If any of the following situations are familiar to you, you probably have a family office embedded within your business.

• There is a department within the company referred to as “shareholder relations”
• Certain employees are dedicated solely to working with the family without other business-related responsibilities
• There is a separate physical space, often at the company’s headquarters, that houses employees working on family matters
• Employees are interacting directly with the family’s outside financial advisors on personal financial matters 
• Family members are billed directly for time spent by the business employees on personal financial matters
• The company’s IT department is used to set up personal devices and serve as a ‘help desk’ for family members
• Family member tax returns are coordinated by the company’s Tax or Accounting Departments

This blog post is excerpted from the new FOX white paper, Managing Family Capital Generated by the Family Business, which looks at the advantages of separating a family's wealth management from their operating business.