FOX Series

Our minds are on constant information overload from article headlines, tweets, and even conspicuous eavesdropping in coffee shops and subways, often causing us to get stuck in conversations on topics that we must bluff our way through. I remember being at a family philanthropy conference several years ago and ended up in the middle of a conversation about Bitcoin. The conversation seemed relevant to many of the topics covered that weekend, but I had pushed cryptocurrency to the side as something that wouldn’t affect me. Not wanting to be totally silent, I chimed in about how “chainlink” techno...

Author: Rena Greifinger, Senior Lead MaverickNext, Population Services International Empathy. Child-like curiosity. Trust. Failure. These traits are what should guide the next evolution in philanthropy.I think often about the future of the social sector, not just because it is what my current job entails, but because it has been my life-long professional path and purpose.I’ve worked in non-profits my entire career—big ones, small ones, international ones and local ones. I’ve attended thousands of meetings and conferences, designed dozens of programs and strategies, and written countless g...

I am the oldest son of a successful business owner and have been actively involved in the business for 14 years. I have two siblings who are not currently active in the family business but may be in the future. As my father’s level of involvement in the business naturally slows, my responsibilities have increased with anticipated acceleration in the next 3 to 5 years. My father joined FOX when he heard about it through a business associate. He was initially the only member of the family involved in FOX, and I have increased my involvement over the past several years which has been very re...

"How do you prepare younger family members to manage their wealth well and flourish in their own lives and in their families?"Every family is challenged to find creative ways to engage family members in the process of learning – about the family and what it values and owns, as well as what it takes to care for these human and financial assets.While every family’s learning and development program will be unique and reflect the needs of its students, there are several best practices to which all can aspire. This list is culled from conversations with family leaders, industry educators, family me...

A family 'like ours'My siblings and I agree that we are fortunate to come from a family like ours. When I say, ‘like ours,’ I mean very close, sort of ‘in each other’s business,’ and with a sense of responsibility for preserving our family dynamic and the opportunities that we have been afforded. I know that, while we are not common, there are other families like ours out there. It would be extremely beneficial for me to know how those families organize themselves. I am especially interested in how families approach integrating new members into the family.When asked to clarify what generation ...

How are families adapting to changing market dynamics?While investing has never been straightforward, investing today in the face of current uncertainty feels overwhelming to many long-term investors.Faced with today’s starting valuations and current yields, many investors have little confidence that the traditional equity/bond portfolio that has generated meaningful returns over the past 30 years will be able to produce the investment returns expected and likely needed by a family to maintain wealth for generations.Amidst the current uncertainly lies opportunity; many families are materi...

This may not come as a surprise, but individuals have lost trust in the major institutions that have served as the framework of our modern society. Businesses, NGOs, government, and the media have all suffered a loss of trust in recent years for a variety of reasons.One of our great fears about a world where trust is imploding across the board is that families will be driven to turn away from their external advisors and become more self-directed or insular, making them vulnerable to traps and jeopardizing their success. On the other hand, in times of great vulnerability and distrust, the loyal...

Given the current state of the market, many investors that I am speaking with are considering changes to the “what has worked before” approach.When I am looking for guidance on the complex macro environment, I often turn to Jeffery Gundlach, CEO of DoubleLine Capital, LP. I have asked DoubleLine to open the FOX Spring Investment Forum in San Francisco on March 13 and present their views on this complex environment. Jeff laid out his thoughts in a recent DoubleLine newsletter, Thought Leadership, released on January 9, 2018. He has been exceptionally prescient in the past years, and his mantra ...

I am fascinated by the complicated ways that automation may transform the labor force—and how dramatically the acceleration of technology in the work place may impact the economy—and society, more broadly. As one example, how might driverless cars, taxis, and trucks affect issues of productivity and income inequality, and what type of retraining may be needed to find gainful employment for those affected? McKinsey Global Institute, the business and economics research arm of McKinsey & Company, summarizes their research on the potential implications of automation and shifts in job crea...

When you are a business-owning family, sometimes you can become so completely focused on the growth and continued success of the business that you forget the equally important mission of focusing on family. Family business owners of course need to understand the nuances and performance of the business in order to remain knowledgeable and caring owners, but they also need to spend time getting to know each other—whether siblings, cousins, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, etc.—regardless of what each person’s role might be in the family and in the business.A great way to keep the family flowing a...

Preparing the next generation, especially wealthy children or trust beneficiaries, is one of the hottest topics in the high net worth world. Quite frankly, the consequences of not addressing this are enormous and impact future generations. Resources are squandered, cracks form in family relationships, and in the case of trusts, adversarial relationships may develop and fester – triggering dysfunction that manifests for generations. The possibility of a next-generation family member polarizing either to overspending and self-indulgence or burdensome guilt and shame is increased greatly without ...

The Private Family Trust Company structure has evolved from a new concept to one that is now established and used widely by family enterprises as a strategy for managing increasing complexity within their enterprise. With the evolution of the PFTC, there are hard questions that need to be asked such as how should and how does the PFTC contribute to a family’s most important goals and how does the PFTC protect the family’s most important assets? In this blog, Robert Galloway, Partner, Baker Hostetler raises unique questions to consider when operating a PFTC in order to maintain standards that f...

From a historical perspective, the private family trust company (or PFTC) is a relatively recent structure employed by successful, strategically-oriented families. Those who manage these structures have been, in most cases, focused on those entities’ organizational and operational requirements. However, many of those managing PFTCs have been quick studies and are now looking beyond their entities’ most pressing, initial needs—proper organization and implementation of effective operations and risk management—to focus on how their PFTCs can help trust beneficiaries live better, more satisfying l...

