In-person meetings, written quarterly reports, text messages — a family may have as many preferred means of communication as it has family members. How can the family office honor those preferences while still making sure everyone gets the information they need? Six family office experts offer tips on successful family communication:
“There are three legs of the stool for family office communications: organized, consistent and bespoke.
- Organized. I think many times family offices struggle with the organization of their communication. For example, family members can sometimes get multiple emails on the same matter from different family office employees. Whether real or perceived, this practice can come across as disorganized if you are a family member. This can be mitigated with a simple CRM system. Many family offices don’t have CRM systems in place, and I think it’s low-hanging fruit to help organize not only family office/family communications but also manager and advisor communications within the family office.
- Consistent. Also, for family offices serving a large family, sometimes certain family members do not get the appropriate level of communication from the family office. This is family member specific. For example, certain family members are high touch and others are more passive. This does not mean that the more passive family members should not receive regular communications. Do not wait for them to reach out to you; be proactive about the communication. Touch base with each and every family member on a regular basis. This is just good client management practice.
- Bespoke. Lastly, family offices are personal to the family. This means that they also need to tailor their communication practices, as much as possible, to each individual family member. So, if a family member prefers to text (such as younger gen) vs. email or prefers paper statements, the family office should make an effort to accommodate these preferences. The result should be greater connectivity.”
— Mark R. Tepsich, Family Office Design and Governance Strategist, UBS
“I always urge the staff to figure out what type of communication works for each member of the family. I typically do not see one form of communication work for all interested parties, so I encourage the staff to spend time with each individual owner up front to determine how to best communicate updates on the family office, and to regularly check in when testing out a new communication strategy to ensure all updates are being received and understood accordingly.”
— Janet Arzt, founder and managing partner of Parere Advisory
“If you have some older family members that still love paper: OK, great. We will mail you everything. Then on the flip side, with the younger family members for whom everything is electronic, including all their communication, they may not even answer the phone. Maybe it requires a text.
That is something that, as a family office, we need to be responsive to and have the processes and systems in place to address those desired service levels: how they want to be communicated with, the level of information, the level of contact.
With some of the younger generation, they will call us when they need us. We can reach out, but generally they go about their lives, and then when they need something they reach out. Other family members may want more regular contact. Trying to personalize communications for individual clients is really important — as is understanding that those needs will change and evolve over time as a person moves from being a young professional to getting married, having kids, to having retirement become important.”
— Josh Miller, CEO of Acadia Management, a multigenerational single-family office
“Two times a year, an in-person long weekend retreat dedicated to financial/education/philanthropy read-outs and family togetherness is my favorite communication medium. The principal members take time to prepare a presentation on a shared challenge, delivering family office outcomes. Best practices and new learnings abound. Spouses are included and provide feedback from a fresh vantage point.”
— Nathan Myer, family office principal
“Some of the best practices for communication are:
- Clarity
- Consistency
- Transparency
The family office needs to ensure that their communications are clear and can be understood by everyone in the family. Consistency in messaging and approach is important so everyone can see the same information over time. Guidelines for transparency are valuable to have so everyone feels that there is fairness in the process while maintaining appropriate boundaries for information sharing as well.”
— Joshua Nacht, Ph.D., Principal Consultant, The Family Business Consulting Group
“Communicating effectively in a family office setting is crucial to ensure alignment, transparency, and engagement.
For internal communications between professional staff members and family employees, we recommend family offices share weekly updates on internal operations, including new investment opportunities, key external meetings, etc. We also recommend family offices host quarterly portfolio reviews with their internal team and investment committee. A portfolio review is the ideal forum to assess the firm’s performance against its stated goals and to confirm all team members are aligned toward the firm’s mission. These meetings also give family members an arena to discuss high-level, strategic topics that often go unspoken at home.
To keep the extended family abreast of family office updates, we recommend sending a quarterly report following each portfolio review. It is also best practice to host an in-person annual meeting for the wider family to share key accomplishments and set the business strategy for the year ahead. These efforts help family members who are not working at the firm to stay informed and engaged and ensure the unity of the family and the longevity of the family office.”
— Hillary Sieber, Director of Family Office Advisory, Wingspan Legacy Partners
