Many families have what we call a half-formed family office: a holding company, a bookkeeper, an executive assistant and outside advisers who rarely talk to each other. It works until it doesn't. A fully formed office has written goals, governance, a clear investment process and staff or vendors for each core function.
Signs of a half-formed office
- Investment decisions are made deal by deal, with no written strategy.
- No one person sees the full picture of assets, entities and liabilities.
- Advisers work in separate silos.
- Family members do not know how decisions are made.
Getting to fully formed
You do not need a large staff. Many families use a virtual model with outsourced providers. See Part 1: Why Start a Single Family Office?, Part 3 on fundamentals and Part 4 on partners and vendors.
Educational only. Nothing on this site is investment, tax, legal, accounting or other professional advice, or a recommendation on any security, manager, structure or allocation. Speak with qualified professionals before acting.