The Complete Family Office Handbook: A Guide for Affluent Families and the Advisors Who Serve Them

by Kirby Rosplock

Everything you need to know for successful wealth management for families Although the family office concept is not new, it is a phenomenon that is changing the wealth management landscape. With celebrities and business moguls, investment gurus and family business icons establishing private wealth management advisory firms, more and more individuals are asking what exactly is a family office and how does it operate? Family offices either serve one family exclusively or typically manage the wealth of a number of affluent families. If you’re like most families and advisors, you’re familiar with family offices, but may not know exactly how they work or why the family office is right for you or your clients. Dr. Kirby Rosplock, an expert on the family office concept, provides insights to some of the most common questions and even misperceptions in this handbook. The Complete Family Office Handbook explains how family offices operate, who should consider forming or joining one, and how to craft and set up a structure, purpose and vision for the office that fully serves a family’s particular needs and investment goals. Whether you’re a wealth creator, a member of a wealthy family considering forming or joining a family office, or a professional contemplating a career in this growing segment of the wealth management industry, this comprehensive guide provides insights to some of the most common questions and misperceptions.

Genres: Business, Finance

404 pages, Hardcover

First published August 7, 2013

Reviews

[Elruin Elmsroot · Rating 3 out of 5]

A worthwhile reference, but not a particularly deep one.

The most valuable insight is that managing substantial family wealth is ultimately an exercise in institutional design. Portfolio construction is only one layer. The harder problem is deciding who has authority over capital, under what constraints, with what information, through which structures, and how those decisions survive changes in people, markets, and generations.

The discussion around governance, ownership, succession, professionalisation, risk, and the relationship between family and investment structures is useful because these issues tend to compound quietly. Poor governance can destroy the advantages of good asset allocation; misaligned incentives can become more expensive than investment mistakes; and complexity without a clear decision architecture becomes a liability of its own.

Where it falls short is in the areas where judgment matters most. There is not enough depth on capital allocation under uncertainty, concentration versus diversification, liquidity architecture, balance-sheet thinking, institutional incentives, and the trade-offs between control, return, resilience, and optionality. Those are the questions that become increasingly important once wealth is large enough that preserving flexibility can matter more than maximising headline returns.

Ultimately, it works better as a map of the territory than as a source of differentiated thinking. Its breadth is impressive, but breadth inevitably comes at the expense of the depth required to examine the difficult edge cases and second-order consequences of managing substantial family capital.

Solid, useful, and comprehensive—but not deep enough to deserve four stars.

[Beverly Steiner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was interesting to read about who would start a dynasty, and some of the jobs in it. But not what I expected. I like to read how people are advised and inside information for the wealthy. Not the case here.

[Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Most fear process, believing it will be overly restrictive and constraining; the reality, however, is that process gives order, sets boundaries and expectations, and can help when precedents are achieved… If the sailboat avoids the reef, the passengers do not notice”.

[A · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read, structured and enlightening for a legal professional. I enjoyed the portions on region specific trends and wish it could have been explored.

[Tigran Mamikonian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Хрестоматийная книга на тему Семейных Офисов. Категория Family Office является наиболее широкой и имеет много трактовок, но наиболее точно основную функцию Family Office в книге изложена цитатой: "... As confidant, they provide objective, unbiased advice that helps develop and empower the family members to be their best with their wealth. The family office takes on the role of guardian by saying "no" to inquiries from friends and relatives, as well as others, in a way that protects the family's financial assets while preserving these personal relationships. The role of confidant or consigliore is perhaps one of the most critical functions of the family office. In many respects it is akin to have a second set of eyes that can always see what you are seeing and help to validate or clarify the course at hand..."
Очень хорошо в книге раскрыта тема преемственности поколений. Даже описаны психологические дилеммы, с которыми сталкиваются главы семей и их наследники.
По поводу преемственности, очень интересно обыграна поговорка: All wealthy families are concerned about the strength of the global proverb: "shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations".
Также порадовало известное высказывание Уоррена Баффета: " the perfect amount of money to leave them is " enough money so that they would feel they could do anything, but not so much that htey could do nothing".
При описании разных типов Family Office автор сделал очень интересное обобщение об американском типе - сосредоточенном на wealth/investment management и на европейском типе - сосредоточенном более на юридическом и административном сопровождении семей...
В целом рекомендую книгу, как одну из наиболее детально проработанных в области семейных офисов. Ставлю четыре балла, т.к. немного затянуто изложение, да и примеры могли бы быть более показательные.

[Lorenzo Ortiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read for all of those managing a family office or institutionalizing and better managing their investments.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a good overview of the Family Office, its history, and a high level overview of how they work. There are some very interesting sections discussing some structures for Family Offices, but as always it's good to seek professional advice. The book is also useful for those who want to work for a family office since it discusses some of the behind the scenes day to day activities that take place. I found the material to also be applicable to the middle class should someone want to start a dynasty trust or similar vehicle. It proves to be an interesting read for an obscure topic to most people.