How Family Values Drive Sustainability Through Philanthropy, Impact Investing, and CSR
By: Dennis T. Jaffe Ph.D. (Author), Isabelle Lescent-Giles Ph.D. (Author), Jamie Traeger-Muney Ph.D. (Author)
This is the sixth in a series of publications sharing key insights on how Centennial families have preserved their wealth, impact, and connection as a family across generations.
Our team conducted over 100 interviews of both very public and highly private families who, as owners of large successful global family enterprises for more than three generations, have been “stewards of wealth.” We call these families “generative” because they continually add all forms of social, personal, and financial value.
This paper looks at their philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, and community investments as expressions of the families’ values and purposes and at how this commitment is transmitted across generations. Unlike previous working papers where we only shared the experience of our “generative” families, in this paper, we more broadly include profiles of other families.
The research for this study also builds upon ongoing confidential work led by Isabelle Lescent-Giles at Hult International Business School with 50 next-generation leaders of large, multigenerational family conglomerates around the world and on in-depth interviews with leading experts and philanthropic families who shared what they have learned about values-driven social impact. These stories shed light on how Centennial (lasting 100 years) families define, practice, and operationalize social impact as philanthropists, industry leaders, social entrepreneurs, and investors.
In addition, we look at how they have successfully balanced tradition and innovation or “roots and wings.” This balancing act enables them to stay true to the values of the founding generation while adopting new priorities and practices in each successive generation. This also enables these families to stay current with the changing social and environmental needs of their community.
