FOXCloud: What’s on the Minds of FOX Members – January 2025
The following were the most talked about topics within the networks on FOXChat in January 2025:
Career Development and Performance Improvement Plans
We are looking for templates for career development plans and performance improvement plans for family office employees. Does anyone have any resources they are willing to share? (Source: FOPeer & HCAP)
- What type of role will this be used for? The pathways can vary depending on the position. Are there specific technical requirements or soft skills you'd like to emphasize? I'd be happy to help you get clarity on this.
- Career development plans for family offices are quite specific in terms of ensuring they adapt to your specific needs and are not simply a generic template from which to work. That said, I have seen and developed several, and each includes some overlap of areas to consider, including core objectives, career interests and pathways, milestones, leadership development (where these skills will be obtained), and learning and development and mentoring/coaching, for starters. Another item to consider is the age of the family office member you are working with, as modifications will be necessary.
As for performance improvement plans (PIPs), these are more generic in form, meaning ones found in the business sector can be easily applied to the family office environment. Please note PIPs are normally used as a last effort to get an employee or family member to improve their performance in specific areas in specific ways with tight deadlines prior to being relieved of their duties. Happy to discuss further if others are interested.
Bahamas Shipping
One of our family members has a home in Harbour Island, Bahamas. At times, we need to ship various items there such as small appliances. The shipping method we currently use has not been working out well in terms of timeliness and tracking. Does anyone have a shipper they could recommend? (Source: FOPeer)
- I live in the capital Nassau. Did you it get sorted out? I'm just seeing this message now. Have you tried the Fast Ferry? A personal friend of mine is one of the boat captains. He confirmed that they dock directly at the Harbour Island Port. He also mentioned the Day Break as another shipping option. You may reach out to me directly if you need further clarification.
Member Referrals Requested:
This section includes service providers that members have recommended and/or are looking to hear about other members’ experiences.
Agricultural Accounting/Tax Services
Seeking recommendations for agricultural accounting/tax services in or near Cedar Rapids. (Source: ADVPeer)
- We have had some experience with agriculture accounting and are happy to connect. If we are not a good fit, we can try to help you find a firm. www.berrydunn.com
Coin and Currency Appraiser
Can anyone recommend a coin and currency appraiser in the Dallas-Fort Worth or the Houston area? Not looking for someone who just wants to buy, but someone who can advise on timing and method of disposition, value the coins, etc. (Source: FOPeer)
- I’d recommend National Rarities. They are based out of St. Louis, MO, but are currently in Fort Worth. https://www.nationalrarities.com/
- We used this company last year to sell a family member's gold coins, and it worked out well: APMEX, Inc. http://www.apmex.com/
- I had a family member in the Metroplex use these coin dealers to help value, advise, and dispose of a very large coin collection and was very happy with them: Southwest Gold & Silver on Camp Bowie in Fort Worth, C R Coins in North Richland Hills, and South Park Coin in Forney.
They may not do a formal written appraisal like what you see for art collections, but they do inventory your items and can give a current value. They are honest with you on prices if they buy your inventory from you or sell it for you. She had a much better experience with them versus the auction houses in the area.
External CFO/Project Manager
We are looking for an external CFO or Project Manager to oversee a critical legal matter for one of the family's companies to ensure that the overall legal and accounting costs of the project (expected to be in the millions) are well-managed. This is beyond the skill set of the existing CFO and there is no inside legal counsel to manage this. For SEC reasons, the family office needs to be walled off from this and it cannot help with this management. (Source: FOPeer)
- I have someone who may be a good fit and interested in this project. Please have FOX connect us if you are still looking.
MFO/CPA Bill Pay and Accounting
One of our teams has a client who does not quite meet the profile of a small family office, either in complexity or balance sheet size, and is looking for a smaller MFO-type practice or CPA that could handle a more simplistic bill pay set-up and potentially some accounting needs, ideally in the Phoenix area. Any experience or recommendations would be appreciated. (Source: ADVPeer)
- We have a team at Rehmann that can support this work! Let us know if you would like to connect.
- Ballentine Partners has a handful of clients in Arizona and visit the area for meetings. Members of our team have expertise in these areas. If you'd like to discuss, please let me know.
- The Grupp Law Firm serves as a multi-family office and virtual family office. I would be happy to set up a consultation.
- TFO Family Office Partners, located in Phoenix, is another option.
Private Plane
We have a family member who wants to use a private plane to travel from Austin, TX to Montgomery, AL in late February. However, our family and family office do not have any subscriptions for plane services. Does anyone have experience or recommendations on places to start for a one-time round trip using a private plane? Any recommendations on services or other general advice are appreciated. (Source: FOPeer)
- I have used New Flight Charter with a lot of success in the past.
- My Aviation Manager recommended reaching out to Aerial Jets. My contact, an operator/broker, can access all aircraft in the charter marketplace.
