Richard J. Wolkowitz’s Post

Most families start their family office journey by using the resources and staff of the family business to manage their personal affairs, including tax, wealth and investment planning, management and reporting matters, bill pay, and personal and real property management. You may want to consider the unintended consequences, risks and performance issues that result from a poorly designed or organically grown embedded family office. Appreciate Margaret Steen of The Family Office Professional (or TheFOPro) for amplifying the concerns to help raise the awareness to families, their operating businesses, and their trusted advisors. #embeddedfamilyoffice #familyoffice #familybusiness #familyenterprise #comingle #structure #governance #organic #managedservices #operatingcompany https://lnkd.in/gUbv5E2Y

In the first of a series of articles, Grégoire Imfeld, founder of ONE Family Governance, looks at some of the pitfalls that Single-Family Offices need to avoid #singlefamilyoffice #strategy

Single Family Offices ("FO") are a hot topic in Asia and I hear a lot of questions about the "governance of family offices"; which has had me reflecting on what I see amongst my clients (which is a diverse bunch). 1. The governance of the FO is not the same as governance of the family - which should drive its own governance. The FO can provide admin support. 2. With the FO the question is more likely to start with what is the ownership governance of the FO? 3. There is a difference between management and governance. My guess is that a lot of people are really asking the question of how should a well managed FO be organized (not governed). 4. If you think about FO governance that is likely to take you to the corporate model - but I have a couple of clients where effectively there is a controlling owner or effectively a partnership model (at the ownership level) and no functional board - and they work fine for this stage. 5. On the other end of the spectrum I see FOs that are essentially under a holding company and in that case I tend to think of the FO as being like a business unit / management/operational level in the group (and yes this arrangement might not fit neatly with the idea that the FO should only deal with the family's liquidity). 6. If you do think of a corporate model where you have a board with INEDs between the controlling owners and the CEO/management - sadly I have seen the FO CEO fall out with the controlling owner and my reflection is that HR advice to help look at development, comp, etc of the CEO can be an important need (not to say that it has to come through the board). 7. Therefore INEDs can help be that buffer between controlling owners and the CEO (or senior managers) and bring the perspective of what is normal. 8. Dennis Jaffe has won me over to understand that the phrase "if you have seen one family office you have seen one family office" - is unhelpful -because there are stages and models and common combinations. That is part of his thinking on Wealth 3.0. 9. Family values are for .... the family! The FO is a service organization supporting the family. Therefore what are the behaviors that are going to help the FO fulfill upon that mission. See my chapter on this in Essential Reads. 10. Some FOs provide support for the family charity; in other cases the foundation is completely separate. How do you decide and when do you decide to make that kind of split? Therefore "governance" might come down to having a periodic strategic/organizational planning process where you look at what you do and how you are organized and ask what what do others do and what is the next step for us? That might involve help from an INED or from an advisory board or just help from your team of advisors. But outside perspective is important. Honored to have two chapters in this new valuable publication from Globe including one on family constitutions https://lnkd.in/gCcWmQ4B

Ten Single Family Office Blind Spots It all comes down to the principals first deciding and then being invested in the fact that the family office needs to be run like a business and not their personal toy. If you can achieve this then the office is likely to be successful, otherwise it has a potential for disaster. F Partners Read The Full Article Here: https://lnkd.in/ejzwU6FT #singlefamilyoffice #familyoffice #familyoffices #privateinvestors #privatemarkets

7 Habits Of Highly Effective People + How Top Family Offices Apply These Principles https://lnkd.in/e44NaDwz #EffectiveHabits #FamilyOffice #FamilyOffice101 #FamilyOfficeStrategies #FamilyOfficeSuccess #FamilyWealthTips #HabitsOfSuccess #HighlyEffectivePeople #PrinciplesForSuccess

Why does the family office “industry” fail to serve families effectively? A thoughtful two-part exploration of the state of the family office industry from expert Edward Marshall of Dentons in Family Wealth Report. Ed proposes a simple, functional criteria for family office services: Does this activity improve the quality of life for the family? Required reading. Part Two is here: https://lnkd.in/e8jQye_Q Tom Burroughes Stephen Harris Theodora Viney Rachel Fokes Philip Harris Andrew Deane #familyoffices #wealthmanagement #strategy https://lnkd.in/eCzmQahZ

