Capital Allocators Ep. 496 — "Promote Giving: A New Model for Performance-Driven Giving"

Guest: Joel Hulsinger, Co-Head of Ares Alternative Credit
Host: Ted Seides
Date: April 9, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode spotlights Promote Giving, a movement that merges high finance with philanthropy, founded by Joel Hulsinger of Ares. The initiative asks GPs (General Partners) to pledge at least 5% of the performance incentive (“promote”) from a fund or family of funds to charities of their choice. Building on analogies like the Buffett-Gates Giving Pledge, Promote Giving is designed to be universal and flexible, cultivating both lasting impact and a new community culture among leading alternative asset managers. Joel shares his personal journey, the founding story, and early successes—revealing a model with the potential to reshape both giving and the investment industry’s approach to purpose.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Joel Hulsinger’s Personal and Professional Background

[04:09–10:10]

• Grew up in a family with deep roots in service: father/grandfather were pastors, mother and extended family were nurses.
• Early life in Oregon and Idaho; worked hard to pay his own way through college; first airplane flight at 15.
• Initially planned to be an engineer but pivoted to finance after discovering a passion for investing.
• Had formative experiences at Citi, then moved into specialty finance/startups with future industry leaders (several who became top executives at Fortress, Wells Fargo).
• Personal wealth created the incentive to do work “for the right reasons”; pivotal trip to India (with PATH Global Health) furthered his philanthropic perspective.
• Realized the transformative impact of charitable dollars abroad and sought ways to blend career with philanthropic purpose.

Genesis of Promote Giving at Ares

[10:10–14:31]

• Joel joined Ares with a unique ask: a “charity tie-in” as a condition of employment.
• Worked with Ares CEO Mike Arougheti to commit 5% of Ares’ promote (performance fees) from their “Pathfinder” flagship fund family to charity; Joel personally committed 5% of his promote.
• Named the fund “Pathfinder,” symbolizing impact (and a nod to both PATH Health and Ares/Mars mythology).
• Over $50M already accrued; in 2025 alone, $5M awarded to global health and education causes.
• Key lesson: Growth and cultural alignment around purpose create sustainability and impact in business and philanthropy.

“I did a trip…to India…When you’re sitting there in Dharavi, in the slums in Mumbai, you get a lot of perspective on life, on what you want to do.”
— Joel Hulsinger [09:34]

Internal Reactions, Overcoming Skepticism, and Shifts in Thinking

[11:46–14:31]

• Initial support from Ares leadership, but some hesitance from Chairman Tony Ressler regarding precedent and perception.
• Over time, results changed leadership perception—Ressler later admitted, “I was 100% wrong”—highlighting how internal philanthropic engagement became catalytic.
• “Now there’s a whole bunch of funds that give 1 to 5% of their promote to help fund… our charitable foundation.” [13:47]

“Not only did it help change the way we think about philanthropy at Ares, but now there’s a whole bunch of funds that give 1 to 5% of their promote to help fund the Ares charitable foundation—that’s completely separate from what we did at Pathfinder.”
— Joel Hulsinger [13:47]

Launch and Structure of Promote Giving

[14:33–16:05]

• The idea: keep it simple. Any GP can commit “at least 5% of their promote of a fund or fund series” to a philanthropic cause of their choosing—no forced central fund or direction.
• Flexible: “It doesn’t even have to be the entire firm…whatever the passion is from that particular group.” [00:05, 14:37]
• Modeled after the Giving Pledge but for investment funds, launched October 2025.
• Initial focus was on opening the movement to other managers and creating a community for collaboration.

Real-World Impact: Stories and Outcomes

[16:05–17:22]

• Example 1: Grant for a surgical center with Mount Sinai in Zimbabwe; cost savings and impact of 6,000 surgeries per year.
• Example 2: Support for Educate Girls in India—door-to-door education and re-enrollment of girls, with a small grant impacting 150,000+ students.
• Total of $4M in seven grants in 2025, and the program is in early stages of impact.