Private Trust Company Attorney
A fellow member is looking for a referral for an attorney/law firm that specializes in private trust companies? Any insight would be greatly appreciated and feel free to email me directly or reply to this post. (Source: LC & PTC)
- We set one up about five years ago. We're based in Florida but looked at several other states. Ultimately, we decided to form ours in Florida and used Gunster in WPB Florida to set it up. Our contact was very knowledgeable and efficient. I think he's speaking at the FOX PTC webinar later this month.
- We worked with McDermott Will & Emery LLC. www.mwe.com
- I have worked with McDermott Will & Emery. They are experts regarding the design and operation of private trust companies. They are experienced in dealing with complex ownership and governance structures, including when a PTC administers trusts that own operating businesses.
- We also use a specific contact at McDermott Will & Emery, and she is fabulous. Very responsive, practical and knows the field inside and out.
Vendor Analysis, Audit, Scoring
We are looking for a consultant that can assist with a vendor analysis/audit. To summarize, we are looking to evaluate all our existing vendors and score them accordingly (A, B, C, D) depending on key factors which we can discuss. The output will be a report that we can use as benchmarking to be sure our vendors are meeting certain standards each year and to justify removing them or using them for additional projects. (Source: ADVPeer & FOPeer)
- BerryDunn has experience with vendor analysis/audit and would be happy to assist with your project. We can help evaluate your vendors, create a scoring framework, and provide a report. Let us know if you'd like to connect and discuss further! www.berrydunn.com
- The Rehmann team will be able to assist and support this project. Please let us know if you would like to connect. We can get a call scheduled! www.rehmann.com
Watch and jewelry collection liquidation
Seeking recommendations for assistance with a client located in Kentucky who's looking to liquidate their watch and jewelry collection worth $10M. Any resources or recs would be greatly appreciated. (Source: ADVPeer)
- I would strongly recommend Freeman Hindman, a great auction house that specializes in selling single family collections of all kinds. They are a national firm with many offices around the country and I would be happy to introduce you to their senior leadership.
- I suggest you reach out to Ronald Varney Fine Art Advisors. They have experience with this, including Rolex and Patek Philippe watches and entire jewelry collections. www.ronaldvarney.com
Additional Topics of Interest Seeking Peer Recommendations, Feedback, or Insights
(Your comments can be submitted as a reply to the message on FOXChat or emailed to networks@familyoffice.com for FOX to post and share anonymously on your behalf.)
AI Use Policy
Has anyone implemented a Generative AI use policy for their organization? With the rapid rise of AI use in 2024, I have been asked to create a policy for our organization in the new year. I am curious if a) other family offices have enacted policies and b) if they would be willing to share with the group. (Source: TODS)
Data Aggregation Feed
We are attempting to establish a data aggregation feed with Ameriprise for one of our clients. Unfortunately, we have run into some roadblocks with our current contacts at Ameriprise not knowing who they need to get involved to help accomplish this. Does anyone out there have a current data feed with Ameriprise for your technology? If so, do you have a contact (IT or back office) you worked with and are willing to share with me? (Source: ADVPeer)
Email Disclaimers
A new member would like to know how other offices are incorporating legal disclaimers in email footers? Is anyone using tailored language outside of the standard boilerplate? (Source: LC)
Foundation Annual Report
We are looking to prepare a nice visually appealing annual report of what our founders' foundation accomplished in 2024. If anyone has examples they would like to share with us, we would love to see them to get ideas. FOX can connect us. (Source: FOPeer)
Investing Cash Windfall
Our family trust recently sold an illiquid asset. The cash from the sale will triple the size of our investment portfolio of publicly traded securities and P/E funds.
Seeking input on what policies and guidelines other family offices used with similar circumstances. Particularly interested in strategies/rationale for staggering the deployment of cash over time. (Source: FOPeer)
Personal Art Curator Benchmark
Would anyone be willing to share salary information for a personal art curator based in NYC? The art curator works in-house for the principal, and we are looking for benchmark information. Any information is appreciated. (Source: FOPeer/HCAP)
Surrogacy
How have other families addressed surrogacy in defining family membership for governance, inheritance, or participation in family business structures? Are there best practices or considerations to ensure clarity and inclusivity, particularly when the child is not genetically related to the family? (Source: FOPeer)
Tucson, Arizona CPA
A client recently moved to Tucson, AZ and is looking for a CPA for tax prep services. We appreciate referrals. (Source: FOPeer)
Software Reviews/Experiences
This section contains software platforms that members have recommended and/or are looking to hear about other members’ experiences.
Coreplay
Has anyone implemented Corepay as an accounts payable software? If yes, would you be willing to discuss? (Source: FOPeer)
Key to Network Acronyms
- ADVPeer: Advisor Peer Community
- FOPeer: Family Office Peer Community
- DIN: Direct Investing Network
- FLN: Family Learning Network
- HCAP: Human Capital Network
- LCN: Legal Counsel Network
- PTC: Private Trust Company Network
- RGN: Rising Gen Network
- TODS: Technology Operations & Data Security Network