My Dentons partner Edward Marshall has taught me many things about our tradecraft. However, one of the most impactful is the concept that family offices are a mindset and methodology - not entities or structures defined by monetary thresholds, lists of responsibilities or tasks, or predetermined objectives. The primary objective of all family offices, regardless of resources, ambitions, family net worth, or operational and organisational style, is to improve the quality of life for families. Framed in this way, all of us technically have a family office performing tasks and managing risks. However, the financial resources available for those tasks are the primary distinction between an ordinary household and what is now commonly described as a family office. I don't think many advisors and institutions purporting to serve family offices understand this mindset and methodology conceptual framework. They view family offices as consumer market segments, legal entities, wealth management firms, business operators, or quasi-financial institutions to be marketed to, regulated, and pitched to for capital/grants. This misconception is often unhelpful and so I am pleased that Eddie has shared his unique perspectives and expertise with a wider audience in this article. #familyoffice #privatewealth   

The Governance Guardrails of Successful Family Offices One of the most critical, yet overlooked, factors that make or break family offices is having a robust governance framework from the start. As this short video explains, effective governance allows you to: 1. Proactively prevent issues before they become relationship-fracturing problems. 2. Clearly communicate the family's values, mission, and long-term vision. 3. Keep members informed on strategic direction, progress, and decisions. 4. Establish structured channels for family members to voice ideas and concerns. 5. Bring the family together to make key decisions in an organized manner. Too many family offices start with just informal ad-hoc governance. But as they grow, that quickly becomes unsustainable chaos. The solution? Implementing foundational elements like: • A Family Constitution - Codifying principles, policies and procedures. The north star. • A Family Council - The core decision-making body representing key branches. • A Family Assembly - A forum for the extended family to receive updates and provide input. • Advisory Boards - Panels of trusted advisors and subject matter experts. • Other Committees - Focused on key areas like investments, philanthropy, etc. With a solid governance blueprint, you ensure alignment. Without it, you're flying blind towards the next emergency! Of course, governance takes work. But like anything priceless, the upfront investment will prevent exponentially more costly consequences down the road. What has your experience been with family office governance - whether having it or lacking it? We'd love to hear your perspectives. Let's discuss in the comments! #familyoffices #familybusiness #familywealth

The Governance Guardrails of Successful Family Offices One of the most critical, yet overlooked, factors that make or break family offices is having a robust governance framework from the start. As this short video explains, effective governance allows you to: 1. Proactively prevent issues before they become relationship-fracturing problems. 2. Clearly communicate the family's values, mission, and long-term vision. 3. Keep members informed on strategic direction, progress, and decisions. 4. Establish structured channels for family members to voice ideas and concerns. 5. Bring the family together to make key decisions in an organized manner. Too many family offices start with just informal ad-hoc governance. But as they grow, that quickly becomes unsustainable chaos. The solution? Implementing foundational elements like: • A Family Constitution - Codifying principles, policies and procedures. The north star. • A Family Council - The core decision-making body representing key branches. • A Family Assembly - A forum for the extended family to receive updates and provide input. • Advisory Boards - Panels of trusted advisors and subject matter experts. • Other Committees - Focused on key areas like investments, philanthropy, etc. With a solid governance blueprint, you ensure alignment. Without it, you're flying blind towards the next emergency! Of course, governance takes work. But like anything priceless, the upfront investment will prevent exponentially more costly consequences down the road. What has your experience been with family office governance - whether having it or lacking it? We'd love to hear your perspectives. Let's discuss in the comments! #familyoffices #familybusiness #familywealth

Is The Rise Of The Single Family Office A Good Thing For Our Business? A great perspective here from the team at Multi Family Office Stonehage Fleming You could think that it is a competitive space but the fact is that SFO’s need good MFOs. Whether it’s for outsourcing certain tasks or specialist advice, there will also be services that the SFO does not provide for it’s principals. This is a huge undertapped market so it’s good to see this perspective. F Partners Read The Full Article Here: https://lnkd.in/dFwt9_Ji #singlefamilyoffice #familyoffice #familyoffices #privateinvestors #privatemarkets