Timing is everything | When to engage a philanthropic advisor?

When is the right time to engage a philanthropic advisor to achieve effective and lasting results? You and your family may be exploring estate and tax planning strategies with your advisors. Philanthropy and social impact are likely a part of the conversation. You are asking big questions about legacy planning and how to take care of your family financially, morally and ethically. You also want to make a lasting impact on your community. 

Partnering with an effective philanthropic advisor can alleviate anxiety around big moments of inflection in your life by focusing you and your family on a higher purpose. Thoughtful philanthropic planning can engender a sense of peace that your wealth is being put towards a greater good. Family values and the family narrative are instilled in future generations. Your legacy – not just your wealth – will live beyond you.

Questions you may be considering:

Wealth/Tax Planning

• Have you had a significant wealth event in your family? (sale of a business, inheritance)
• Are you planning for a future wealth event?
• Are you considering tax strategies to alleviate a burden that involve philanthropic vehicles?
• Are you thinking differently about your wealth and how it might extend beyond yourself and your family?
• Are you considering how much is “enough” for your lifetime and how much is “enough” to leave to children and grandchildren? Once these questions are answered, you may be curious about what to do with the balance.
• Are you looking for ways to create a lasting impact beyond your family?

Legacy Planning

• Are you contemplating your legacy and impact in the world?
• Are you thinking about what a family legacy might mean or look like?
• Have you or a family member become aware of or more engaged with a particular cause or organization and want to delve deeper?

Family Success Planning/Governance

• Are you exploring ways to define values and translating family values to the next generation?
• Does the older generation in your family want to invite children and/or grandchildren into a bigger conversation about wealth and its meaning and how it translates to community impact?
• Has your family’s giving dynamic shifted to include different decision makers? (marriages, deaths, next gen aging into leadership roles)
• Has your family’s geographic footprint expanded?
• Are you interested in exploring philanthropic giving vehicles to expand your impact and meet your needs?

If you are reflecting on these questions and answering yes to some of them, it is time to start work with a philanthropic advisor. You don’t have to wait for all of the answers to become clear. An effective philanthropic advisor’s job is to work through these questions with you in a planning process.

About Grant Philanthropic Advisors:
We’re an independent, Charleston-based firm helping clients to focus and maximize their philanthropy—in turn, strengthening the fabric of our communities. Founded in 2019, we help donors move from responsive patterns of giving by assisting clients to identify values and become more strategic in their philanthropy. Our goal is to help donors to become more effective as change-makers. Our team has a combined 100 years of experience working in the field of philanthropy.

We work with foundations (large and small staff teams), donor advised fund holders, multi generational families, individuals, philanthropy supporting organizations and corporations to design philanthropic strategies. We work with philanthropies that grant $1 million to $40 million annually. Our clients span the Southeast with a concentration in Charleston, Atlanta and Charlotte.