“If you thought of what that surgical center would cost in the US, you’re probably talking $50 to $100 million. You’re able to truly save lives…just from one single grant.”
— Joel Hulsinger [16:24]

Building a Movement: Community and Early Uptake

[17:22–19:46]

• Within six months: eight founding signatories, including heavyweights like Silverpoint (Robert O’Shea), Collar Capital (Jeremy Collar), and Macarora (Chad Pike), as well as Pantheon, Pretium (Ted) and others.
• Both larger and smaller firms participate, building bridges and even collaborative deal-making among firms.
• Community is a catalyst for trust-based partnerships (“half of getting deals done is who do I want to trust, who do I want to partner”).
• The model has begun receiving interest globally and across asset classes (hedge funds, private equity, credit, real estate, venture, secondaries).

“You’ve created this unique community…Half of getting deals done is who do I want to trust, who do I want to partner.”
— Joel Hulsinger [18:17]

Elevator Pitch and Addressing Misconceptions

[19:46–21:16]

• Focused on telling the origin story and emphasizing organizational culture: “Karma is real…put good things into the universe and good things happen.”
• Common confusion addressed: Promote Giving is not a pooled fund—each manager/director/company chooses their own charity and controls direction.
• Promotes collaboration and learning about philanthropic giving within the industry.

Goals, Vision, and Lasting Purpose

[21:16–23:34]

• Joel’s vision: redefine “billionaire” by striving to give billions—not just make billions—through Promote Giving and personally.
• Argues the structure aligns investor incentives (higher returns for clients) with social purpose, without compromising end-investor returns.
• Sees Promote Giving as a blueprint for permanent philanthropic funding models and improved organizational culture, recruitment, and purpose.

“My definition of billionaire is being able to give billions to philanthropy… I sit here today pretty confident that’s going to happen because it’s just logical.”
— Joel Hulsinger [21:27]

• Closes with a reflection on legacy, quoting Jeremy Collar: “Is your 13-year-old self proud of what you’ve done? Is your 85- or 90-year-old self proud? Those are the things that really matter.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Philanthropy and Business:
  “It fully aligns the culture of teams. It fully aligns the dual purpose because you’re driving the highest returns to your investors…and you’re driving the highest dollars to the philanthropy when you do that out of your pocket, not out of their pocket.”
  — Joel Hulsinger [21:46]

• On Career Evolution and Giving Back:
  “I was a poor kid who had done well and didn't need to do it anymore. So you should do what you want to do for the right reasons.”
  — Joel Hulsinger [07:10]

• On Legacy:
  “You want to be able to look back and say, hey, we did everything we could to improve this and the dollars and the impact that come out of this are absolutely amazing at what you can do.”
  — Joel Hulsinger [23:20]

• On Changing Minds:
  “Tony [Ressler] looked right at me and said… I was 100% wrong…not only did it help change the way we think about philanthropy at Ares, but now there’s a whole bunch of funds that give 1 to 5% of their promote…It changed the way I think of philanthropic giving.”
  — Joel Hulsinger [12:57]

Timestamps for Major Segments

• [04:09] Joel’s personal backstory & path to philanthropy
• [10:10] Creating a charitable tie-in at Ares/Pathfinder
• [11:46] Internal reactions at Ares and shifting leadership perspectives
• [14:33] Launching Promote Giving as an industry movement
• [16:05] Stories of impact: surgical center in Zimbabwe, Educate Girls in India
• [17:22] Early signatories and building community
• [18:40] Expanding to new asset classes/regions
• [19:54] Elevator pitch and dispelling misconceptions
• [21:21] Long-term vision: “becoming a billionaire” by giving billions

Summary

Joel Hulsinger and Ted Seides explore Promote Giving as a simple yet potent model for uniting the alternative asset industry around charitable giving. The episode blends personal narrative, practical lessons for implementation, and inspiring outcomes—from new hospitals in Africa to educational access in India. Promote Giving is “the Giving Pledge, reimagined for investment funds”—a model fueled by individual initiative and collective buy-in, aiming to transform both philanthropic landscapes and industry culture for decades to come.