In recent years, American generosity surged with charitable giving hitting a record $592.5 billion1 in 2024. Yet, behind this rebound are the pressing questions about where philanthropy is headed next.
With lean teams, a shifting policy landscape, public funding declining, and mounting community needs, family foundations are under pressure to evolve, rethinking how they work, govern, and give in 2026 and beyond.
These pressures aren’t theoretical; they’re playing out daily in boardrooms, grant meetings, and community consultations.
To understand how family foundations are responding, it’s essential to look at the specific challenges they’re facing now and how those challenges are reshaping priorities and practices across the sector.
1. Small teams, big workloads, and limited bandwidth
Many family foundations are built on personal commitment and intergenerational values, not extensive staff teams. Many are run by just one or two people, responsible for everything from vetting applications to preparing board materials. In some cases, it’s the trustees themselves doing the work.
That might be manageable if systems were built to support such agility. Instead, many foundations still rely on a combination of spreadsheets, shared drives, and emails to keep track of everything, a setup that consumes more time than it saves.
“Our docket got so overwhelming with paper it took two days to put together and each docket was about two inches thick. We said, “There’s got to be a better way.” All of our board members now have iPads and we do everything online. Our board is from 67 years old down to 25, and they all came in and said, “I was skeptical and it’s wonderful.”
– Susan Haley, Dean and Margaret Lesher Foundation, Foundant client
Time is a precious commodity. When hours are lost chasing documents or manually compiling reports, it’s not just inconvenient, it’s unsustainable. And with rising expectations across the sector, those inefficiencies come at a greater cost than ever.
2. Rising trustee expectations for transparency and results
The makeup of foundation boards is changing. As younger generations assume more leadership and governance roles, they bring higher expectations, both for how data is presented and how decisions are made.
Gone are the days when an annual report would suffice. Trustees now want real-time access to grant data, outcome tracking, and financial insight, all in digestible, shareable formats. They expect clarity, not complexity; dashboards, not spreadsheets.
This demand is not unfounded. It reflects the broader shift in donor engagement, particularly among next-gen board members.
Foundations that adapt to this digital-first, result-focused expectations are better placed to maintain continuity across generations and attract future leaders.
3. Reducing administrative burden on Grantees
Foundations across the philanthropic sector are increasingly embracing models of flexible and responsive grantmaking to better support grantees and maximize impact. This shift reflects a commitment to reduce administrative burden on grantees, provide resources that align with real-time grantee needs, and shift decision-making closer to the communities their grantees serve.
“Many of our nonprofits prioritize their missions over infrastructure because they lack the resources to invest in their own growth and development, and we saw an opportunity to step in and act by exploring more flexible support.”
– Houston Endowment
Responsive grantmaking is not a mean, but a mindset built on humility, trust, and adaptability. Formalizing flexibility, reducing grantee burden, and prioritizing relationships reflects a broader shift in philanthropy—one that values listening and learning as much as leading and doing. As community needs evolve, so must the practices of those who support them. These examples offer possibilities, not prescriptions, grounded in real-world experience and grantee voices.
4. Economic & market pressures
These past few years have included an unprecedented amount of uncertainty in the philanthropic and social good sector. From inflation, market volatility, policy changes, and geopolitical uncertainty, there are mounting concerns facing private and family foundations that can feel overwhelming.
When investment returns decline, foundations often find themselves balancing two competing priorities: preserving long-term assets and meeting immediate grantmaking commitments.
Economic pressures don’t just affect financial portfolios—they influence strategic decisions. Foundations may need to reassess spending policies, diversify investments, or explore alternative funding models like collaborations with other funders using pooled funds. For family foundations, these decisions can be even more nuanced, as they often involve aligning financial realities with deeply held values and legacy goals.
Foundations that fail to adapt may struggle to maintain impact, while those that embrace proactive planning—such as scenario modeling and liquidity management—and leverage their relationships and networks are better positioned to weather uncertainty.
“Fluctuations of net asset returns may point to an environment in which volatility continues to be higher than in prior years. This may also point to the increasing importance of risk mitigation strategies, such as stress testing the portfolio (38 percent of private foundations that took any action on risk management did so, according to this year’s Study), or conducting a formal portfolio risk analysis (33 percent).” (Commonfund Institute, 2024)
By anticipating economic headwinds and adjusting accordingly, private and family foundations can continue to fulfill their missions without compromising their long-term viability.
