ABSTRACT
Family philanthropy plays a crucial role in preserving and strengthening family legacy. Family involvement in philanthropy bonds family members across generations. This helps transmit family values and preserve traditions, personal histories, and beliefs, reinforcing the connection both within the family and with the business. The modern approach to engaging in philanthropy is marked by increased professionalism among family philanthropists, with clearly defined objectives for their efforts. Families increasingly invest money, time, talent, and ties while demanding accountability and transparency from the organizations they support. Family offices play an increasingly important role in family philanthropy. In this chapter, we first outline how family offices can help families conduct more impactful philanthropy. Second, we present practical tools we have developed to support novices and established philanthropists and investors within a business family – the Family Philanthropy Navigator and the Family Office Navigator. Finally, we demonstrate that integrating family philanthropy with a family office's broader impact-driven initiatives – such as corporate responsibility, sustainability, and impact investing – enables families to address societal and environmental challenges more effectively while promoting greater accountability and transparency.
