While it is critical to reward good performance by general partners, risks and returns should be equitably shared. Non-marketable alternative asset investors should hold frank discussions with general partners about fee arrangements, fund sizes and other activities that may dilute a proper alignment of incentives.
Active managers and alternative investment strategies offer the opportunity to add value over passive investments and can offer capital protection. However, as recent cases of financial wrongdoing have shown, it is critically important for investors to adhere to best practices in evaluating a manager's claims and demanding both transparency and an ...
The client/manager relationship can develop into a very personalized helping process. However, few managers are adept at directing their clients to use other, more appropriate resources or know how to divert or avoid personal topics with clients. The result is ineffective help for clients and personal and financial cost to families and family offic...
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...
While it is always a good practice to be prepared for possible future transitions, the current economic climate makes succession planning imperative. A well designed succession plan will help protect client relationships, ensure business continuity, promote economies of scale and provide procedures for dealing with the eventual retirement of adviso...
Long-term care insurance, a meaningful solution to the long-term care risk exposure facing the ultra-wealthy, also can be a flexible and economical employee benefit, particularly in light of its statutory classification and tax treatment.
This paper defines a relatively new measure of active management; discusses how it might be used alone and in combination with tracking error to better characterize and compare active managers; discusses how it might help to identify managers most likely to outperform their benchmarks; and promotes further discussion and research of active share as...
Independence, freedom, the ability to choose their own destiny and focus on giving back to their community are the things that motivate extremely affluent women. The ability to pursue work they are passionate about, develop their personal strengths and be of service to those less fortunate make today's wealthiest women happy and fulfilled.
From planning an agenda and obtaining family buy-in to selecting the right venue and leading an event, this short article is replete with practical ideas for organizing family meetings and making them both fun and productive for participants.
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...
While each stage of life presents its own opportunities and challenges, the similarities in the paths individuals need to follow to meet their health and wealth goals are unmistakable. By adopting a holistic approach that includes prevention, proactive planning and professional advice, individuals will be on their way to ensuring a healthy and rewa...
The most intractable conflicts that arise in business-owning families occur when parties support their opposing positions by reference to histories that contradict each other in essential points. Here is a method of using the shared core of opposing stories to maintain reasonable discussion of primary, must-solve issues while not allowing the myria...
Most parents strive to give their children a solid education. Yet among some wealthy families, one area of schooling could use a little more parental TLC. It won't lead to a diploma or show up on anyone's curriculum vitae. But without a solid understanding of their family's wealth, some members of the next generation may be ill-equipped for it.
Preserving family stories is as valuable a legacy as passing on material possessions. This white paper discusses the various media that families can use to preserve precious memories and other elements of their histories. In addition, the paper offers professional guidance for undertaking such a project.
Even for families with generations of addiction, it is possible to achieve sustained recovery and secure the family's finances. Finding the right help for those of wealth and prominence requires persistence, knowledge and professional cooperation with proven, reliable treatment programs.