While there are good resources to help family foundation boards identify common and effective practices in each area of governance-related questions, this guide by the National Center for Family Philanthropy focuses less on the outcomes and more on ensuring that all of the issues are considered for building the board your foundation deserves.
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Whether you and your family split financial responsibilities or delegate them to one person, it is critical for your family members to have access to all your financial information. Use this guidebook created by Northern Trust to detail the location of important documents, accounts, and plans. Designed as a fillable and easy-to-update resource, it will guide your wealth planning discussions and help you gain an understanding of what you own and what you owe, develop a plan in case of an emergency, and understand how your wealth transfer plans will be fulfilled.
A family office may generally be described as an organization that engages in substantial, active management, oversight, and monitoring of a family’s business, investment, and personal assets in a purposeful, prudent, and business-like manner. As seen from the well-run family offices, there are many positive outcomes when families make an intentional effort to manage their family assets and activities like a business.
In this 10-minute interview, attorney Jordan Bergmann of Foley & Lardner joins Brian Lucareli to discuss qualified business stock (QSBS). During the interview, Jordan defined QSBS and the tax benefits they provide and how family offices can take advantage of the QSBS as part of their wealth management and tax planning strategy.
Effective pre-liquidity planning is always important for a business owner considering a business sale, exit, or other transaction. But several recent and upcoming developments—related to estate laws, small-business tax exemptions, residency trends, philanthropic endeavors, and high interest rates—make 2024 a uniquely challenging year. This article by William Blair outlines why these developments are particularly salient for founder-owned companies and offers guidance specifically tailored for them in the run-up to a liquidity event.
While the artificial intelligence (AI) transformation is a part of the larger digital change, it’s taking on a life of its own. Even if a company can adapt to the change, it doesn’t mean it’s ready for AI. There are many more considerations, and it requires a different approach where the audit committee plays a crucial role that will bring valuable oversight and guidance to this technological evolution through their understanding of risk and assurance.
The future of IT is changing and adapting to a cloud and artificial intelligence-enabled world that includes the exponential shift from on-premises to IT consumed as a service (XaaS) and accelerating data centricity. To face these challenges and drive successful digital competitive advantages, IT leaders and teams will need to master the six key priorities. Moving forward, the future of IT will show how IT can enable digital organization by informing technology investments, using artificial intelligence and automation, and harnessing the power of data.
The importance of meeting U.S. tax and reporting deadlines cannot be overstated. With the IRS continuing to strengthen its efforts to enforce compliance with initiatives specifically targeting foreign information reporting, this U.S. reporting checklist by Kozusko Harris Duncan can help family advisers and trustees of foreign trusts determine what if any U.S. reporting will be due.
The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is effective as of January 1, 2024. If a U.S. entity is not exempt, it is a reporting company and must file a “Beneficial Ownership Information” (the BOI). The same is true for a foreign entity registered to do business in a U.S. state. Given the penalties for failure to file, identifying reportable individuals and filing a reporting company’s initial BOI report is now a priority. This article from Kozusko Harris Duncan discusses some practical considerations for preparing a reporting company’s initial BOI report.
It’s a big job when it comes to choosing a technology platform to replace a platform that no longer meets your business needs and objectives. With a decision this important, you need to be confident that the new platform supports your multi-year benefits strategy, and that the vendor you select will meet your needs today—and in the future. To help with the selection process and evaluation, use these questions as outlined in the checklist provided.