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| Pros and Cons in Discussing Philanthropy |
| The Planning Process |
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| Known nationally for her work in philanthropy, Mally Cox-Chapman takes an individual approach to advising clients. |
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| Effective family philanthropy comes out of careful planning, good governance, meticulous administration, and sound advice. |
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Starting the Philanthropy Conversation
As a financial advisor, you have multiple options for getting the philanthropic conversation going. If you are uncomfortable having the conversation yourself, you can refer your client to a Benefactory advisor, whose skills are to help your client articulate philanthropic goals.
As a starting off point, consider asking the questions that you believe will illuminate your client's values. The following are two of the 22 questions that a Benefactory advisor would ask, and you are free to use:
- Please list your five most meaningful donations. These will probably be the biggest ones, but that is not necessarily so. Please rank each of the donations from 1 to 5, 5 being the highest, for the satisfaction each donation gave you. Satisfaction comes from creating impact in your community and/or joy to you and your family.
- Do you have any debts of gratitude to pay?
A Benefactory advisor can help your client articulate goals and also educate your client as to the pros and cons of different charitable instruments. She/he can help your client do an environmental scan of the client's fields of interests to find appropriate non-profits. Then, as a client's interest in philanthropy sharpens, a private foundation that you manage might be the next step. Or, philanthropic estate planning might be the outcome. In either case, your client will appreciate that you have helped him/her get the process started.
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A financial advisor recently recommended that Benefactory work with a client in the Midwest, as the client had been talking for years about the need for a family foundation. The trustees flew in from all over the country for a two-day meeting facilitated by Mally. Towards the end, the trustees were talking about who should manage the money. The financial advisor was mentioned as “the one who got us Mally,” and the family decided that he should get the account. The foundation assets represent 3 million new dollars under management for that advisor.
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