CHARITABLE PLANNING

Hannah Shaw Grove

Charitable giving know-how is essential for supporting wealthy women .

HERE ARE TWO STATISTICS THAT SHOW WHY ADVISORS need to start focusing on charitable giving if their practices serve women or plan to in the coming years . First , women are expected to control nearly $ 30 trillion in financial assets by 2030 , according to a report from McKinsey & Company , a dollar amount that exceeds the current GDP of the United States . Second , philanthropy is the top interest among ultra-wealthy women , those with a net worth of $ 30 million or more , far outdistancing sports , art , education , the outdoors , animals , wellness and music according to the 2022 “ World Ultra Wealth Report .”

As women gain financial power , they ’ re becoming a bigger force in philanthropy than ever before . Donors like MacKenzie Scott , Melinda Gates and Priscilla Chan are just as prominent today as Mike Bloomberg , Warren Buffett and Eli Broad were a few years earlier . In your market , there are generous individuals who often wield the same impact on their communities as those mega-donors do on a global scale .

We are seeing evidence of this in the foundations we work with as well . Over the last five years , we observed a 32 % increase in the number of women in leadership roles , a 26 % increase in the number of women grantors and a 76 % increase in the dollars granted by women — all of which point to the growing role women play in driving philanthropic decisions and impact .

As I discussed in the article “ Meeting the Needs of Givers ” ( in Financial Advisor ’ s December 2023 ) issue , you ’ ll find new ways to engage with clients and deliver value for them when you build your expertise in charitable giving . And with women controlling more wealth and increasing their giving power , the time to do so is now .

Here are some of the things to think about if you want to help your clients successfully navigate their personal giving journeys .

Strategy And Impact

For one thing , you can encourage clients to be strategic and explore the ways they can make the greatest charitable impact . Here are some ways they can do this , especially if they ’ re new to philanthropy :

Get them to define their philanthropic purpose . This is the “ why ” that will guide their giving decisions for years to come . The reason isn ’ t set in stone and it will evolve over time as they encounter new causes and organizations they care about .

Encourage them to volunteer . Th e r e ’ s no better way to understand a charitable organization and its cause than by serving on its board or by providing handson help .

Have them find mentors . They can seek out experienced people who will explain their own philanthropic journeys and offer suggestions for how to give in a way that has impact .

Suggest that they share their own professional expertise pro bono . Doing so can be another way of helping a nonprofit , aside from donating cash and assets . Whatever your clients ’ background is ( whether it ’ s in medicine , law , accounting , investment advisory ), their in-depth knowledge might be something that many charitable organizations would highly value .

Have your clients explore charitable-giving vehicles . While they can always make donations directly to nonprofits , they can deepen their involvement ( and possibly increase their tax deductions ) by using vehicles like donor-advised funds , planned gifts , charitable trusts and private foundations .

Giving Is A Work In Progress

As most philanthropists know , giving is always a work in progress . Many donors ’ goals evolve over time , which is absolutely OK . Experienced givers often

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