- September 2023, The International Family Offices Journal, published by Globe Law and Business
There is a new role starting to emerge in single and multi-family offices, which is the chief learning officer or CLO role. The CLO supports the growth of the human, intellectual, social and spiritual capital of the family members while also supporting the development of the family office executives and advisors to the family. Family learning and development includes both horizontal development (putting more liquid in the container) as well as vertical development (increasing the capacity of the container). This article articulates the 10Cs of chief learning officers.
- August 2023, Hubbis
It is important to develop the ownership or beneficiary role; it is important to develop collaborate skills and other skills necessary for the family to be joint owners of the family enterprise together; at the same time it is also important to help individual members in families with a significant enterprise or financial capital to know who they are, to individuate, and to integrate that financial capital into their own lives.
- July 2023
A critical question for an enterprising family is whether the family is a learning organization and what is the capacity of the family members to learn together? This article outlines the basic tools to support family learning and provides a number of key topics to include in the family learning curriculum.
- March 2023, STEP Hong Kong Branch Newsletter
A family is an emotional system. A family trust is a legal (equitable) relationship. What happens when you overlay the family emotional system with the legal relationships created by a family trust structure? Things can get more complicated requiring the family to become even more intentional about investing in positive family relationships if the goal is to sustain family harmony.
- August 2022, The Family Firm Institute Practitioner
This is a commentary on the FFI 2086 Society sponsored research Report: The Governance Marathon. The Report concludes that family learning and development is inseparable from family governance. It calls for advisors to family enterprises to see themselves as Learning System Enhancers. Family Learning and Development involves four different domains which are explained in the article.
- March 2021, The International Family Offices Journal, published by Globe Law and Business.
A paper on the why, what and how of family meetings, including examples of family meeting exercises and a checklist for the role of the family meeting facilitator.
- September 2019, The International Family Offices Journal, published by Globe Law and Business
The concept of creating a formalised written family constitution has become generally accepted as representing a key best practice for family enterprises. As such we should now be at the stage where we can move past the question of “what are the benefits of developing a constitution?”, to a more detailed analysis of common family constitution ‘archetypes’ – basic models or patterns that can often be recognised.
- June 2019, The International Family Offices Journal, published by Globe Law and Business
While Crazy Rich Asians is a fictional novel and popular movie, the book offers many serious topics of discussion that would be suitable for a family book club. This review points to the issues and can be used as a guide for a family discussion of the story. The themes raised by the story include cross cultures, fiscal unequal relationships, mental health, the integration of in laws, the impact of secrets and what it means to flourish as an individual and as a family.
- December 2017, The International Family Offices Journal, published by Globe Law and Business
Ten tools to manage family conflicts and some tips for family office executives
- April 2017, Offshore Investment Magazine
A summary of some of the key lessons for families from the books Family Wealth, Keeping it in the Family, Family, the Compact among Generations, and Family Trusts, A Guide for Beneficiaries, Trustees, Trust Protectors and Trust Creators.
- September 2016, The International Family Offices Journal, published by Globe Law and Business
- September 2016, Trusts Quarterly Review
A review of the book Family Trusts: A Guide which was written by Hartley Goldstone, James E. Hughes Jr., and Keith Whitaker. The Guide addresses the question of how to give well through trusts and how to ensure that trusts have a positive impact on the lives of the beneficiaries, by focusing on the human relationships involved.
- August 2016, An article in the FFI Practitioner by Roger King, Winnie Peng and Christian Stewart.
Chinese families should seek to adapt the family office concept to Chinese culture.
- August 2016, An article in the FFI Practitioner by Christian Stewart
Family culture will dictate whether siblings are able to evolve into a collaborate partnership in the second generation.
- April 2016, Tharawat Magazine
A review of the book Cross Cultures, How Global Families Negotiate Change Across Generations written by Dennis Jaffe Phd and James Grubman Phd. This is a very important new book for families in Asia where the current generation is usually of “Collective Harmony” culture yet the rising generation have often been exposed to Western Individualistic culture, giving rise to cultural differences within the family.
- The STEP Journal, November 2015
Some tips on overcoming wealth creators’ reluctance to hold family meetings.
- Offshore Investment Magazine June 2014
This article explores the concept of a family constitution and the question of whether family constitutions need to be legally binding in order to be effective. It also explores the use of family constitutions in conjunction with family trust structures.
- Benchmark Magazine, May 2015
What steps can be taken to start preparing the rising generation to take over the Asian Family Enterprise, and how can the Family Office help?
- February 2015
A review of The Voice of the Rising Generation (Bloomberg Press) written by James E. Hughes Jr., Susan E. Massenzio and Keith Whitaker, with a particular emphasis on the lessons from the book for parents.
