Olivia R. Zale is an advisor at Grant Philanthropic Advisors, where she focuses on empowering rising philanthropy leaders to find their place within their family’s philanthropy. Olivia works with clients to address the opportunities and challenges of intergenerational engagement, succession planning, and stewardship in ways that are both practical and values-driven.
Olivia has built her career around people and impact. She brings both a deep familiarity with large, multigenerational family foundations and a passion for helping families work together productively and joyfully. While consistently inspired by the legacy and generosity of her great-grandparents, Olivia learned of philanthropy directly from her grandfather, Marvin. The consummate volunteer, he was a role model for Olivia and her cousins, always dedicating his time and energy to help others.
After a successful decade working in sales and marketing strategy for wholesale luxury goods companies, Olivia shifted her career into the social impact sector, working as director of development for the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life. As a fourth-generation family member of the Dallas-based M.B. and Edna Zale Foundation, Olivia has had the privilege to serve the foundation since 2010 in a variety of capacities, including within grantmaking, hiring, next-generation engagement, service learning, education, and strategic planning. As the current vice chair of the board, Olivia is the first member of her generation to serve in a board leadership position. She is motivated by her family’s shared values and is inspired by the passion, and ever-increasing participation, of her nearly 70 fourth-generation cousins and their spouses.