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If you are wondering how it is possible that everyone in your family is offering an excuse for missing the family meeting date, then it is time for some new ideas or approaches to turn these meetings into events that no one wants to miss. How? By planning a purposeful family event that also happens to include the family meeting. In addition, it wil...

This paper will examine ways to lessen six of the greatest risks to preserving and enjoying multigenerational wealth. These six risks are: concentrating your assets, overspending, overusing leverage, poor tax planning, not attending to liabilities, ignoring family governance

Adult children, who one day will manage a family's wealth, need to understand the values and investment strategies of older family members. This article from Northern Trust shows how a family's elder statesmen can pass on a family legacy of more than money to ensure continuity and financial security for future generations.

Solving complex social problems can require breaking down the barriers of centuries-old political, social and ethnic conflicts. This article from Synergos explores the concept of bridging leadership as a method of bringing opposing groups and diverse leaders together for social change.

The current economic environment offers parents the opportunity to educate their children about the transience of wealth and the need for self-reliance. This paper from Relative Solutions offers suggestions for overcoming a sense of entitlement and for increasing responsibility among next-generation family members.

A hundred years is a long time. It is especially long in an age of the Internet, cell phones and Blackberrys. Society is also very much focused on instant results. Nevertheless, planning for the next 100 years is one of the most critical tasks a wealthy family faces today. With this 100-year plan, a family sets in motion a culture and philosophy th...

Based on a global survey of high-net worth individuals, including almost 300 family business owners, the eighth instalment of Barclays Wealth Insights provides fresh analysis into the state of family businesses around the world today. The report will assess the current situation and prospects of family businesses, and examine in detail their un...

As their personal wealth and educational levels have increased, women have sought a more equal and active role in family governance, philanthropy, and business and financial planning. This article from RayLign explores the changes that have empowered women and how those changing roles affect family leadership, decision-making and relationships.

When it comes to reaching your family’s financial objectives and perpetuating its wealth, integrated family wealth planning is critical. A family governance system can significantly facilitate that process. This evergreen guide offers best practices and key elements of an effective family governance system, one that can be instrumental and flexible...

An inherited fortune may come with strings attached as wealthy families make a college education or job experience a condition of inheritance. About 60 percent of families with more than $10 million in assets place stipulations like these, according to a report on attaining and retaining wealth from Barclays Wealth. The report also discusses the im...

Family businesses are most at risk for financial troubles based on a lack of formal succession planning and preparation, and on family business owners' personal financial issues, according to MassMutual Financial Group's 2007 American Family Business Survey. The survey also found that family businesses are growing in jobs and revenues, and ...

Too often, family disputes over power and money are settled publicly in the courts, creating rifts among family members that may linger for decades. This article from Withers Bergman emphasizes the importance of transparency among family members and recommends non-legal solutions, such as the formation of a family council, regular family meetings, ...

A new paper from Butterfield Private Office outlines private trust companies and how ultra-wealthy individuals and families can use them to manage a wide variety of assets while retaining a large measure of control over the administration of those assets.

As the management and control of a family office passes to a younger generation, it is common for new leadership to reassess many of the organization's strategic elements against a new measurement criteria, a necessary process that can lead to difficult and transformational decisions. For many, the single-family offices that remain will bear little...

The current financial crisis has caused many individuals to re-evaluate the role that money plays in their lives and has given families the perfect incentive to have realistic conversations about money. Noting that family advisors and mental health professionals long have advocated "financial parenting," this paper offers guidance for raising finan...