From 2000 to 2018, Scott was a professor of Law at the University of Chicago where he focused on Bargaining, Dispute Resolution, Translational Law, and the complexities of multigenerational family enterprises. Scott speaks regularly on Family Offices, Private Trust companies as well as Intergenerational Leadership while also maintaining an active website.

Scott is a G2 family member. He is Sam Zell's son-in-law, having married Sam's eldest daughter.

Standout Quotes:

• "Business works on short wavelengths and family works on very long wavelengths" - [Peter Evans, Scott]
• "What does it mean to try and help family members really develop and really take ownership, so they can figure out how to deploy what they have?" - [Scott]
• "There are many different kinds of wealth… you probably aren't put on the earth to grow the financial capital, there's lots of professionals who can help you do that" - [Scott]
• "Too often, the implicit message sent to family members is 'this system is really here to steward the money" - [Scott]
• “Families rarely fail for taking too much risk, they fail for taking too little risk” - [Scott]
• "My goal is to create a family-focused office, not a family office, and a trusted company, not a Trust company" - [Scott]
• "If you want to succeed you have to have a family that understands what you're doing" - [Scott]

Key Takeaways:

• Scott is the President of Chai Trust Company, LLC, the private trust company that serves as the family office for Sam Zell and his family. Equity Group Investments, a division of Chai trust, provides investment management services on its behalf. From 2000 to 2018, Scott was a professor of Law at the University of Chicago where he focused on Bargaining, Dispute Resolution, Translational Law, and the complexities of multigenerational family enterprises. He speaks on Family Offices, Private Trust companies as well as Intergenerational Leadership while also maintaining his active website. Scott is a G2 family member, as he is Sam Zell's son-in-law.
• Scott got married to Sam's older daughter 20 years ago while he was already teaching as a Law professor. Since then he got increasingly curious about family enterprises till he fully transitioned into working in the family enterprise. After a few months of knowing each other, they started dating but Scott had no idea about her family wealth till she opened up about it.
• About Sam Zell: Sam is a serial entrepreneur, who first built a business in Real Estate, following which he turned to distressed Corporate Investing in the 80s, and then in the 90s, he created some of the largest REITs in the US today. He has continued to work on REITs and corporate investing since then. He has done several businesses over the years. Sam is also known for his straight talk, always making his stand clear in any discussion. He is also very astute and broad in his thinking.
• As a Law professor, Scott worked on conflict intervention with corporations all over the world. When he started having kids, he got curious about how the family wealth could be managed productively for the family, especially for the kids. Sam encouraged him to work on it. Some authors that stood out in Scott's study were Jay Hughes and John Davis.
• Scott describes the family structure; at the time Scott joined the family, Sam was 59 years, his 3 children were in their 30s, and as of now, there are 9 grandchildren. There was a form of governance structure, a board with his 3 children which wasn't functional as Sam made most decisions. However, now there has been a need to rebuild the structure as the company has evolved and this has been a huge part of Scott's focus since he moved full-time into the family enterprise. He has had to put in a lot of work to fully understand how the family enterprise functions; to make things change in a family system that often moves very slowly, you have to know where you're going. It involves a combination of urgency and patience, while thinking long-term, steps need to be taken early and consistently. Most of the family members are not employees, some of them are on the board. There is one board with both independent and family directors.
• The business continues to be eclectic, investing across all kinds of sectors, especially with the benefit of permanent long-term capital. At the same time, complex actions and decisions can be taken quickly. Also, family learning and development are being built as the kids grow to become adults.
• In the inflationary period currently, the business finds smaller companies that need capital and expertise to grow to the next level; companies that would rather grow their equity than sell to a PE company. These companies are great partners for the business since their interests are already aligned to grow the equity.
• While most families would rather have more joy over more money, the reality is that many family members Scott has met around the world don't have that much joy or self-possessed ability to do things in the world. They often feel enmeshed in a family structure they have little control over. This is not good for the family or the external world that could be benefitting from the good such families could accomplish.
