“What Do You Guys Really Do?”
We built something most families don't know exists. Explaining it usually starts with one question.
“What do you guys really do?”
A few years ago, we sat across from a founder who’d built something remarkable in tech. Casual in the way only truly confident people are. Sharp in a way you feel before he says anything.
We gave him our best 30 minutes. Deck, thesis, the family offices we’ve run. The whole thing.
Then he paused, looked at us, and asked the only question that mattered: “What do you guys really do?”
I didn’t go back to the deck. I just asked, “What do you want?”
He didn’t hesitate. “I want to move to Hawaii with my wife and kids and surf for a couple of years.”
I told him, “We’re the place you can leave everything to, and know with quiet confidence that when you come back, things will be in better shape than when you left.”
He nodded slowly. He got it.
Most people don't, at first. Not because they aren't sharp, but because a firm whose whole job is to run your family office barely registers as a category. Most families think there are just two options: run their own family office or hire an MFO. A boutique professional services firm run by experienced SFO executives with nothing to sell, no assets to gather, no reason to do anything other than provide aligned judgment doesn't fit neatly into anyone's mental map. Very few firms have the qualities to do it, and fewer try. So when people ask "what do you really do," it's not skepticism. It's genuine surprise that the option exists at all.
He wanted to go surfing with his family for a couple of years, but he didn't have the confidence to leave his financial affairs behind. This is where a family's lifestyle dream runs smack into the family office problem. Most families don't realize there's a model built to solve exactly that. If you're curious what it looks like, ask us what we really do.
About This Series
This is the third in a series of perspectives on what makes family offices work, and what doesn’t. Each explores a different dimension of the choice families face when considering how to organize around their wealth. Explore your options.
About This Series
This is the first in a series of short perspectives on what makes family offices work, and what doesn’t. Each explores a different dimension of the choice families face when considering how to organize around their wealth. Explore your options.