Center for Family Legacy Preserving intergenerational wealth

Strategic planning isn’t just for companies and nonprofits. Private wealth can also benefit from a targeted approach in order to preserve assets, foster family unity, and align wealth objectives with your family’s core values. Truist Wealth’s Center for Family Legacy emphasizes comprehensive family engagement, transparent communication, and value alignment as essential elements in intergenerational wealth transfer.

In the 16-year, 120-family study, Bridging beliefs and behaviors: Key insights into effective wealth transfer across generations, a central aspect of strategic planning is creating long-term objectives that support wealth preservation and thoughtful distribution, including for philanthropic and legacy purposes.

Despite recognizing the importance of these practices, many families experience gaps in engagement, particularly between generations, which strategic planning aims to bridge. Strategic planning provides a cohesive vision that clarifies roles across generations, helping to prevent the “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves” phenomenon, where wealth dissipates by the third generation.

Establishing clear wealth objectives creates a shared understanding of long-term financial aspirations. This alignment helps family members make cohesive, informed decisions that reflect their collective principles.

When working with Truist Wealth, families create a blueprint that enhances wealth longevity and intergenerational continuity by identifying these core aspirations.

David Herritt, head of the Truist Wealth Center for Family Legacy, explains, “We guide families in articulating their wealth goals by exploring their values, financial history, and life objectives.”

Carolann Grieve, managing director of family governance at the Center for Family Legacy, adds, “Each wealth objective aligns with the family’s broader mission statement, addressing specific goals like funding education or supporting community initiatives.”

Herritt notes that the process can lay out “what success looks like for each family member while ensuring the family’s overarching mission is upheld.”

According to the Center for Family Legacy study, generational differences shape perspectives on establishing clear wealth objectives, with varying levels of engagement across age groups.

Third-generation members demonstrate a higher engagement in setting wealth objectives than first- or second-generation members. These younger adult children and grandchildren may show this sentiment based on their search for information and clarity on their impending roles as family leaders.

They want to understand the expectations and legacy they will inherit, contrasting with first-generation members who often assume that their intentions have been made clear to younger family members.

This pattern suggests an opportunity for structured discussions to bridge these perspectives, helping each generation align on wealth objectives that honor the family mission while preparing younger members for responsible stewardship.

A vital component of Truist Wealth’s strategic approach is equipping younger generations with the knowledge necessary to manage wealth responsibly. The Center for Family Legacy offers a range of educational programs, from basic financial literacy to advanced economic concepts, providing access to economic insights, market updates, and personalized workshops.

“We emphasize the importance of connecting financial theory to real-life applications,” says Silke Shilling, senior governance associate.

Economic understanding helps younger family members become confident wealth stewards. Herritt explains that the goal of this education is to ensure each family member understands economic principles and can make informed decisions to preserve wealth.

This younger group demonstrates enthusiasm and increased engagement in financial education, likely influenced by observing the successes and challenges of previous generations. Interestingly, the second generation shows comparatively lower engagement in economic understanding activities. This can create a gap in preparedness that the third generation can bridge by participating in wealth education sessions and applying financial principles in real-world settings.

Center for Family Legacy Managing Director of Governance and Education Daisy Medici emphasizes “early economic literacy as essential for cultivating informed wealth stewards.” The Truist Wealth educational programs aim to foster “economic aptitude,” preparing younger generations to adapt to changing financial landscapes and carry forward the family’s legacy responsibly. This comprehensive educational approach strengthens the family’s financial foundation and promotes sustained wealth across generations.

Truist Wealth encourages clients to anticipate hardship as well as success in wealth management. The Center for Family Legacy offers resources like planning workshops and tailored guidance to help families anticipate and manage risks associated with changes like marriage, divorce, retirement, facing a critical medical diagnosis, and others.

“Life events can greatly impact wealth, and addressing these proactively ensures smoother transitions,” Grieve notes.

In some ways, this wealth risk management process parallels the strategies used in business risk management. “Our approach focuses on equipping families with the tools and strategies to navigate potential disruptions, from healthcare needs to property investments,” Herritt explains. This forward-looking approach aims to safeguard wealth and a family’s adherence to its values. By preparing for these events intentionally, families minimize surprises and foster a sense of preparedness across all members.

The recently released, long-term Center for Family Legacy research shows that each generation values these preparations, though engagement levels vary significantly. The eldest and youngest generations are generally more proactive in planning for life events than the middle generation.

Transparent communication is essential in a strategic plan for sustaining wealth across generations. The Center for Family Legacy team encourages regular family meetings, where members can openly discuss wealth objectives, estate plans, and values. “Establishing a structured communication framework bridges generational divides, preventing misunderstandings and fostering a unified vision,” says Shilling.

Truist’s approach aims to cultivate a culture of engagement where every family member feels involved in the wealth journey. These structured communication sessions foster an environment where each member listens and contributes, allowing different generations to express their goals and expectations openly.

Research indicates that second and third generations report higher engagement in structured communication frameworks compared with the eldest generation. They value structured family meetings as essential for fostering transparency and shared decision-making more than the eldest generation. This intergenerational communication gap underscores the need for inclusive dialogues early on to establish alignment on wealth goals and expectations.

Aligning financial objectives with family values is fundamental to Truist’s strategic planning approach. By helping families develop mission statements encapsulating core values, Truist ensures wealth-related decisions remain faithful to the family’s overarching principles. Herritt emphasizes, “The success of a family’s legacy lies in aligning wealth objectives with personal and shared values, creating a resilient and enduring framework for future generations.”

This values-based approach shapes how financial resources contribute to a meaningful legacy. The Center for Family Legacy team emphasizes values-driven planning, which helps families create a shared understanding of their financial legacy, navigating complex questions around wealth distribution, philanthropy, and individual goals.

According to the study, different generations within wealthy families view the importance of aligning wealth with family values in distinct ways, often based on each generation’s sense of legacy and individual goals. Having built the wealth, the eldest generation places high importance on ensuring their values continue to shape family decisions, often taking steps to preserve their vision for family contributions and safeguard their legacy.

The elder generation may also express concern over younger generations potentially using family wealth in ways that do not align with the family's foundational values. The youngest generation tends to be more engaged in discussions around aligning values, seeing family wealth as a resource and an opportunity for collective growth and purpose. This generation values a structured approach to philanthropy and decision-making, which helps solidify the family’s mission in meaningful ways for future generations.

Families can achieve wealth continuity through a structured approach to strategic planning, adapting to life’s transitions, and upholding a cohesive family vision. By focusing on clear objectives, economic understanding, preparation for significant life events, intergenerational communication, and alignment with core values, Truist Wealth’s Center for Family Legacy provides a comprehensive guide to strategically managing and sustaining wealth that benefits current and future generations. This strategic planning framework helps families preserve their legacy, nurture unity, and prepare each generation for the responsibilities of wealth transition.