• Laying the foundation for the next generation practically, Scott uses some rules. The first is based on the 5 Capitals; Not everyone is supposed to grow financial capital but they can add to the overall well-being of the family by building on the other forms of capital. Unfortunately, the experience in most families is that stewarding the money is the main goal, which is an implicit frame that must be dissolved. The second one is that each family member should participate meaningfully in every learning experience. Doing this means creating activities or agendas that are not solely about financial capital or the enterprise, although as the kids get older they get interested in the business itself.
• To assess how well you're building human capital, score how often you were talking about money over the last few years in your family meeting. Most times it forms a huge percentage of those meetings, but in a setting where money isn't the focus, there is a push to find other topics that can help people open up. Scott's family has started experimenting with these kinds of meetings interspersed with other activities.
• These kinds of meetings expose several overlapping purposes, help family members connect, offer a chance for content transfer, and contribute to self-development and self-growth. Different topics are often discussed and it becomes obvious how they are related. Listeners are encouraged to check Scott's curriculum diagram on his website.
• There is often a dichotomy between responsible stewards and lazy inheritors, however, managing inherited wealth can be complicated. The general goal is to cultivate engaged owners and integrate financial capital into their lives productively, but there is no concrete formula on how to do it.
• Most family offices should just be Money offices because all their time is focused on financial capital and legal risk such that the family itself is secondary. On the other hand, a family-focused office is there to grow the family's human capital as much as the financial capital.
• Trust companies around the world have become ubiquitous in wealthy families although they often don't have much life in them. However, a trusted company is a part of the family ecosystem which goes beyond managing money to a level of trust-building with the family. That forms the basis of how Scott decides on whether or not progress is being made; 'what is the level of trust in the system?'. Not to downplay the role of financial investment, but there has to be synergy within the system.
• Over the long term, families rarely fail for taking too much risk, they fail for taking too little risk. They focus so much on preservation because they are afraid of taking risks, and they wither in the end. Sam Zell still takes as much risk as he used to, not as a gamble but with a critical assessment of each situation. It is important to preserve the investment company with its risk-taking culture, and at the same time grow a family that can continue such activity over time.
• The family enterprise avoids governing by committee, especially on the investment side, so as to move quickly. Having family members behind an entity is not a bad idea but there's no point in having many family members making every investment decision. In Scott's family enterprise, this bureaucracy is avoided by ensuring decisions are narrowed down to the exact professionals. Other bigger family questions can be discussed by the family as a whole. Mike's family employs Adhocracy which encourages a culture to challenge the slow slide into bureaucracy.
• The team behind the family enterprises consists of about 85 people and functions as one entity that is the trust company, the family office, and the investment management company. There are investment professionals, lawyers, a family office and operations group, and accountants. All of these are interdependent. The company is mostly focused in the US but there are also real estate investments in other countries.
• As an outsider joining the family, it is easy to simply be a critic which will result in pushback from the family. From the onset, Scott acted from a place of love for the family and was concerned with how to continue to build productivity within the family. He intentionally took time to study the family business all the while continuing his profession as a Law professor. He advises inlaws to keep their jobs for as long as possible till they are sure they can add value to the family enterprise. He also understands that being an inlaw comes with restrictions from certain roles, but rather than get overly perturbed about it, he focuses on the ways to be helpful in the family.
• Scott has a background in communication, mediation, and negotiation which has been pivotal in building consensus in the family business. Ultimately, there is no playbook to navigate the complexities in a family enterprise.
• A typical day in Scott's life involves some time spent on investments, working with boards or committees, family learning and development, as well as time spent on management. He has come to understand that his job is to get a grasp of the system as a whole; Sam explained to him that it will change from obligation to opportunity.
• There are a few family heirlooms and the family has also documented some of its history like the story of Sam's family leaving Poland for the US. They do this mostly by putting together short films. It also serves as a way to communicate family values; Sam has always used art to communicate.
• Scott's letter to his kids: We have the capacity as humans to grow into something greater, more awake, and more alive than we are now, into a different kind of existence. This is the uniqueness of being human; the constant evolution makes life wonderful.

