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In difficult economic times such as this, we tend to forget — or minimize — the impact of turnover in the office. This is primarily due to the fact that people seldom leave their jobs in a tight employment market — even if they are unhappy. Turnover is costly, particularly in a small office environment. Smart family offices will p...

The world is changing at a frantic pace. New bestsellers appear weekly on management techniques, time management skills, effective leadership, philanthropy, tax planning, investments, law, etc. Many concepts in these books are revolutionary; others just repackage the "idea of the week."The knowledge necessary for a professional just to st...

Enumerating the tasks family office employees must fulfill is only part of the goal-setting process. The decisions and actions of every employee impact a family office's success in serving its clients, so it is critical for employees to understand the mission of the office and how their roles, targeted goals, and "behavioral competencies&q...

Regardless of the size of your family office staff, annual employee performance reviews are an integral part of keeping talented people. Performance reviews document an employee's job performance, outline strengths and weaknesses, and align the employee's career goals with the family office goals.

Family offices, by definition, are professional-staff intensive and allocate as much as 70 percent of total operating expenses to compensation costs-a significant portion of the budget. (See page 3 for information on FOX studies of wealth management costs and family office compensation.) In light of the current market environment, with markets cont...

Building and sustaining a team of responsive, compatible employees is one of the keys to a successful family office. In the sports world, professional team managers use a variety of diagnostic tools to enhance their team-building techniques. In the family office, managers can use similar diagnostic tools to gain valuable insights into how groups of...

According to early results of the 1999 Family Office Exchange Compensation and Benefits Practices survey, a tight labor market in which the most talented professionals are not changing jobs or are being recruited quickly is boosting salaries and increasing benefits. Family offices still have the edge but face increased competition from internationa...

The cloud is the hottest buzzword in the technology industry right now. The whole subject of cloud computing, however, is often clouded — so to speak — by a lot of technical terminology and marketing hype. This white paper is an introduction to cloud computing written specifically for investment managers. It explains what cloud computing is, descri...

The increase in ultra-high net worth families around the world—especially in the emerging economies of Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America—makes family offices a growing force in the global investment market. But if family offices are to live up to the high expectations of their client families, they must offer an exceptional level...

Video biographies are an emerging instrument many ultra-high-net worth families are commissioning to help preserve their history. The biographies allow the wealth builders, or their progeny, to discuss, in their own words, important topics that are of concern to them – family governance issues, estate and tax strategy, philanthropic arrangements an...

The term "art storage" is something of a misnomer as it is not solely focused on the storage of paintings and sculpture. Art storage applies to the safekeeping and preservation of a wide variety of property, everything from prints to jewelry to couture fashion to wine. This paper details seven crucial characteristics you should seek in an art stora...

A complete and well-developed art service platform can be a competitive advantage for a family office, and as competition increases these platforms will be more global, transparent and diverse in their offerings. Knowing these trends and changing your office to accommodate them can set a family office on solid ground with often demanding collecting...

Once a “fad” for tweens, teenagers and young adults, social media has morphed into a long list of websites and other applications that are frequented and used by people of all ages. Used correctly, social media can reap many benefits for families of wealth and their businesses. However, inappropriate use can wreak havoc on families' reputations and...

Just a couple of decades ago a fortune of $50 million was more than sufficient to justify directly employing a staff of accountants and investment managers to keep track of the family finances, including the holdings of various trusts and foundations. Today, the “break even” point is closer to $250 million and climbing. Hence, many former single-fa...

Social media has moved from the fringes of techno geek culture to the mainstream with astonishing speed. The terms “social media” (or “social networking” or “Web 2.0”) is a catch-all for a variety of digital services, usually free to users and carrying advertising. Technology has always outpaced regulation and social media is no exception. Regulato...