According to the National Center for Family Philanthropy’s recent 2015 Trends Study, nearly 3 in 5 U.S. family foundations engage younger family members in the foundation — and more than 40% say they expect to add to or increase the number of younger-generation family members on their boards in just the next four years. This is an encouraging trend — especially for those of us who believe that these important institutions can have a much greater impact if they can keep the family productively engaged in their work.
Last October, we had the pleasure of hosting a conversation with a group of ten family foundations attending the National Forum on Family Philanthropy in Seattle. The session was focused on how foundation leaders can begin to address the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) with your staff and trustees. Through storytelling about successes, and a discussion about mistakes and anxieties related to DEI, the group identified five essential practices any family foundation should consider to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion.
When the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation added four non-family members to its board, it wanted to bring new perspectives into its meetings, while also promoting the integrity and values of the family and the foundation.
In this month's Ask the Center, we feature an excerpt from the newest Passages Issue Brief, "A steadying hand: The critical role of non-family board members," written by NCFP Distinguished Fellow Susan Packard Orr. This special PASSAGES provides insight on the various skills, expertise, and perspectives that a non-family board member can provide, as well as the common challenges for families seeking their first non-family board member, and tips for setting clear expectations for this role.
This month we are pleased to feature answers to two of the many questions asked during our December 2014 webinar with Andrew Schulz of Arabella Advisors covering the topic of "What are the rules for donors, family members, and staff of family foundations in terms of accepting tickets to events?"
Currently, we use the term “non-family” board member for board members who are not members of our founding family, but we would like to find another term for these individuals. What do you suggest?
We agree that the default term non-family is not necessarily the most inspiring way to describe the...
What value can diversity bring to the work of family foundations? First of all, diversity is now more interwoven into the fabric of our society, including our neighborhoods, education, business and media. Integrating diversity into many aspects of a family foundation’s work can result in more...
Editor’s Note: The National Center is delighted to partner in 2013 with the Bridgespan Group to share videos from its Conversations with Remarkable Givers series. In this month’s installment, we feature Bridgespan’s interview with Carolyn and Peter Lynch, co-founders of The Lynch Foundation....
What is the best way to formalize the process of hiring and setting salary for a family member?
LIZ WALTERS: Off the top of my head, I can think of four things that we did. The first thing was to create job descriptions. I was the only staff member to begin with, but we also created a job description...
Kelin Gersick’s book, Generations of Giving: Leadership and Continuity in Family Foundations, outlines the patterns most often seen in family philanthropy. In the first generation the donor has the strongest involvement and control. In the second generation more family members become involved and by...
