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Families are working hard to juggle the competing demands of family and enterprise. This session explore s a multitude of dynamics coming at both systems simultaneously: generational shifts happening faster and with greater consequence; AI and climate change—both with the potential to alter the human experience; the rise of women’s wealth ownership...

The number and scope of women-owned businesses have risen at an unprecedented rate. In an era of new opportunities, this paper profiles eight courageous and resilient women who share their personal stories and the lessons they learned building successful businesses. One theme that emerged from these women’s stories was the critical role of mentorsh...

The 2018 U.S. Trust Insights on Wealth and Worth® study asked nearly one thousand high-net-worth individuals about their approach to building wealth and the extent to which they are using it to achieve their goals and support the causes they care about most. The study found that while wealth provides the freedom to do more, it also brings increased...

The death of a loved one is a difficult and emotional time for a family. There is often additional stress if you are appointed as the executor of the will and trustee of your family’s trusts, especially if the deceased had been the sole manager of substantial family assets and wealth. For an untrained person, it can be a daunting role. For these re...

When done well, a trustee’s service can have a profoundly positive impact on a family; when done poorly, a trustee’s service can create or exacerbate fissures within a family, dissipate family wealth, create personal liability for the trustee, and create a public spectacle that sullies the family’s good name and reputation. For key employees in fam...

As high-net-worth investors discuss plans for charitable giving and investing with their financial advisors, it is absolutely crucial for them to be on the same page in terms of the outcomes desired, both financially and philanthropically. For this reason, advisors and their clients need a set vocabulary of terms going into the first meeting. Only ...

Ultimately, how well your wealth transfer plan fulfills your legacy and meets the needs of the next—and future—generations depends on whom you name as your trustee(s). This makes your trustee selection one of the most critical aspects of an already complex wealth planning process. To help navigate this selection process, work with a framework built...

Despite the leadership and great influence of the women who have shaped their family legacies, including the silent legacy of Louise Carnegie, their contributions have been missing or minimized in the family stories and historical records. With more women taking control of more wealth and the decisions around that wealth, their voices and positions...

Despite the challenging economic headwinds and shockwaves of 2022 continuing to reverberate, there are silver linings for those who focus on planning for the long term. In looking ahead, we examine wealth planning strategies through the power of resilience from four different lenses: multigenerational families, business owners, women, and philanthr...

Serving as a trustee for your family can be a valuable experience for you, while also providing an important service to your family. But before you accept the position, make sure that you understand the role you will play for the family and are willing to accept the responsibilities and liability that come with it.

To effectively serve as a trustee, it's crucial to understand your fiduciary duties. Even trustees with the best of intentions can create liability for themselves by being unprepared for the job or by not fully understanding their obligations. Learn more about some of the common mistakes family trustees make that can lead to lawsuits and other...

Across the world, philanthropy is undergoing a transformation that offers both exciting opportunities and complex challenges. With so much in flux, emerging donors and established funders are seeking new models not only for funding strategies and impact measures, but also for organizational design and management systems that will serve them well in...

This issue brief examines the kinds of decisions that family foundations often face and sets out practical, easy-to-apply guidelines for ensuring that the foundation’s decision-making methods vary appropriately, as conditions and circumstances change. It includes factors to consider when selecting a decision-making method, guidance on how to commun...

Just as government and businesses require sound governance to do their work well, so too do families—and their philanthropy. The Family Governance Pyramid provides a model and framework for philanthropic families that is even more relevant and necessary today than when it was first introduced nearly two decades ago. This article by the National Cen...

Emerging from the shadows is the increasing number of women in the workforce, and it marks one of the most significant changes in economies throughout the world in the last 40 years. This report—the second in a series of four on family business succession—takes an up-close look at the demographic shifts that are changing the role of women in f...