What is a Private Family Trust Company?A private family trust company (PFTC) is a state-chartered entity designed to provide fiduciary services to members of a family. PFTC is distinct from a “family office” in that it can serve as a fiduciary under state law. Private family trust companies can take on many responsibilities commonly performed by the family office, including investment and financial management, accounting, and recordkeeping. They can also operate separately from the family office, while still relying on it for administrative and back office support through a se...

Cybersecurity is a topic of great concern among our members as many face the challenge of keeping family members and their financial information safe. Scott Augenbaum, a 30-year veteran of the FBI, offers the following 15 cybersecurity tips that don’t cost a lot of money or take a lot of time, but that can help you eliminate 90% of your risk of experiencing a cyberattack:Think before you click on a link or open an attachment; become a human firewall and question every email.Intrusion Detection Systems are a must, but they will not stop everything as virus writers write in excess of 50,000 new ...

You’ve worked so hard to make your family business a success, but eroding trust and simmering conflict threaten to derail the progress you’ve made. Is that a sign that your family business won’t make it to the next generation?Not necessarily. In fact, most conflict in family business is natural, rational, and predictable. After all, family businesses have to navigate a whole host of challenges that most other businesses don’t – the power, status, money, legacies, and relationships at stake are enormous. The decisions that family businesses face are of significant consequences to many stakehold...

Paramount to every enterprise is a healthy, abundant supply chain. Regardless of the end product, the quality and quantity of the raw materials will dictate the quality of output. For those of us in the business of funding other businesses, a good, strong source of high quality deal flow is essential.When I started to design the business model for Skin in the Game, I wanted a better, less expensive way to generate deal flow. Knowing supply-chain disruption from my past life, I sought to build a source pipeline that was plentiful, diverse (in sector, region, founder) and automated – with no sta...

“In life, longevity is a gift only if you know how to use it. And as we prepare to tackle issues related to family journeys at the FOX Fall Forum, I wanted to highlight an interview with one of our presenters, Coventry Edwards-Pitt, CFA, CFP®, Chief Wealth Advisory Officer at Ballentine Partners, LLC and author of the new book Aged Healthy, Wealthy & Wise. In her upcoming session, Covie will share insights from vibrant elders about the factors that allowed them to design meaningful later lives as well as the best practices that each of us can put in place today to ensure that our aging pos...

As president of Family Office Exchange, I spend much of my time outside of our Chicago headquarters travelling to far-off locales to meet with families who are part of the FOX community, as well as those considering membership. With FOX members in 20 countries, travel keeps me busy, but it’s a part of my role that I truly enjoy, and this international dimension helps make our membership stronger.By speaking with families around the world, I’ve realized that the majority of issues they face are universal. Aside from the few topics that are unique to one’s geographic location, it doesn’t ma...

Members of the FOX Client Experience Council – a like-minded group of executives from single and multi-family offices around the country who gather in person twice each year to learn together, share resources and socialize – are in constant pursuit of creative ways to surprise and delight their clients.At a recent Council meeting, their homework included reading the book Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business by Danny Meyer and sharing their ideas for applying the lessons in the book to their family offices.Following are some of the group’s key takeaways:Enlighten...

Conscious leaders know that co-creation is a possible choice along with competition and compromise. They have developed the wisdom and skill to know which option to choose and when to choose it.Competition leads to win/lose. Compromise results in lose/lose. Co-creation brings about win/win.Competition requires a belief in a zero sum game. Anything I get is something you don’t, and anything you get is something I lose. It occurs in a low trust relationship. I don’t trust you or the universe at some fundamental level. Therefore it involves withholding relevant information, opinions, and authenti...

More advisors to families of wealth are wondering if an asset-based pricing structure has out-lived its useful purposeIt seems long ago that wealth advisors could charge an asset based fee that covered the cost of providing investment services with a "cushion" leftover to cover additional services such as planning, education and advice. And, if all went according to plan, the firm would earn a reasonable profit margin.Well, times have changed. The investment portion of the fee is being hammered down by low cost providers and the buying power of large investors. The cost of providing an unconst...

Jackie Kennedy Onassis once said: “If your children turn out well, nothing else matters. If your children turn out badly, nothing else matters.”Having the young people in your life turn out well is as important as anything else you do in life, right?The children’s happiness depends on it. Your happiness depends on it. And if you’re part of a family business and you want it to continue, your legacy depends on it.The big question is, “How do you help them turn out well?”Family Stories, a Key IngredientFortunately, there’s a good answer to this question. According to Dr. Robyn Fivush, Direc...

According to the 2016 FOX Family Office Compensation and Benefits survey, only 30 % of offices offered long-term incentive plans.Family offices are often looking for talent with specific expertise and understanding of a family office environment. Long-term incentives can be pivotal in attracting and retaining talented employees. Knowing such plans are not widely used, being innovative and creative in the incentives offered can be a key differentiator to attract and keep the most talented people. In FOX 2016 study, the long-term incentives used include deferred compensation, long-term per...

David Lough’s wonderful, engrossing, nightmarish study of Winston Churchill’s reverse Midas touch (Picador, 2015) inspires our old friend Michael Harkins, chief of Levy, Harkins & Co., to draw a monetary and investment lesson.No More Champagne, written by a former banker who knows his money, chronicles the long-running calamity of Churchill’s personal finances in the context of the parallel disaster of the British pound. At the heading of each chapter is the sterling/dollar exchange rate and a rough-and-ready translation of historical purchasing power into contemporary money. “James Grant,...