Frequently Asked Questions

What characterizes a Dietel & Partners' client?

We advise those with philanthropic resources: individuals, families, and foundations. Our clients have philanthropic assets between $5-500+ million.

We work with those who advise individuals and institutions with philanthropic resources: wealth advisors, trust and estate lawyers, family offices, etc.

We assist those who receive philanthropic resources: grantee organizations, collaborative efforts, and other social impact entities. We work with over 200 grantee organizations annually.

We partner with others in the philanthropic and social sectors to help move the relevant fields forward through funder collaboratives and membership organizations.

How do you help clients with their philanthropic needs?

We educate and guide individuals, families and institutions on effective and responsible philanthropy.

We help clients identify philanthropic goals that align with their values.

We assess a client’s risk tolerance and determine how philanthropy fits into their lives.

We build custom portfolios of grantee organizations for our clients that demonstrate what’s possible with their resources.

We provide support to our clients’ grantee organizations.

We assist families during wealth transfers between generations.

We protect our clients’ anonymity while helping to develop their philanthropic portfolios.

If desired, we play quarterback with other family advisors to help put the family values that guide philanthropy at the center of all planning.

We help clients who are interested in aligning their investment portfolios with their philanthropic values and interests to ensure that their investments at the very least are not undermining their philanthropic goals and to move in the direction of utilizing all assets for positive change. We are not registered investment advisors but we can shepherd the process with current advisors and help source additional advisors to bring the needed expertise to the table.

What services do you NOT provide?

We aspire to help our clients in most facets of their philanthropic path, However, there are specific areas where we are not the appropriate advisor, including tax, accounting, legal, or investment services.

Why do clients hire you?

Buy vs. Build Some clients prefer to buy our services instead of building their own family foundation. We can provide better quality service at a more economical price.

Strategic Thought Partner Many clients have a grant-making infrastructure and process in place and hire us to provide strategic perspective on what is possible to achieve with their resources.

Anonymity Some clients prefer to be anonymous to grantee organizations.

Learning Journey Other clients want help preparing to run their own foundation or philanthropic initiative.

What distinguishes your interactions with your clients?

We don’t have expectations about what a client should know about their philanthropy. We engage with clients at any point in their philanthropic path. We’re accessible when we’re needed, and we believe it is good practice to meet our clients in person, whenever possible.

Each client has a direct relationship with one of the firm’s Partners. Partners build out a support team based on a client’s needs.

We gain a deep understanding of a client’s values, so they are clearly reflected in their philanthropy. We design and lead family meetings and retreats, and coach individual family members on their board service and volunteer engagements. When appropriate, we work with family office staff, as well as their accounting, legal and investment advisors. We often play a leadership role in bringing together all advisors to create a shared understanding of a client’s philanthropic needs.

How does Dietel & Partners operate?

We are committed to social justice and gender equity working internationally as well as domestically.

We take pride in our grantee-centric approach and are active field builders.

We are active members in 20+ sector collaboratives, affinity groups, membership organizations, and funder networks, and present and participate in nearly 20 philanthropy and issue area conferences annually.

We have experience building grantee portfolios in the following issue areas and geographies.

We invest our own capital. We believe it is critical for us to be active grant makers ourselves and have granted nearly $1 million as a firm.

We recognize the extreme privilege of doing this work, and as a virtual company keep our costs down by not having splashy offices.

What do you mean by "Trim Tab Philanthropy?"

Buckminster Fuller served in the U.S. Navy during WWI, was an engineer and inventor and coined the brilliant “Trim Tab” metaphor we often use. Layla Acaroglu, in Disruptive Design, summarizes his metaphor well:

"Even the biggest ship changes direction thanks to one of its smallest parts. Way in the back of a boat, down inside the rudder, is a small part called a trim tab. This mechanism moves one way, and the ship turns in a new direction. Bucky reminded us that we are all trim tabs, tiny parts of a big systems, all working to move the ship in different directions.”

The entirety of available philanthropic dollars in the world is not enough to fight injustice head on. We need to deploy these precious resources creatively. In our world, Trim Tab Philanthropy funds those ideas, organizations, and initiatives that have the ability to effect outsized positive social change with the resources philanthropy has to offer.

What types of charitable vehicles does Dietel & Partners have experience working with?

• Charitable Trusts
• Donor Advised Funds
• Community Foundations
• Family Foundations
• Pooled Funds
• Support Foundations
• Checkbook philanthropy

How are your fees determined?

We strive to provide high-quality, customized service to our clients at a fair rate. We charge fees commensurate with the services we provide. Rates are determined according to:

• Length of contract
• Geographic focus of the portfolio
• Complexity and number of grants
• Requirement for additional resources, expertise, and/or use of intermediaries
• Extent of fielding-building activities

We utilize 3 pricing frameworks based on the type of client engagement:

• Percentage (%) of annual grant disbursements reflects an arrangement where Dietel & Partners is a fully-outsourced option for the client.
• Monthly retainer reflects an engagement where Dietel & Partners provides continuing targeted advice, education, and support.
• Project fee is used when Dietel & Partners works with a client on a one-time discrete project. Project fees are based on the anticipated time and resources involved plus travel and related expenses.

I’m working for a non-profit looking for funding. Can Dietel & Partners connect me to funders?

Unfortunately, due to the client-oriented nature of our work, we cannot accept unsolicited proposals for funding, and we do not make unsolicited referrals. We wish you success in your efforts.

Can you provide my non-profit organization with advice?

While we value the number of organizations doing interesting and important work around the world, we cannot offer advice and counsel to those outside of our current client portfolios.

We encourage you to continue to build strong connections with others in your field and seek opportunities to showcase your work. There are numerous funder and non-profit affinity groups that can help connect you. Our Network & Affiliations