Bessemer Trust has named Paul Connolly as its Director of Philanthropic Advisory Services. Connolly will be working to expand the Trust’s philanthropic advisory services department and assist clients nationally to develop and pursue their philanthropic interests, define their grantmaking strategies and achieve greater social impact. Bessemer Trust is a century-old wealth management firm that has over $88 billion under supervision for more than 2,100 clients, including over 400 family and independent foundations and endowments that represent more than $3 billion. Connolly will be based in Bessemer’s San Francisco office. He is currently Senior Partner and Chief Client Services Officer at TCC Group, where he has worked for more than 16 years.
“During my tenure at TCC Group, I have been privileged to work alongside a great set of teammates as we have built the firm and enhanced our services to foundations, nonprofit organizations and corporate community involvement programs,” said Connolly. “I am grateful for the opportunity to have worked with so many deeply committed and capable clients and colleagues and value all that I have learned from them along the way, and I am very enthusiastic about joining Bessemer Trust.”
"Paul is a nationally recognized thought leader who is deeply committed to the social sector. He is a respected colleague as well as my friend," says TCC Group President and CEO Richard Mittenthal. "We thank him for his significant contributions to TCC Group and wish him the best in his new position."
At TCC Group, Connolly leads the firm's Capacity-Building Practice, oversaw the firm's Nonprofit and Philanthropy Practices, and serves on the firm's board of directors. He also heads the firm’s Western Region office, based in San Francisco. Before joining TCC Group, he was Associate Director of the Nonprofit Facilities Fund (NFF), a community development organization that provides loans and management assistance to nonprofit groups nationally. Previously, Connolly was a management consultant for nonprofit organizations, working independently in New York and at Storey and Green Associates in San Francisco.
Connolly has been a presenter at the Council on Foundations annual convening and other national conferences, a trainer and facilitator for numerous regional grantmaker and nonprofit associations, and a lecturer at universities. In 2005, Connolly published “Navigating the Organizational Lifecycle: A Capacity-Building Guide for Nonprofit Leaders.” He has also co-authored two books, “Strengthening Nonprofit Performance: A Funder's Guide to Capacity Building” and “Increasing Cultural Participation: An Audience Development Planning Handbook for Presenters, Producers, and Their Collaborators,” and has published articles in The Foundation Review, Stanford Social Innovation Review, Nonprofit World, The Grantsmanship Center Magazine, Journal for Nonprofit Management, OD Practitioner and New Directions for Philanthropic Fundraising. He has served on the boards of a community health center, a local community board and an artists' credit union.
Connolly received his Master's degree in Public and Private Management from Yale School of Management, where he was awarded the Jess Morrow Johns Memorial Scholarship, and a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from Harvard University.