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In a rapidly evolving virtual world, many family offices are revising or creating document retention practices to make sure they have secure access to critical personnel and family financial records. Through a series of FAQs and a checklist of what documents to retain, you can ensure that you have an up-to-date document retention policy as part of ...

Families often find it challenging to talk about long-term plans and wishes of their aging parents. But it’s never a good idea to wait until there’s a crisis to rally family members together on a plan that will address mom or dad’s needs and wishes regarding healthcare, living arrangements, and long-term financial care. Knowing how to get the conve...

Potential drains on business efficiency include groups of remote workers unable to communicate well with one another, tools that make it hard to adapt to changes or new needs, and the high cost of equipment and IT personnel. Integrating cloud-based solutions address these areas, including better workflow and collaboration and document management. I...

Traditionally, wealth advisors use a succession planning framework that involves working with the founders to look downstream to the next generation for an effective “passing of the baton” strategy. In contrast, a multi-generational approach encourages each person within the family system to contemplate and share with others where they’ve come from...

Succession is not just about money or property. It means confronting family relationships and taking the time to make sure that the drivers for succession planning connect personal motivations, the purpose of wealth, and specific family issues. It requires an emotional commitment to a process that once started must run its course, including having ...

Research indicates that multigenerational involvement is the single most important factor in sustaining family wealth into the third generation and beyond. Furthermore, the families that most successfully integrate younger members into their family operations seem to share the same philosophies and core values. It’s a family enterprise mindset that...

Runaway data growth is probably one of the greatest risk factors facing organizations today. With many organizations struggling to deal with the rapid explosion of data, coupled with increasingly aggressive regulatory enforcement, how should they drive change in information governance to achieve operational efficiencies and guard against data breac...

Avoiding the issue of succession planning is much easier than starting a conversation about handing over the reins to other family members. But avoidance does not defer the inevitable, and it puts family harmony and wealth at risk. As patriarchs and matriarchs of wealth families confront the issue of succession planning, there are seven questions f...

At the start of a family enterprise journey, there is often a patriarch (or matriarch) who was both an entrepreneur and a leader who overcame uncertainty or adversity to create something very special with the potential to last for many generations. For the families seeking to sustain their legacies, there will come a time for the patriarchs to move...

Succession will happen—it’s a matter of when, not if—so families should approach it with strategic forethought, flexibility, and responsiveness to ensure a smooth, successful transition. Through three different scenarios that encompass most transitions, learn how the decision-making process succession varies in significant ways across those scenari...

Robust governance practices form the cornerstone of success for the family wealth enterprise, and ongoing succession planning is one element of a mature governance system. As family considers its future succession, it is vital to understand why a well-conceived plan is so important and what the critical elements of the plan entail. Here, we outline...