Emma Beeston & Beth Breeze - Advising Philanthropists

Philanthropisms

In this episode Rhod talks to philanthropy adviser Emma Beeston and academic Dr Beth Breeze about their new book Advising Philanthropists. Including:

• What are some of the key elements of philanthropy advice?
• How much is philanthropy advice about objective, technical things (e.g. tax, structures etc) and how much is it about subjective things (about finding purpose, understanding values etc)?
• At what stage in their ‘philanthropic journey’ are donors most likely to seek advice?
• Where do donors tend to get philanthropy advice from? What impact does the source of the advice have on the nature of the advice?
• Is philanthropy advice normally a one-off or time limited service, or an ongoing relationship?
• To what extent do advisers see their role as neutral agents servicing the demands of donors vs active agents challenging them/shaping their approach?
• What factors make for a successful donor/adviser relationship?
• What does “success” look like for a philanthropy adviser? (i.e. more giving, ‘better giving’, both?)
• What are some of the biggest challenges/frustrations for philanthropy advisers?
• How common is it for private banks/wealth management firms to offer philanthropy advice?
• When they do, is this seen as a business proposition (i.e. by increasing client retention, strengthening relationships etc), or part of the company’s social responsibility?
• What are the core skills you need to be a philanthropy adviser?
• What is the relationship like between philanthropy advisers and fundraisers? Do the latter see the former as useful points of contact with wealthy donors, or unhelpful gatekeepers?
• What role can philanthropy advisers play in helping to manage the transfer of wealth between generations?
• Are there any signs that next gen donors are more or less willing to seek advice on their giving?
• Are next gen donors looking for the same kind of advice as previous generations or different kinds?
• How much power do advisers have to shape donor’s giving?
• Does this bring responsibilities (e.g. to be transparent about who they are, and what role they play?)
• How many advisers see it as part of their role to make donors aware of critiques of philanthropy and offer them ways of addressing them?

Related Links:

• Emma and Beth's book Advising Philanthropists
• The University of Kent Centre for Philanthropy Masters in Philanthropic Studies (where, if you enrol, you can get taught by Beth, Emma and me!)
• Beth's book In Defence of Philanthropy
• Emma's website
• Emma on the Charity Impact Podcast with Alex Blake
• Emma and Beth's guest article for Inside Philanthropy "Lifting the Curtain on Philanthropy Advising"
• Emma's blog for DSC, "Shedding some light on philanthropy advising"
• Rhod's WPM article "You’re the Philanthropist Now!: A roll-your-own adventure"