Strategies to empower younger family members in charitable giving.
Your charitable giving has allowed you to make a lasting imprint on society, your community and the world. Now you would like your children and grandchildren to become involved in charitable giving.
Including younger family members in your philanthropic activities is a way to pass on personal values, share experiences, establish family traditions and promote a spirit of cooperation. You may even have a goal of preparing your children or grandchildren to manage a family foundation. Indeed, they may play a key role in creating social and environmental benefits for future local and global communities.
Getting family members involved in philanthropy also may be an important part of your overall wealth transfer plan.
Millennials and Gen Zers will be the inheritors of the next great wealth transfer. Combined, these two generations represent 49% of the current population with this percentage likely continuing to increase as the number of Traditionalists and Baby Boomers decline over time. Both Millennials and Gen Zers have strong characteristics that will influence the ways in which they are involved in philanthropy. These characteristics include their use of social networks to interact with their peers, the desire for transparency, and a belief that all sectors — governmental, nonprofit and for profit — have a role to play in solving society’s challenges.
Advances in technology and the expansive amount of digital information that have been readily available to Millennials and Gen Zers have broken down barriers, allowing them to connect with people, organizations and causes outside of their local communities. Millennials and Gen Zers are more likely to have large online networks of friends, colleagues and even global networks.1 These networks provide opportunities for them to leverage resources and promote the causes that are important to them.
Unlike Millennials, most members of Gen Z do not remember a time before social media. They are inclined to spend hours using their smartphones and online platforms.2 Because many of their interactions take place through social networks, they lean towards supporting charitable organizations through these platforms as well. Sharing information with peer networks is a hallmark of this generation, many of whom have grown up sharing their lives on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube among other platforms.
Both Millennials and Gen Zers measure the impact of nonprofit organizations not only through compelling stories, but through data, metrics and transparency. They expect organizations to collect data on the effectiveness of programs and demonstrate how they have created positive change in the populations and communities they serve. They value transparency in all aspects of a nonprofit organization’s operations. Next generation donors appreciate having information that breaks down how funds are being used to support programs and projects, using technology to provide real time updates. They welcome the opportunity to directly interact with the communities that benefit from the organization’s work.
Future generations expect nonprofit organizations and for profit companies alike to share the responsibility of serving the public good. They are constantly seeking new ideas to expand the philanthropic landscape. These expectations have caused a shift in the philanthropic community and organizations are taking notice as they seek to develop relationships with these generations of donors.
In comparison to the other generations, Millennials and Gen Zers may have different ideas about how to give but they generally have similar views on why they give. This is largely due to the formative lessons learned in their youth, namely from their parents and grandparents. In a recent survey administered by 21/64, almost 90% of those surveyed said their giving was influenced by their parents and 63% said their grandparents had inspired them to give.3 The survey further indicates that by taking the time to articulate and model your values and interests with your family,
you can potentially help influence and shape the next generation of donors.
If you are just beginning to have conversations about your charitable activities with younger family members, it is important to give them an opportunity to share their own interests with you. The most rewarding family philanthropy reflects the shared values and interests of all family members. Taking the time to assess individual readiness and interest in charitable work makes your family’s philanthropy stronger and provides greater satisfaction around charitable giving. The following questions and your responses to these questions can help you have meaningful conversations and spark your family’s exchange of ideas and perspectives.
Lay the foundation. To encourage your family to make a real and lasting difference in the world, to reflect on these foundational questions.
Why do you want to include the next generation in your philanthropy?
Who will participate in the family’s philanthropy?
Have you determined how much time you and your family are willing to commit to charitable giving?
Have you settled on using one or more charitable giving vehicles, such as a donor advised fund or private foundation, to facilitate your giving?
Share culture and values. The values you share with your family can empower them, build trust, encourage accountability and establish expectations. Communicating your giving philosophy with your family can make it easier for them to understand your motivations and create and continue a family philanthropy legacy.
What motivates you to give?
What values have your family and other role models passed on to you?
What are some of your favorite family traditions?
What past experiences have shaped your beliefs or thinking?
What are some of your family’s most important shared values?
Determine communication styles. In order to plan for your family’s philanthropy in a way that takes all perspectives into account, it is important to understand how your family currently functions. For example:
What are your current norms or ways of communicating?
Does your family currently make any decisions together about family wealth and/or charitable matters?
Be a good listener. Once you have shared your values, it is important to listen to and create space for family members who will participate in your family philanthropy. If the next generation feels as if they are not being heard or that their perspectives are not important, they are less likely to be engaged. Questions might include:
What issues, causes or organizations excite other family members?
How much and in what ways do you think other family members would like to be involved in philanthropy?
How much do you know about the causes that interest other family members?
Are there common areas of interest to the whole family?
Convey your wishes. Take some time to reflect on the information and ideas shared by the next generation, look for opportunities to deepen their understanding of the issues that matter most to them, and take steps to include them in your current philanthropic activities. You might consider:
How much do your children or grandchildren know about your current philanthropic activities?
What have you shared about how you would like them to be involved in the family’s philanthropic plans?
Are you willing to spend the time necessary to prepare your family members for philanthropic stewardship?
Once you have been able to share your interests and values with your family and have gained a better understanding of how they would like to be involved, you may use this guide to help you continue to discover opportunities for family engagement. Effective engagement of the next generation is not a one-time event. You will be more successful when the next generation is exposed to a series of informal conversations and activities that build over time. »
http://nonprofithub.org/social-media/future-social-gen-z/
http://genhq.com/igen-gen-z-generation-z-centennials-info/
Sharma Goldseeker and Michael Moody, “Generation Impact: How Next Gen Donors Are Revolutionizing Giving,” 2017, pg. 178.