Episode Timeline:
[00:50] Meet today's guest, Scott Peppet.
[02:00] Scott's relationship with Sam Zell.
[04:54] How would you describe Sam Zell?
[09:18] Did you develop an interest in how family enterprises function before or after meeting the Zell family?
[12:35] How complex was the family when you joined?
[16:44] Did you have to contend with people with multiple hats in the family business?
[19:04] What does the office look like today?
[21:40] Is there any particular industry that has growing potential now as regards investment?
[24:40] How do you plan to raise the next generation in the family enterprise?
[35:17] Going beyond stewards' first inheritors.
[37:35] Creating a family-focused office and a trusted Company.
[42:10] How do you manage risk in the family ecosystem?
[44:37] How do you fight bureaucracy as the office gets bigger?
[49:05] How big is the family enterprise team?
[51:50] What was it like joining the family and navigating the complexities of a family enterprise?
[55:20] How helpful was your career in Law and conflict resolution in the family business?
[56:55] A day in the life of the President of Chai Trust.
[01:00:50] Is the family intentional about keeping things for historical sake?
[01:05:02] Scott's letter to his kids

For more episodes go to
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Special Guest: Scott Peppet.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• Scott Peppet's website — Shifting from Obligation to Opportunity - Helping family members integrate and deploy their resources for their own and the world’s benefit.
• Sam Zell - Personal Website
• EGI - Equity Group Investments
• Forbes - Sam Zell

Berry Liberman is the co-founder and Creative Director of Small Giants and the Publisher and Editor of Dumbo Feather magazine.

Small Giants was founded in 2007 to create, support, nurture and empower businesses that are contributing to the world in a meaningful way. Dumbo Feather is a labour of love. Designed, edited and printed in Melbourne, Australia, it is a quarterly journal highlighting the stories of extraordinary people, living lives of passion and commitment to changing the world we live in.

"We spent our first decade growing a collective of businesses committed to positive change, including Impact Investment Group, The Sociable Weaver, Dumbo Feather and The School of Life. Our focus has been moving capital from the old economy to the next. We’ve sought to prove that a business can be profitable while remaining purpose driven and ensuring value for all stakeholders, including the environment. Likewise, we’ve found time and time again that value can be created without investing in extractive industries."

Standout Quotes:

• "Family was Business, and Business was family, it was one thing" - [Berry]
• "Both my parents in a way saw work as service, you contributed to the society that you were lucky enough to live in" - [Berry]
• "When you go to your grave, you go with only one thing, and that's your name" - [Berry]
• "If you know your shadow self, there isn't anything that can take you by surprise " - [Berry]
• "I wanted to do big work, and I didn't want to be afraid, and I knew that the thing that scared me most was everything that was happening on the inside of me" - [Berry]
• "One of the things about family businesses is they're often a massive spaghetti ball, and all of the spaghetti is interwoven into all the other spaghetti and it's very hard to separate" - [Berry]
• "Business and Financial capital can be a force for good in the world" - [Berry]
• "We didn't have the language for it at the time but we had the intuition, that growth at any cost, that the extraction economy, was coming to an end" - [Berry]
• "Money in families is complicated, and Family Business is complicated, and it's never about the money, it's about the people and the relationships and the emotional maturity of those people" - [Berry]
• "We are the custodians, not of financial capital that is our entitlement, but the financial capital that is handed from one generation to the next, much like fresh air and fresh water, we are custodians" - [Berry]
• "Impact investing is a paradigm shift, it's not an asset class, and once you make that shift in your mind, you can't do anything but invest that way" - [Berry]
• "You are the company you keep" - [Berry]
• "I would tell them not to hate anyone, ever, and to love hard, I don't think you lose anything when you love" - [Berry]