5. Responsible use of Technology and AI
AI’s greatest promise is the time it gives back to people. For grantmakers, that means fewer hours spent on data entry, analysis, and reporting and more time strengthening relationships, supporting innovation, and investing in community impact.
Funders aren’t the only ones turning to AI. Many grantseekers now use it to streamline their grant applications, leaving grantmakers to sift through more submissions than ever before. While AI promises speed, funders should be aware of its limitations to avoid eroding trust or introducing harmful biases. Responsible grantmaking matters.
“AI can help foundations give grants faster and learn more effectively. It creates chances for community, family, and all types of foundations to save time and increase impact. But if AI is used carelessly—by sharing private data or being unfair—it can damage trust and weaken your mission.”
– George Weiner, Chief Whaler, The Whole Wale
Adopting AI isn’t an all-or-nothing leap; it’s a progression. Learn more about taking a crawl-walk-run approach to AI:
eBook
Responsible AI for Foundations
Unlocking AI for Philanthropy: Safely building your foundation’s digital brain without compromising data security
Why agility is no longer optional in 2026
Agility has never been more essential. As public funding declines while demand for charitable services surges, foundations must be able to act quickly, with confidence and coordination.
Manual processes, duplicated tasks, and disconnected tools create friction at precisely the moment when responsiveness is most needed.
Agile foundations can turn funding requests around more quickly, support grantees more effectively, and reduce burnout within their own teams.
Agility is governance. It’s well-being. And in today’s landscape, it’s a competitive advantage.
Time-saving benefits of the right platform
Not all grant systems are designed for the unique needs of family foundations, some cater to large institutions with complex workflows and formal processes; others focus heavily on compliance but neglect usability.
For family foundations , a purpose-built grant management system (GMS) should be flexible, intuitive, and aligned with how they already work.
Key features to look for include:
- Configurable workflows that reflect internal approval processes and funding cycles.
- Role-based dashboards that give trustees and staff quick access to relevant data, and only the data they need.
- Integrated communication tools to reduce reliance on external email threads and missed messages.
- Cloud-based access that supports flexible work across teams and geographies.
- Compliance support, including audit-ready reporting.
The time-saving benefits of switching to a grant management platform go beyond convenience; they create space for greater impact.
When your grant management system does the heavy lifting, your people can do the high-value work that drives change.
Start a conversation about supporting your foundation’s mission
Every family foundation has its own unique story and approach to its work. However, the challenges facing funders in 2026 are remarkably consistent: increased pressure, higher expectations, and insufficient time.
The right grant system can make all the difference. It can help your team stay ahead of trustee requests, collaborate more effectively, support your mission with less friction, and foster closer relationships with grantees. And when done well, it becomes more than just a tool; it becomes a foundation for giving.
Foundant has a suite of purpose-built grant management solutions that help grantmakers operate with greater clarity and efficiency, no matter their size.
Learn more about how we can support your work.
About the Author
Roberto Cremonini is Foundant’s Chief Community Officer. In this role, Roberto works with colleagues, clients, and thought leaders in the philanthropic sector to help foundations use technology to transform their grantmaking and amplify their social impact. Before joining Foundant, Roberto founded Cremonini Consulting Network and worked with foundations and nonprofits to help them assess and improve their grantmaking, knowledge, learning, and evaluation practices. Between 2003 and 2010, Roberto was Chief Knowledge & Learning Officer at the Barr Foundation, where he managed the team responsible for strategy, evaluation, communications, and Information Technology. Roberto serves on the Directors Emeriti Advisory Board of the Cambridge Community Foundation and is a former trustee of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) and José Mateo Ballet Theatre. He received his MS in electrical engineering summa cum laude and his Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence from the University of Bologna. He holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Sources
1 – Curtis, K. (2025, November 3). What the 2025 Bank of America Study of Philanthropy reveals about giving today. Giving USA. https://givingusa.org/what-the-2025-bank-of-america-study-of-philanthropy-reveals-about-giving-today/
Commonfund Institute. (2024, October 3). Viewpoint | Top concerns for private foundations: Financial volatility and target returns. Commonfund. Retrieved January 8, 2026, from https://www.commonfund.org/research-center/articles/viewpoint-top-concerns-for-private-foundations