For the past several years, I have had the honor and pleasure of Co-Chairing the FOX Senior Management Council with Mariann Mihailidis at FOX. This council is a wonderful group of 25 senior family office leaders of multi-generational family enterprises who meet twice a year for a couple of days. My ...

The acronym ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance. It refers to a mode of screening investments that considers environment, social and corporate governance disciplines as criteria, seeking to achieve both competitive financial return and positive social impact.ESG is part of the socia...

As an entrepreneur or small business owner first starting out, you may have the desire to make philanthropy a core principle of your business but feel you have to put that desire on hold until you earn more money.But Vern Mangels believes you should not give in to that feeling. “You have to start wi...

The impact of the work accomplished each year by FOX family council members is impressive. We gather these peer groups of 25 wealth owners or family office executives twice a year, and my favorite session of the first meeting of the year is called “Accomplishments and Initiatives.” In this session, ...

Every time you communicate, you’re doing one of two things:You’re adding valueYou’re taking up spaceWhen you add value, you’re contributing to the conversation. Clients are more likely to listen to you, remember you, and take action on what you say. They’ll pay more for your time, and respect your o...

The industry discussion of advisor fees realistically is not really an issue with fees. The issue is with the communication of the value associated with the fees. Most advisors provide value beyond the assets under management fee structure. But in many cases, the fees are presented only in relations...

Writing down what’s worrying you releases energy and frees up brainpower to be used more productively. Researchers have found that students with test anxiety who spend 10 minutes journaling before an exam score better than those who carry their worry into the exam. Similarly, studies have shown that...

When performing an analysis of a client’s unique personal risk profile, we often find that their assets relate to their special interests. Whether it is a passion for fine art, fine wine, or exotic cars, a hobby can often grow into a valuable asset. For those who have an interest in new technology, ...

You can’t have a conversation about the future of the global economy these days without the subject of US presidential politics coming up. From trade to immigration to tax reform, the policies that Donald Trump implements could drastically impact markets all over the world – and that impact is alrea...

While investing has never been straightforward, investing today in the face of current uncertainty may seem overwhelming.Traditional approaches to constructing a portfolio — those that investors have relied on for decades — appear outdated. From today’s vantage point, one might say that the “a...