Key Takeaways:

• In a true 'rags to riches' story of how the family clothing business began, Berry describes how her grandfather alongside the family, used to recycle the unsellable silk stockings discarded by a company, and eventually caused a shift in demand in his favor.
• Berry shares that she was raised perceiving business as fun, and something that involved the whole family. Unfortunately following the crash in 1991, the impact weighed equally upon the family.
• She narrates how she was able to forge her path outside the norm, because there was very little attention on her, especially following the passing of her father and ensuing family changes.
• As for her psychotherapy, It became clear there was a need to answer pertinent questions about herself and sort through unresolved issues personally. "I wanted to do big work, and I didn't want to be afraid, and I knew that the thing that scared me most was everything that was happening on the inside of me". She also disclosed that ultimately she wanted to be her own person but she didn't want to do it at the expense of family harmony.
• By the time Berry stepped in to join the family business, seeing how it was being run, she knew she wanted to do things differently.
• Narrating the events surrounding the inception of the company "Small Giants", Berry highlights the deep concern that was born following her knowledge of very critical climate issues, and this ignited a passion to create a better world for her kids to live in.
• It's an intergenerational project and the main goal is to become a good ancestor if you're a person of privilege and you have the resources.
• Much like with the financial capital that is handed from one generation to another in family businesses, we are also custodians of the fresh air and water handed down to us.
• Mike shares that the phrase "Stewardship" comes from environmental sustainability and so aptly applies in the context of this conversation.
• Berry explains that Philanthropy means "love of humankind" and in her view should be a whole portfolio vision; love of humankind with everything you have.
• "The Doughnut Economy" by Kate Raworth: This book describes a metaphor that likens the outer part of a doughnut to the bounds of the environment, and the inner part to society. Kate suggests living in the sweet spot between the bounds of ecology and human flourishing, such that you can engage in business but with more accountability built-in.
• The pillars of investments by Small Giants include Food and agriculture, Energy, Finance, and the Built environment.
• While Berry admits that little effort has been put into planning for the future as regards her kids being involved in the family office, she notes that doesn't want them to do Small Giants necessarily. She would rather they had the same freedom she had, to go on their journey, with full support to become themselves fully.
• Berry emphasizes the importance of talking to her children; "No topic is out of bounds, and I will let myself be challenged by my children because they've got a pretty good compass"
• Recent research shows that Kids that know where they come from, and particularly the trials and tribulations of prior generations, are usually resilient as a result.
• From Berry to her kids: "I would tell them not to hate anyone, ever, and to love hard, I don't think you lose anything when you love"

Episode Timeline:

• [00:54] About today's guest, Berry Liberman.
• [02:30] Berry describes her family origins.
• [09:07] What were the key building blocks along the path to the growth of the business empire?
• [15:00] Could you tell us where you started, and what you wanted to do with your wealth as regards the impact you wanted to have on the world?
• [25:37] Berry describes the structure at the family table when she stepped in.
• [38:58] What are some of the impact investments you have made?
• [41:55] How do we ensure there is a return so that we can keep on doing good?
• [47:36] Small Giants' Pillars of Investment
• [51:22] Do you anticipate your kids getting involved in the Small Giants family office?
• [56:50] Has the documentation of your family history been intentional so far?
• [59:50] A letter from Berry to her kids.

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Berry Liberman.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• Small Giants — Who We Are — Small Giants Academy is a storytelling platform and education institution dedicated to the transition to a more just and sustainable society.
• Dumbo Feather magazine — Berry Liberman is the the Publisher and Editor of Dumbo Feather magazine
• Skoll | Berry Liberman — Berry Liberman BIOGRAPHY

With over a decade of experience working with select business families in Africa, Nike Anani helps owners lead their family organizations to long-term impact and legacy.

Her clients choose to engage her, not only because of her extensive professional training, but also because of her practical experience as both a business founder and a NextGen. This allows her to uniquely empathise with both generations and act as a connector to the Founding generation.

