Geneva Global is part of Global Impact Ventures
Scaling up a multi-generational philanthropy strategy can have the same growing pains as any endeavor. Is everyone on board? What direction do you go? And what are the side effects of expansion?
A multi-generational family was looking to scale up their philanthropy, wanting to become more intentional and strategic in their giving rather than simply reacting to ad hoc solicitations for charitable support. But they each had competing commitments that prevented them from taking those next steps—leading companies, pursuing professional advancement, and caring for families—and well as different giving interests and priorities.
Despite these differences, they all wanted to learn alongside one other, and they were united in the desire to bring the youngest generation into their charitable giving to ensure its continuity. For the moment, everyone also wanted to avoid the expense and commitment of establishing a private foundation with full-time staff, not knowing whether they were ready for that investment.
We accompanied the family for multiple years, developing a bespoke framework for identifying areas of potential philanthropic investment within each person’s priority field of interest. We conducted extensive research and analysis to tee up prospective organizations and programs that would meet the family’s giving framework criteria. During this time, we organized regular workshops with the family to explore our analysis, refine potential giving priorities, and develop a long list of prospective grantees and partners. Eventually, this led to multiple rounds of ambitious grantmaking, which we supported by performing due diligence on short-listed organizations.
What emerged from this work was a new “hybrid” approach for the family’s giving, in which Geneva Global shouldered some of the time-intensive burdens while family principals remained strategic decision makers. By partnering in this way, we helped family members fund $15 million dockets of grantees across their respective issue areas. We also codified the family’s customized decision-making and analytical frameworks into a “Family Playbook” to allow them to continue giving in the future without needing full-time external support or staff.
