Check out our infographic below or download it.

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#2 They Have a Need for Greater Inclusion
All philanthropic participants must look for ways to enhance engagement for all genders and people of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

#3 They Look Beyond The Dollars
Younger donors don’t yet have the financial resources to make big donations, but they still want to be involved.

#4 They’re Aware of Giving Approaches
Both Gen Z and Millennials demonstrate moderate awareness of giving approaches, but there are ways to improve. With increased knowledge, they may be more inclined to get involved.

#5 They Want to Make it Personal
Community and causes with deep personal meaning are primary motivators for charitable engagement. Seeing the direct impact of their contributions on local communities and solving systemic issues are important to them.

How to Harness the Power of NextGen
Private foundations, advisors and nonprofits can use these key takeaways as a lens to reframe their messaging and try new engagement strategies that resonate with these younger cohorts. Here are some examples.

Want to see even more insights?
From terms that resonate with them to their knowledge about charitable approaches, check out the full report.

Questions about this report?
We’re here to help! Schedule a call with us or reach us at 800-839-0054. Together, let’s #begiving.

The post 5 Key Takeaways: How Gen Z and Millennials View Charitable Giving appeared first on Foundation Source.

#2: They Started Early In Life
Importantly, the way younger generations see the world and themselves in it has encouraged earlier, enthusiastic involvement without concern for tradition or optimization. According to our study, Millennials who engage in charitable activities started at an average age of 18. Gen Z started even younger — at age 14. Both cite a variety of activities, including volunteer days and food/clothing/supplies drives through school, religious organizations and employers that helped raise awareness at an early age and provide a framework for continued involvement.

#3: They Want to Learn More
While general knowledge of more formal giving approaches and vehicles is limited among both Gen Z and Millennials, they express interest in learning more without letting their lack of knowledge impede their willingness to take action, make financial donations or assist with fundraising. Excitingly, this means that as they explore more resources and accelerate their giving, they may be able to drive even greater impact by pursuing a combination of techniques and vehicles to drive optimal outcomes.

In concert, these three qualities – a natural instinct for advocacy, an early start and a bias for action – illustrate a portrait of aware, engaged and values-driven givers who have the potential to effect real change in their lifetimes.

While there may be some differences, our research also revealed that many of their motivations and behaviors are similar to what we see in Gen Xers and Boomers. These four core characteristics are remarkably consistent across all generations of giving.

• Family fuels inspiration and action. All generations give credit for their charitable impulses to having grown up in families that give back. For Gen Z and Millennials in particular, family is one of their primary drivers for getting involved in giving.
• More financial resources yield bigger gifts. Monetary donations are more common among higher earners, college graduates, employed individuals and older members of each generation. And higher earners donate greater amounts.
• They differ based on gender. Women are more likely than men to want to make an impactful change to a cause and demonstrate their family’s values, while men are more likely than women to want to create or continue a legacy.
• Giving comes in many forms. Financial contributions are critical, and nonprofits need them to continue operating, but there are many ways to give and most charitably-inclined individuals tend to combine a variety of activities to give back to their communities and the causes they care about. Beyond cash or assets, the most common approaches are donating items, volunteering time, fundraising and sharing expertise and knowledge.

The philanthropic community should carefully consider how to engage with the next generation based on their unique experiences, perspectives and preferences around charitable giving. The good news is that private foundations, financial advisors and nonprofits won’t be starting from scratch. There are still many similarities between younger and older generations, which can help them find common ground to get aligned around how, why and where to give. These insights create opportunities to bring generations together to pool capital and intellectual resources, and spark more difficult conversations that might challenge traditional modes of thinking. Together, these two truths can propel charitable giving into the future. Growing pains are expected, and so too is a vibrant and forward-thinking culture of giving that drives bigger and more impactful outcomes.

For more insights, view the full report.

Questions in the meantime?
We’re here to help! Schedule a call with us or reach us at 800-839-0054. Together, let’s #begiving.

The post How NextGen Givers Are – And Aren’t – So Different appeared first on Foundation Source.

To dive deeper into this trend, we asked our internal team of subject matter experts to share a few ways philanthropists can approach this opportunity—particularly for multi-generational families that have different interests and concerns.

#1: Experiment

The families that have the most success are the ones who experiment to provide younger family members with a bigger role and voice while they are coming up the learning curve. You could have them join boards and committee meetings as observers, sit on junior boards or even give them end-to-end responsibility for a discretionary fund.

#2: Listen

Many families with significant wealth have strong leaders with strong opinions. A best practice for these individuals is to be willing to hear from other family members. This means coming to the table prepared to welcome new approaches and outcomes than perhaps the ones they have envisioned. There will be different points of view and while it can be challenging to navigate, the rewards are plentiful.