Standout Quotes:

• "And that's an observation I have of founders and entrepreneurs, they're just amazing people that have an eye for opportunity" - [Nike]
• "As most founders do, it was about giving me the best opportunity to set me up for success and often in their minds, success is going as far away from the business to get the best experience...so they can come back" - [Nike]
• "In Nigeria, 90% of indigenous businesses are family businesses, but only 2% survive beyond the founder" - [Nike]
• "Family businesses are so key to the community, if they keep failing after a generation, then what's that doing to the economy?" - [Nike]
• "I think that starting from a relatively small base, the best way to build anything is with community, and actually building what that community wants rather than just dictating something that you found off the shelf from another culture" - [Mike]
• "If you've seen one family business, you've seen one family business" - [Nike]
• "A friend of mine says whenever you wake up is your morning, some people don't wake up until they're 85, they don't know what they want" - [Nike]
• "I need to be in the best version of myself so I can serve people to the best of my ability" - [Nike]
• "There's always something new to learn, we've never arrived, we're just on this ongoing journey of endless learning, in my view" - [Nike]
• "There's no position that's guaranteed in life, whether it be a position of material success or honor, today you might be celebrated but it doesn't mean tomorrow you will be" - [Nike]
• "It is important to ensure that people's external projections don't become your internal story, because your story is the most powerful thing that you can give yourself" - [Nike]

Key Takeaways:

• Nike is a 2nd generation family business owner, and she narrates how her father started the family business initially as a side-hustle.
• Describing events around her entry into the business, she shares the plan was to only stay for a few months in Nigeria, gain exposure to business in general, and move back to the UK eventually. However, she was drawn to the spirit of entrepreneurship there and felt more liberated as a young black female.
• Nike explains that while her father had expressed general support for her in any field she was planning to go into, she had never expected she would work in the family business.
• A glaring disparity in the decision-making process between her former place of work and the family business was the time taken which could be much shorter or longer in different scenarios, leaving her befuddled about family business as a whole. This encouraged her to get professional education at the Family Firm Institute in Boston.
• Employing her knowledge in her family business, Nike started the process of "Governance" which involved her siblings more, intending to avert the typical dissolution that plagued most Nigerian family businesses after the founding generation.
• Another strategy adopted involved starting the conversation by creating a community called "African Family Firms" for African families facing similar challenges to meet and navigate through these issues.
• Nike highlights various peculiarities of African families, noting how these have to be put into consideration when trying to find solutions to the survival of family businesses in Africa.
• You won't know what you want until you come together as a family, have open conversations, and plan for different scenarios. Get clear as a family on who you are, what your values are, the goals of the family, and the purpose of the family business.
• Emphasizing the importance of continuous learning, Nike embraces the process as a part of being the best version of herself.
• A significant failure that set her up for success took place in school, where the result she got at some point would not be good enough for the jobs she wanted, and this motivated her to push herself harder than ever before to achieve her desired goal.
• Nike’s parents impressed upon her certain values described as 4Hs and 2Ps. The 4Hs are Honesty, Hard work, Humility, and Harmony while the 2Ps are People and Places. All of these were included in the family constitutional value system when the formal family enterprise was set up.
• It is important to understand that while people can project their weaknesses onto you and vilify you, their external projections should not become your internal story because your story is the most powerful thing you can give yourself, and you have to hold on to that story.

Episode Timeline:

• [00:50] Meet Today's guest, 'Nike Anani'.
• [01:56] Nike's personal and professional background.
• [08:30] How did the family make the jump from medical consumables to construction and building hospitals?
• [16:55] How were you inspired to learn more about the Business of Family?
• [23:00] Since the wake-up call that you received, what did you do about it for your own family or your friends' families?
• [29:50] Do people document entitlements for kin or rather more of a bloodline lineage?
• [32:53] Challenges surrounding Real Estate planning in Africa.
• [39:18] An overview of Nike's different roles in family business generally.
• [50:15] