Family Office: A Comprehensive Guide for Advisers, Practitioners, and Students

Family offices are private organizations that manage a wealthy family's personal and financial affairs, representing 50% of global wealth. This book provides an insiders view of why wealthy families create them, what they do, and how to manage them effectively, with case studies and background reference material from the authors' practical knowledge and network of industry experts.

Format: Hardback
Length: 368 pages
Publication date: 10 August 2021
Publisher: Columbia University Press

Family offices are private organizations that manage a wealthy family's personal and financial affairs on a daily basis. These repositories of great wealth were once shrouded in secrecy, with their activities conducted behind closed doors. However, in recent years, family offices have gained a considerably higher public profile. They represent just 7 percent of the world's ultra-high-net-worth population but control a staggering 50 percent of the wealth. As a result, there are significant social implications to how these assets are managed and used.

This book provides an insiders view for anyone looking to understand family offices and how to best serve and advise them. Veteran practitioners William I. Woodson and Edward V. Marshall offer a comprehensive guide to family offices, covering why wealthy families create them, what they do, and how to manage them effectively. The insights are presented through a series of problem-based learning cases that follow a single family's journey from a significant liquidity event to the creation, staffing, and management of their family office, and finally to its succession. Each case study is supported by detailed background reference material, drawn from the authors' practical knowledge, network of industry experts, and experience advising family offices of all sizes.

The cases and background materials shed light on the unique issues that ultrawealthy families face and the solutions they adopt to address them throughout the life cycle of a family office. This book is a definitive resource for practitioners and students, as well as family principals, advisers, service providers, and all others who engage with the world of family offices. It provides a comprehensive understanding of the industry and its challenges, and offers practical advice for navigating the complex landscape of family wealth management.

Weight: 652g
Dimension: 164 x 238 x 29 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231200622