Diana Bittner was excited. She was inspired. She was ready to learn. As a trustee of the Tracy Family Foundation (TFF), Bittner was one of seven TFF members from across the United States who converged in Phoenix, Arizona, to attend the Exponent Philanthropy’s 2015 CONNECT Conference. Bittner and her fellow TFF trustees spent three days... Read More
How does today’s social impact culture affect the way you engage your children and grandchildren in your family’s philanthropy? That’s a question many trustees of America’s 42,000 family foundations are asking themselves as they look more closely at strategies to fulfill community passions, conduct responsible grantmaking, and inspire a philanthropic legacy for the next generation.... Read More
There are big benefits when a family foundation invites one or more nonfamily members to its board. Nonfamily members can help the family make more objective grantmaking decisions. Similarly, family members tend to behave differently in the presence of nonfamily members. This can help shift family dynamics that may be getting in the way of... Read More
Thirteen years ago, my parents sold their telecommunications company and started a private foundation. Their earliest motivations were to avert taxes from the sale and safeguard my two brothers and me from inheriting wealth that would deter us from working for a living. For the first 7 years, on December 27, we gathered for a... Read More
This post is the second in a 2-part series on leadership succession planning. Read part 1 on the importance of planning for leadership succession now. Exponent Philanthropy members can explore these themes further in an article by the same authors in our Fall 2015 issue of Essentials. Leadership succession planning is a process, not just a... Read More
This post is an excerpt from the complimentary resource Essentials of Impact Investing: A Guide for Small-Staffed Foundations, created by Exponent Philanthropy and partners Mission Investors Exchange and Arabella Advisors. Want to align your investments with your mission? Download Essentials of Impact Investing: A Guide for Small-Staffed Foundations >> By Cynthia Muller and Catherine Toner, Arabella Advisors For... Read More