#3: Plan

It’s not enough to “hope” that younger generations will get involved in family giving. When families are intentional and plan to include every individual by giving them a platform that makes them feel involved, it fosters a shared sense of trust, stronger intergenerational relationships and a lasting legacy.

To read more, check out the full Forbes article.

Want to learn more about the ways we support private foundations?
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The post Has The Great Wealth Transfer Already Begun? appeared first on Foundation Source.

The discussion covers topics such as:

• Involving the next generation
• Defining your legacy going forward
• How family can align on strategic decisions such as succession planning or sunsetting
• Finding unity in knowing what you don’t want to do as a family
• Values and how they manifest themselves in different ways

Watch the full webcast>>

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If you’re looking for an easier way to manage a foundation or want to start a foundation, our philanthropic specialists are here to help! To learn more, schedule a call with us or reach us at 800-839-0054. Together, let’s #begiving.

The post The Power of Philanthropy in Family Engagement, Values and Unity appeared first on Foundation Source.

Having supported thousands of private foundations for more than 20 years, our philanthropic experts found that our clients rely on the five following touchstones to help family members adopt a giving mindset and create a foundation that inspires younger generations.

1. Instill Values & Traditions

o Involve children in the causes you care about
o Work together as a family to give back
o Teach that giving is a habit, like brushing your teeth

2. Maintain Family Ties

o Hold quarterly or annual family meetings
o Schedule meetings outside of the holidays to stay focused on the purpose
o Provide virtual options for those who can’t attend in person

3. Deepen Social Consciousness

o Conduct a nonprofit site visit with family to better understand needs
o Use the foundation to discuss problems and how to solve them

4. Increase Personal Fulfillment

o Try psychologist Martin Seligman’s exercise to have the family engage in “one pleasurable activity and one philanthropic activity”
o Write about both experiences and have the family discuss

5. Develop Skill, Knowledge & Awareness

o Task young children with simple acts such as donating birthday gifts or toys
o Involve young adults in the foundation to develop skills such as leadership and financial management

Want to get the complete checklist?

Philanthropic Support Is Just a Call Away
Have questions about philanthropy? Want to talk about a specific client? We’re here to help! Schedule a call with us here or call 800-839-0054.

The post Q4 Conversations: Engage Clients with This Family Philanthropy Checklist appeared first on Foundation Source.

Engaging the next generation presents a powerful opportunity for a family foundation and its continued legacy. Getting family involved is a pivotal chance to connect shared history and values across generations of your clan—whether it’s the stories that matter to your families or the ideals that you’re expressing through your foundation. For many families, next-generation engagement can also be an amazing moment that sets the stage for the kinds of growth, connection and maturing that family foundations experience when rising members step into leadership roles—or help evolve new ones.

Blending new voices brings diversity, new strengths and developing roles to your mission. And the more diverse your decision-making body is, the better decisions you make. In these ways, involving succeeding generations of family members becomes a learning experience that ensures continuity, too, which ultimately can enhance your grantmaking and lead to increased impact.

2. Acknowledge the Challenges

It’s a fact: navigating family dynamics is hard but necessary. You and your family members may not have identical values, so it can take some work to recognize and identify what your shared values really are. Reaching that point means taking stock of individual interests and beliefs and then creating a common, shared vision from which you all can move forward. Having different views is a given; the task is to figure out how to align them in the best ways.

To make this a success, it’s also important to recognize that family foundations are often mirrors of the family culture, dynamics and communication styles behind them. That defining trait makes the ability to communicate about differences and similarities alike—and navigate around any dysfunction—essential challenges of working together as a family.

One way to approach these inherent challenges is to start early with a learning emphasis. What do your children, grandchildren or other relatives really know about your foundation? As they grow, for example, perhaps they can get involved in the selection process of charities to fund. Or maybe they can accompany you to site visits or events sponsored by the organizations you help.

Another step is to think about how to work empowerment into your governance when onboarding new generations. There can be a certain tension, after all, as it naturally creates a mixed group, in which some people feel more empowered to make decisions and others feel less so. Family foundations that have been run solely by their founding generation, for instance, may find it difficult to transition to a more democratic process as new generations come on board.

Blending new voices brings diversity, new strengths and developing roles to your mission.

That’s why a more formal onboarding process is often preferable over, say, just family discussions, to smooth those crucial transitions. It can be hard to step into a leadership role if you feel that you don’t have clear authority to question, challenge and make decisions. So, having governance practices and decision-making structures in place brings more objectivity to a process that can be subjective—and that gives next-gen family leaders a solid base to lean back on in terms of how to engage, integrate and contribute.

3. Master Transition Planning

When managing transitions, taking the time to discover passions and identify roles that fit is a best practice to move forward successfully. Square pegs will never fit round holes, so don’t try to force them. Instead, it’s vital to match interests, responsibilities and leadership abilities to family members who have the desire, enthusiasm, education and drive for the roles that make the most sense for them to accept. The bottom line? Intrinsic motivations will maintain the foundation’s effectiveness and sustainability.

