Through the Atlanta Charitable Advisor Network (ACAN), the Atlanta Jewish Foundation, Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta and The United Way of Greater Atlanta join efforts to educate professional advisors about philanthropy.
ACAN programming is designed to provide advisors with tools and inspiration to engage their clients in greater, more fulfilling charitable giving plans. This programming includes the Balser Celebration, the Philanthropic Advisors Leadership Institute (PALI), and the Balser Giving Circle.
Through this network, advisors benefit from:
- Tapping into the philanthropic expertise of the three preeminent charitable organizations in the Greater Atlanta area
- Being part of a group of advisors dedicated to philanthropy in their own lives and in the lives of their clients
- Being part of a network of advisors from the legal, accounting, financial services, insurance and valuation fields, with the ability to tap into their respective areas of expertise
- Starting and continuing a learning journey with clients around philanthropic issues
- Differentiating themselves from other advisors who do not talk to their clients about philanthropy, creating added value for their respective practices
There are three primary programming components to ACAN:
Balser Symposium and Celebration
Since 2007, the three organizations have collaborated around an annual program, which has been split into two events in the past few years: the Balser Symposium, and the Balser Celebration. These events bring together professional advisors to network with one another and learn about trends and technical issues regarding charitable planning and giving. The Symposium provides a carefully curated combination of speakers and content for continuing education credits, and the Celebration brings advisors together for vibrant networking and celebration of the PALI graduating class and the Balser Giving Circle grant allocation.
Philanthropic Advisor Leadership Institute (PALI)
PALI creates cohorts of 20-30 participants who learn about our nonprofit community, discuss values-based and charitable planning issues, and network together, along with other professionals in the alumni roster that now consists of more than 200 professionals in the greater Atlanta community. Through the year-long program, PALI creates a greater understanding of the values that motivate philanthropic clients, and it helps hone participants’ estate and income tax planning skills as they relate to charitable planning.
Balser Giving Circle
Under the guidance and mentoring of the sponsoring organizations, members of the Balser Giving Circle collaborate to learn firsthand about specific challenges facing our community around an issue of their choosing, and the programs addressing those needs. Participants take an active role in vetting those organizations and supporting them, pooling their personally contributed funds together to make an impactful grant to an organization or organizations. This opportunity helps participating advisors learn to be a better advisor to their clients as they also help their community.
