an iPhone or Android person, you're probably familiar with Apple's charging woes. For years, users had to buy different types of chargers for different devices. Your MacBook needed one cable, your iPhone another, and your friend's Android yet a third. Tech-savvy travelers arrived at airports with more chargers than clothes! Then in 2023, after years of stubbornly clinging to its proprietary Lightning connector, Apple finally surrendered to the inevitable and adopted USB-C for the iPhone 15.
The tech world celebrated. Finally, one cable could charge virtually everything!
Today, a similar revolution is happening in the world of artificial intelligence. It's called Model Context Protocol (MCP), and it's about to change everything about how your association uses AI.
What Is Model Context Protocol (MCP)?
In simple terms, Model Context Protocol is a universal standard that allows AI models to connect with external systems, tools, and data sources. If this sounds technical, don't worry—the concept is straightforward: MCP is the USB port for AI, creating a standardized way for any AI tool to talk to any system.
This works through what tech folks call a client-server architecture:
- AI tools like Claude are the "clients" - they request information or actions
- Your data systems, files, and other tools become the "servers" - they provide information or perform actions
- MCP is the universal language they use to communicate with each other
The result? AI transforms from a smart advisor who can only offer suggestions to a capable assistant who can actually take actions, access information, and get things done for you—all without requiring you to write a single line of code.
MCP in Action: What It Enables for Associations
The real power of MCP is its potential to connect AI models (like Claude) to your association's systems and data. It's important to note that many association management systems (AMS) and customer relationship management (CRM) platforms don't yet support MCP directly. However, this is likely to change as the standard gains wider adoption, and there are already ways to get started with the tools you have today.
Let's look at some immediately practical applications and what will be possible as more systems adopt this standard:
Document Intelligence and Organization
With MCP, you can transform how your association handles information. Ask Claude to read all the PDFs in a folder and summarize the key points from each, extract specific data from spreadsheets, or organize years of conference materials by topic instead of date. The AI can analyze board meeting minutes to track decision patterns, identify action items from committee reports, and automatically categorize documents based on their content rather than just filenames. This works today with any documents you have access to, allowing your team to quickly extract insights and organize information without spending hours on manual review and filing.
Communication and Collaboration Tools
MCP is particularly valuable for connecting to communication platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams, or email systems. You could have Claude monitor specific Slack channels for member questions and draft responses for your review, or analyze email threads to summarize key discussion points from committee communications. As these mainstream tools adopt MCP support, you'll be able to streamline communication workflows without switching between applications.
Connected Systems Through Intermediaries
While your AMS might not support MCP directly yet, tools like Zapier (which connects to over 7,000 applications) are implementing MCP support. This means you could potentially have Claude pull information from your membership database, analyze it, and then trigger actions in your email platform—all through natural conversation rather than complex integration projects.
Multi-Step Workflows
One of the most exciting aspects of MCP is the ability to create multi-step workflows through simple conversation. For example, asking Claude to find all members who haven't renewed in the past 30 days, generate personalized reminder emails, and then schedule them to send next Tuesday. This type of request combines multiple systems and actions into a single instruction.
The transformative shift here is that MCP makes AI actionable for business users without requiring technical expertise. Instead of needing a developer to create custom integrations between your AI tools and your association's systems, you can simply tell Claude what you want accomplished in plain language. As more of your systems add MCP support, these capabilities will expand seamlessly.
For now, even with just file system access, MCP provides immediate value while laying the groundwork for more sophisticated applications as the standard matures and spreads across the technology ecosystem.
Getting Started with MCP: An Overview
Ready to try MCP for yourself? The easiest way to start is with Claude Desktop, which currently offers the most user-friendly MCP implementation. Here's a brief overview of the setup process:
- Download Claude for Desktop from Anthropic's website for macOS or Windows.
- Enable MCP capabilities by configuring which systems Claude can access. This involves editing a simple configuration file to tell Claude which folders or systems it can connect to. Start by giving Claude access to specific folders like your Desktop or Downloads—not all your files!
- Restart Claude and look for the hammer icon in the bottom corner of the input box. This indicates that MCP tools are available.
- Start experimenting with simple file operations. Ask Claude to organize files, find documents, or create new folders.
For detailed step-by-step instructions, click here and check out my short demo here!
The process is designed to be security-conscious. Claude will always ask for your permission before performing any action, and you control exactly which parts of your system it can access.
The Association Data Challenge
While the file system example is immediately useful, associations face a particular challenge: much of your valuable data likely lives in specialized systems like your AMS, LMS, or financial software.
Unfortunately, many association-specific systems don't yet support MCP, creating a gap between what's theoretically possible and what you can implement today.
There are several ways to bridge this gap:
1. Start with Mainstream Tools Major platforms like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Salesforce will likely support MCP soon. If your association uses these tools, you'll gain access to important capabilities as these companies implement MCP.
2. Use Zapier as a Bridge Zapier has announced MCP support for its 7,000+ integration partners. This means you can connect Claude (via MCP) to Zapier, which then connects to your association management system, even if your AMS doesn't directly support MCP.
3. Consider an AI Data Platform Some associations are implementing AI Data Platforms that pull information from across their systems into a unified database specifically designed for AI access. These platforms can then expose your association data through MCP.
4. Start with What You Have Begin by enabling MCP access to the data you control directly—files, documents, spreadsheets, and content repositories. This will demonstrate value while you work on more complex integration.
The key is to start small and expand gradually as you gain experience and as more tools adopt MCP support.
Building an MCP Strategy for Your Association
For association leaders, MCP presents both opportunities and challenges. Here's how to develop a thoughtful approach:
Update Your AI Policies
Your current AI governance policies likely don't address tools that can take action on behalf of users. Update these policies to establish guardrails around:
- What systems and data can be accessed via MCP
- Who can use these capabilities
- What approvals are needed for various actions
- How to audit AI actions
Balance Security and Innovation
Start by limiting MCP access to non-sensitive data and systems while you build confidence. Consider creating "sandbox" environments where staff can experiment with minimal risk.
Train Your Team
Educate staff on the possibilities and limitations of MCP. Help them understand what makes a good use case and how to interact effectively with agent-enabled AI.
Create a Phased Implementation Plan
Map out a strategy that starts with simple, controlled implementations and gradually expands as your team builds expertise and as more of your systems support MCP.
From USB-C to MCP
The introduction of MCP marks a fundamental shift in how associations will use AI. Just as USB-C transformed the connectivity landscape, MCP will change what's possible with AI in your organization.
This is just the beginning. As more tools adopt MCP and as AI models become more capable, we'll see increasingly sophisticated agent-based systems that can handle complex workflows across multiple systems.
For associations, this means an opportunity to deliver more personalized member experiences, operate more efficiently, and free up staff to focus on high-value, creative work that AI can't replicate.
Getting Started: Three Steps You Can Take Today
- Set up a controlled experiment: Install Claude Desktop and configure MCP for a small test with non-sensitive files
- Identify one process: Select a single, well-defined process that could benefit from automation as your first implementation
- Review your governance: Update your AI policies to establish guidelines for agent-based AI use
The transition to agent-enabled AI through MCP will follow the same pattern we've seen with other technological shifts—early adopters will gain significant advantages while others wait for the technology to mature. By taking thoughtful steps now, your association can position itself to benefit from this transformation while managing the associated risks.
Just like we eventually wondered how we ever managed with different chargers for every device, in a few years, we'll wonder how we ever used AI that couldn't take action on our behalf.
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