What about bringing outsiders into the multigenerational family mix? It’s a trend among most family foundations today, according to NCFP’s Trends 2020 study, but it’s also something that a lot of them grapple with. Before adding outside directors, prioritize effective family communication, a focus on values and operational direction.

It’s not always easy for an outside party to walk into a family setting, so make sure your reasons for engaging other voices bring value and new expertise to the table and that the advisory goals you set are clearly defined. Whether you’re actively bringing on the next generation, outside advisors or both, always remember to be mindful of the actions you take. You’re laying the groundwork for the next stage of your family foundation and defining what you want your message to the world to be.

To learn more about these key takeaways and other valuable insights, listen to the full webinar discussion.

The post Family Philanthropy: Thriving Through the Generations appeared first on Foundation Source.

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Want to Learn More About the Connection Between Giving & Family Happiness?

In our webinar with Joel Treisman, a scholar-practitioner in the fields of positive psychology and the psychology of wealth, he discussed the relationship between money and happiness—and how giving can help families flourish. To watch the webinar and access our companion piece, Top 3 Takeaways: The Connection Between Giving & Family Happiness, click here.

Want to learn more about the ways we support philanthropic families with private foundations?
Schedule a call with us here or reach us at 800-839-0054. Together, let’s #begiving.

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We hosted a webinar with Joel Treisman, a scholar-practitioner in the fields of positive psychology and the psychology of wealth, to examine the relationship between money and happiness, and what it means for families.

These were the three most compelling learnings for me:

#1 Be Intentional
There are plenty of things you can do to be happier – and most of them require us to be intentional with our time, actions and thoughts.

While many people see money as one of the proverbial keys to happiness, there are numerous quantitative and qualitative studies that show it’s not how much you have, but rather how you use what you have and your behavior that have the greatest effect on happiness. Other key elements of personal happiness and contentedness are:

• Having a sense of control or self-efficacy
• Avoiding social comparisons between yourself and others
• Finding the intersection between your personal passion, mission, vocation and profession
• Being grateful and savoring experiences before, during and after they occur
• Balancing pleasurable sources of happiness with purpose-driven sources of happiness
• Embracing ‘satisficing’ to get acceptable outcomes rather than constantly trying to maximize or optimize each decision
• Investing in activities that promote health, vitality and freedom instead of material items to achieve longer boosts in wellbeing
• Being generous to others with your time and money

Visit actionsforhappiness.org for more ideas.

#2 Happiness Spreads
Giving to others generates an abundance of benefits for givers, receivers and witnesses.

Some research points to a virtuous cycle between giving and happiness – giving makes people happier and happier people give more – a positive feedback loop that helps foster more philanthropy and objectively has the potential to change the world.

Additionally, being generous to others creates an abundance of benefits beyond the gift itself. Givers regularly report increased feelings of satisfaction and competence, along with a greater sense of meaning. Furthermore, these feelings are contagious, helping to boost overall happiness within themselves and among others.

The same is true for those who volunteer. The physical acts of donating time and talents can help switch your focus, potentially taking your mind off troubles, while helping foster social connections between individuals and communities. In a poll with people who had volunteered in the previous 12 months, the large majority felt healthier (76%), had improved moods (94%) and reduced stress (78%).

And, finally, people who witness acts of kindness and largesse also report feeling emotions ranging from gratitude to warmth to optimism, showing that giving has the potential to truly transform the people it touches.

#3 Families Working Together
When practiced together, charitable giving can build and strengthen the family structure now and in the future.

Engaging family members in charitable activities deliver incremental benefits to those discussed previously while creating the conditions to clarify family values, improve family relationships and expand family resources.

According to 21/64, the rising generation cites parents and grandparents as having the strongest influence on how they think about philanthropy. Importantly, they also point to a ‘talk the talk and walk the walk’ combination of direct teachings from their parents and grandparents and observing their behavior that helps shape and reinforce their views. These two methods working in concert can help bolster the trust and communication that is needed to ensure a successful transfer of ideals between generations.

Ultimately, Treisman defines Positive Family Philanthropy as a powerful construct that includes the following elements:

• Drives a shared sense of purpose and meaning at the family level
• Creates opportunities to shift from a top-down decision-making process to one that is collaborative across generations
• Appreciates and leverages individual and family strengths
• Broadens and builds on the family’s positive resources
• Includes both experiences and donations
• Measures impact and benefits to the family and others (not solely the impact of the gifts themselves)
• Allows for a combination of approach goals and avoidance goals to drive change

To learn more about these three takeaways – and many others – watch the replay.

Want to learn more about the benefits of giving as a family? Check out our ebook, The Foundation of a Philanthropic Family.

The post Top 3 Takeaways: The Connection Between Giving & Family Happiness appeared first on Foundation Source.