Private foundation trustees and staff oversee countless activities, from setting direction and selecting grantees to reviewing policies and investing assets. Several foundation tasks—some mandatory, some voluntary—call for additional care. All are worth your careful consideration to help you be financially savvy and legally compliant, and to help you take full advantage of your foundation’s flexibility.... Read More
In philanthropy, like in life, we have relatively little ability to control disruptions, internal or external, and the big changes they often portend. Although we may anticipate an influx of assets upon the sale of a business, or predict the arrival of the next generation, most of us can’t really manage the exact timing and... Read More
I can’t count the number of times a member has called with a sticky situation—how to handle a conflict of interest, or a board member not pulling his or her weight—but, when I ask about what expectations or policies are written down, I learn that there’s nothing in place. That’s an awkward time for the... Read More
When my wife and I set up our family foundation in 2012, we engaged my three children (then in their late teens and early 20s) in deciding whether a foundation was something we wanted to do as a family. We pressed the kids long and hard, even handed out questionnaires, wanting it to be a... Read More
Foundation surveys often ask if the foundation is operating with a limited life span, or in perpetuity. The choice is typically presented as a binary one: Did you set a time limit, or are you going to be around for eternity? There is a third choice, however, if perpetuity is not mandated in the foundation’s... Read More
As the president of a family foundation that has made the transition to an all third-generation board, I am often asked by colleagues for tips on successfully engaging next gen family members. Here is one: consider offering one-year, renewable board terms to family. I haven’t done a study on this, but I would guess that... Read More