Navigating your philanthropic journey using a personalized Canada Gives Road Map
One of the most common questions asked by successful entrepreneurs who exit a business, or others who gain considerable wealth through life events such as an inheritance, is: what next? With financial independence achieved, they wonder what they’ll do with their time and how their wealth will impact family dynamics. Of growing importance to so many high net-worth individuals: How can they use that wealth to plot a meaningful road map to make an impact in their community and beyond? Many of these newly wealthy individuals want to embark on a rewarding philanthropic journey, but simply don’t know where to start.
They will often (very wisely) turn to a trusted advisor for guidance. In turn, the advisors that maintain a relationship with the Canada Gives team can start them on their journey to give back in a very strategic way, aligning funding interests that matter to them with the right charities and programs in the NFP sector. That starts by establishing a donor advised fund (“DAF”)—or as we call it, a Foundation account—with Canada Gives. When compared to a private foundation, a Foundation account at Canada Gives is a fully turnkey option, can be opened in less than a day, incurs no costly set up fees and is administered in full by our team (including all charity vetting, reporting and Canada Revenue Agency filing and compliance).
Canada Gives also allows a philanthropic family to recommend their existing financial advisor to manage the funds in their Foundation account, while enabling them to establish a long-term giving strategy built around tried-and-true investment best practices. Most importantly for so many philanthropists, they can use their Foundation account to involve multiple generations of family members in their giving, teaching their children and grandchildren about philanthropy and instilling a sense of financial acumen and responsibility without making them privy to their family’s full wealth, if they choose.
But if they don’t have a defined direction for that giving, they run the risk of becoming ad hoc donation cheque writers, rather than the engaged, strategic philanthropist they hope to become. Enter the Canada Gives Road Map.
Developing a strategic plan or “road map” is a method our Client Services team developed to provide many of our Foundation families with the ability to map out and manage their philanthropic journey using a graphical interface. Our team helps them determine their annual gift planning target, while considering the minimum annual disbursement quota set by CRA. Then the real fun starts.
We have many processes in place to help our donor clients and their families determine the general categories in which they hope to direct their philanthropy. That can include areas such as health care, social services, education, specific community causes, animal rights and many more. The goal is to help them highlight their areas of interest, narrow down the ones for which they’re most passionate and then target their generosity from there. The good news: this doesn’t have to be a perfectly thought-out process. Many philanthropists will find that their interests evolve over time, as will the causes they support. Their grant recommendations will shift accordingly. Not to worry—that evolution is all part of the philanthropic journey.
Once those general categories have been identified on their personal Road Map or Plan, our Client Services team will help them identify the causes that best represent the interests of them and their family, while also delivering the most positive, lasting impact to their community. Our team will present a selection of potential charities or non-profits for their review, then (once selected) direct grant requests to those organizations from their Foundation account.
The Road Map isn’t a static document. It’s a living, breathing guidepost for their philanthropy. It should be reviewed regularly and amended as needed. It’s meant to add a dynamic dimension to their giving, one that can be shared across families (or deployed for use by different family members in situations where a philanthropist establishes multiple Foundation accounts for their loved ones). And for our clients, it’s yet another complimentary value-add to their service experience.
Think of the Canada Gives Road Map as a signature tool for our Foundation clients that encapsulates the many best practices that we’ve developed as an organization—and one that provides a truly meaningful philanthropic experience to donor clients.
The Canada Gives Team
To learn more, contact a member of our team today.
