Family Office Advisory Services

In Tax

Family offices face challenges that distinguish them from other entities — challenges that, if not addressed, can reduce family wealth, jeopardize family unity or derail the family’s legacy.

Related topics Family enterprise Tax Tax planning Workforce

The team

Robert (Bobby) Stover, Jr.

Robert (Bobby) Stover, Jr.

EY Americas Family Enterprise and Family Office Leader

Catherine Fankhauser

Catherine Fankhauser

Partner, Family Office Advisory Services, Ernst & Young LLP

Paul McKibbin

Paul McKibbin

Americas EY Private Family Office Advisory Services Managing Director

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What EY can do for you

EY Family Office Advisory Services provide a holistic approach to your legacy preservation. Whether you are creating a new family office, separating an office from the family business or enhancing an existing office, it is important to ask how you are securing your family’s financial future and legacy for the next and future generations. We deliver seamless advice and service through all phases of development and execution. And we do so with an emphasis on long-term sustainability and legacy preservation.

Understanding your needs

EY Family Office Advisory Services focus on areas that, if addressed effectively, support and elevate your office to help achieve the goals and objectives of the family and the family office towards long-term success. This integrated approach enables us to uncover hidden opportunities and risks that might have been missed if we were to assess each area separately.

We fully understand that no two family offices are alike. Specific family considerations drive decisions and the way forward. Our job is to support the legacy of your family office through our customized research, reports and analytics. We focus on the following areas to support you in identifying key challenges, defining and implementing processes for improvement, and charting a path to future family success and sustainability.

  • Family office design and setup

    We have examined global family offices to understand what makes them successful in the long term. We can support the building of a family office with a holistic view of the family, as well as strategic, operational, regulatory and tax aspects, to support the family members’ move toward their long-term legacy. Specifically, we work with you to shape the policies, procedures and business plans for the operation.

    As family wealth increases and business needs become more complex, we can guide you in the transformation of the office into a dynamic, full-service company. Our professionals take you through all the phases — evaluation, design and innovation and implementation — and provide program management as you move forward in your evolution.

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  • Strategic planning and design

    The greater the complexity and size of the family and investments, the more important strategic planning becomes to effectively manage competing business priorities and family needs. The EY Family Office Advisory Services team can support you by focusing on strategic priorities to preserve your legacy and support growth and long-term success for your family enterprise.

    The family office must be intentional about its priorities and focused on preparing for the future. It starts by creating a family charter, a 100-year plan that outlines the family’s purpose, values, governance and how it wants to use its wealth. It is also important to develop annual business plans to anticipate and address short-term initiatives and long-term opportunities, as well as a 5- to 10-year strategic plan to accomplish milestones toward the family vision.

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  • Risk assessment and planning support

    A primary goal of most family offices is to protect the family from damage and loss, whether financial, physical or reputational. Risks can arise from a variety of sources, including the business, investments, technology or operations.

    We support family offices by assessing their levels of risk through our risk score index. The risk score index is based on our detailed questionnaire applied across the five dimensions of the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations framework and across seven categories of risk, resulting in a score for each dimension to determine where your office excels or falls short. Our team will then work with you to properly develop a risk management framework to address each area of vulnerability in order of importance.

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  • Technology planning and support

    Diverse multi-asset class portfolios. Complex income allocations across multiple tiers of ownership. Multigenerational families with competing priorities. Family offices face challenges that can complicate their ability to generate timely information to support decision-making.

    To reach informed conclusions, you need relevant and timely information enabled by technology that supports you to stay on top of it all. We’ll work with you to find the right technology and approach for your current ecosystem, while remaining mindful of future concerns and aspirations. We also can support you in the design and implementation of a technology road map to further the family’s vision. From selection to implementation, our team will guide you toward a leading design of operating model, robust technology and efficient processes.

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  • Governance services and planning support

    Leading families view governance planning as an ongoing process that strives to preserve the family capital and wellbeing, engage each generation, and provide a framework for the family to successfully manage its business and other activities now and into the future.

    Development of a family office succession strategy and plan is a key component of governance. A framework to support a successful generational transition requires a focus on four dimensions: leadership, ownership, legacy, and value and wealth transition. These are key considerations for three primary stakeholder groups: owners, families, and the business and investments. We can support you with the design and implementation of governance structures, protocols and operations to protect, preserve and grow your family’s legacy for more than 100 years.

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  • Managed services and planning support

    Ultra-high-net-worth individuals and their families need a trusted advisor to manage the complexity of their financial situations. EY teams of highly experienced professionals can provide assistance with bill payments, accounting, bookkeeping and reporting, and coordination services. We also provide tax compliance and accounting services so families and their businesses can better navigate complexity.

    As a result, our clients gain peace of mind knowing income and expenses are fully accounted for, and insight into their financial situation becomes clearer through customized reporting.

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Why choose EY Family Office Advisory Services?

Our Family Office Advisory Services practice professionals have the depth of skills, knowledge and experience to bring a high level of quality in support of our clients. Leading practices guide our work, including a defined control environment, regular and recurring risk assessment, and dual controls to maintain quality.

We are recognized as a trusted advisor to the world’s largest family businesses. The EY organization serves 93% of the world’s top 500 family businesses and has helped enable families to succeed for generations during the last 100 years.

Family Enterprise Business Services

Leveraging our proprietary methodologies and using our holistic approach to protect, grow and improve your family enterprise, we can work with you to develop and implement a plan for growth, capital strategy, generational transition and shareholder liquidity.

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EY Americas Family Office Guide

Family offices are complex organizations that require deep knowledge. This guide provides leading practices for setting up and running successful family offices.

Request here

Explore more

 
Featured
How family offices can boost efficiency with artificial intelligence

New insights

Family Business magazine, “The Single Family Office” with Bobby Stover

Family Business magazine, “What is a Family Office?” with Bobby Stover

Family Business magazine, “The Multi-Family Office” with Fred Gluckman

Family Business magazine, “The Embedded Family Office” with Catherine Fankhauser

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