- Benchmark Magazine, September 2014
If the goal of the family office is to help preserve family wealth for generations, then organize the family office around family human capital, intellectual capital, social capital and finally, financial capital.
- Offshore Investment Magazine, June 2014
This article explains the new paradigm of planning for family wealth where qualitative issues are just as important as quantitative issues and explores how family trust structures can be used to help “invest” in family human capital.
- The STEP Journal, July 2014
Family Elders are the third leg stool when establishing a family governance system.
- Hubbis.com, 2013
A checklist to help build the capacity to effectively manage conflicts in family firms.
- 2013
Jay Hughes, Susan Massenzio and Keith Whitaker of think tank & consultancy firm, Wise Counsel Research Associates and co-authors of the book The Cycle of the Gift; Family Wealth and Wisdom (Bloomberg Press) explain how the great dream of the first generation creator of family wealth often leads to the silence of the future generations of the founder’s own family. They explain that the pathway for a family to postpone the “shirt sleeves to shirt sleeves proverb” is to help inheritors find their own voice.
- 2013
Jay Hughes of Wise Counsel Research Associates looks ahead and discusses his predictions for how the field of family wealth advising may change over the next twenty years. He describes changes we are already seeing in how individuals develop through-out the life cycle stages, and how the structure of the family is changing, and how these changes may impact on families of wealth and the implications for those who advise them.
- April 2013
Hartley Goldstone, founder of Navigating The Trustscape writes about the importance for beneficiaries of achieving trust literacy. He introduces some of the positive stories on the trustee beneficiary relationship that appear in his 2012 book Trustworthy, co-authored with Kathy Wiseman.
- March 2013
Hartley Goldstone, founder of Navigating The Trustscape provides some examples of cases where trustees were able to make thoughtful and wise decisions in the face of unorthodox distribution requests from their beneficiaries. These cases provide examples of how to build a positive trustee beneficiary relationship.
- The STEP Journal, July 2013
Eight lessons on how to protect the Asian Family Business from family conflict after the founder passes
- Investments & Pensions Asia, January – February 2013
- The STEP Journal, July 2012
Christian Stewart provides a checklist of fundamental questions to consider when reviewing the effectiveness of family governance arrangements.
- The STEP Journal, February 2012
It is not enough to just set up a trust or other legal structure to own and secure a family business. Business founders should ask themselves four key questions: first, what is the right legal structure?; second, what is the right governance structure?; third, what policies are needed; and fourth, what ongoing processes are needed to bring it all to life?
- December 2011
If you want to create effective family agreements and policies, you need to be able to create a Safe Environment for family members to hold discussions. Christian Stewart of Family Legacy Asia and Ian A Marsh, the principal of familydr (see www.familydr.co.uk) talk about creating a Safe Environment for family meetings.
- If you are having trouble getting the family to agree on the terms of family business policies this short article provides a checklist of issues to consider that might help to get the family decision making process back on track.
- August 2011
There is a well known example of an Indian family that created a family council and family constitution and that have adopted the ritual of meditating together as a group before family council meetings. From a family systems theory and conflict resolution perspective this is a very wise practice for a family to adopt.
- June 2011
This is one area where Asian practice can diverge from American thinking on what is best for the family business. However there are still good reasons to give next gen outside work experience before they enter the family business as mature adults.
- November 2010
What issues should Asian families consider when structuring a dynastic trust?
- July 2010
This article explains what is a family council and family constitution and why they are essential tools for an Asian family that has the goal of continuing the family business (or family financial wealth) for generations. It also explains how to work around a traditional hierarchical Asian family culture.
- April 2010
If a family have the goal of long term business continuity, they need to define the ownership role and owners need to have a separate forum.
- April 2010
Bill Gates has coined the term Creative Capitalism calling on the for profit sector to find ways in which they can combine making money with doing good. Family businesses should provide fertile soil for Creative Capitalism, and Creative Capitalism might be good for the Family Business.
- February 2010
If a family have a goal of long term wealth preservation then it is essential for the family to have effective family governance practices. The Family Office can help the family to institute such governance practices.
- Campden FB, February 2010
The differences between the belief systems and practices of Stewards and Inheritors within single Asian families and the confusion they create.
- STEP Journal, January 2010
- October 2009
When a family start to work together to form a family council the question usually comes up "will family members really follow the rules, and what will we do if they don't?"
- September 2009
How does family business succession planning differ here in Asia when compared to US practices?
- Offshore Investment Magazine, February 2009
What makes a trusted advisor and what factors should high net worth clients in Asia consider when they look for good advice with respect to trusts and family governance?
- September 2008
What are the ways in which an independent Family Advisor can help a family engage in strategic planning for the future and develop its own governance system?
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