Sandberg Goldberg Bernthal Family Foundation (SGB Foundation)

Background

Sheryl Sandberg, an early Google executive who later became chief operating officer of Meta (formerly Facebook) incorporated the foundation in 2013 in connection with the publication of her book Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead, initially operating as the Lean In Foundation. The foundation was renamed and established a new scholarship fund following the sudden death of Sandberg’s husband, Dave Goldberg, then-CEO of SurveyMonkey, in May 2015. ⁵

In 2016, Sandberg authored a second book, Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy, co-written with Wharton professor Adam Grant, and the foundation incorporated a corresponding grief-support program. ⁵

The foundation operates OptionB, LeanIn, a LeanIn Girls initiative, and a scholarship program named after Dave Goldberg. ¹

Funding

The Sandberg Goldberg Bernthal Family Foundation is primarily funded by contributions from Sandberg herself, drawing from proceeds of her personal stock holdings and book royalties. In 2018, Sandberg committed to the Giving Pledge and disclosed plans to donate her approximately 9.9 percent stake in SurveyMonkey’s parent company, then valued at roughly $200 million, to the foundation, which was directed to the foundation’s affiliated charitable fund. ^{6 7 8 5}

The foundation receives royalty revenue tied to the two books Sandberg authored and draws its operating budget predominantly from Sandberg’s personal contributions through a donor-advised fund. ^{8 5}

Following Sandberg’s marriage to Tom Bernthal, a venture capitalist and television producer, the foundation was renamed to the Sandberg Goldberg Bernthal Family Foundation. The organization also operates an affiliated charitable fund, the Sandberg Goldberg Bernthal Family Charitable Foundation, which maintains over $200 million in assets. ⁴

Activities

LeanIn

The foundation’s primary program, LeanIn, operates what it describes as a network of small peer support groups aimed at professional women. The program claims more than two million members across 172 countries. LeanIn produces an annual Women in the Workplace report, undertaken in partnership with McKinsey and Company, which tracks employment trends and workplace satisfaction among women. The report has been used to promote left-of-center workplace policies, including expanded parental leave; diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)-oriented hiring requirements; and equal pay mandates. ^{9 10}

OptionB

The foundation’s second major program, OptionB.Org, provides online resources, community forums, and educational materials for individuals experiencing grief, illness, workplace disruption, and family hardship, including divorce and incarceration. ¹¹

Dave Goldberg Scholars Program

The foundation administers the Dave Goldberg Scholars Program, which provides $60,000 scholarships, disbursed as $15,000 annually over four years, to graduating high school seniors from two partner organizations: KIPP Public Schools, a national charter school network, and Peninsula Bridge, a Bay Area college-access nonprofit. ¹²

Staff Reductions

In March 2026, the Wall Street Journal reported that the foundation would shed more than a dozen employees, roughly a quarter of its staff, while pivoting LeanIn‘s strategic focus toward countering online content associated with “tradwife” lifestyles and the “manosphere,” terms referring to social media trends that Sandberg characterized as threats to women’s professional ambitions. As part of that restructuring, the foundation appointed Bridget Griswold, a 25-year-old former Meta product manager, as CEO of the Lean In initiative. ¹³

Criticism

Criticism from Feminist Groups

The foundation has attracted criticism from left-leaning feminist organizations and writers for failing to participate in explicitly political activities, including the 2017 Women’s March in Washington, D.C. Other critics within feminist circles accused the organization of being excessively self-referential, directing resources toward sustaining its own support-group apparatus rather than engaging in systemic or political advocacy. ¹⁴

Staff Culture and Compensation

Former foundation employees have described its internal culture as intensely stressful and as one that discouraged criticism of Sheryl Sandberg and her published work. Critics have also cited the foundation’s executive compensation as disproportionate relative to its program outputs and peer organizations. ^{2 15}

Michelle Obama Criticism

Former First Lady Michelle Obama publicly criticized the philosophy underlying the foundation’s Lean In framework as inadequate and ineffective for most women, particularly those without the professional resources and social capital of Sandberg’s primary audience. ¹⁶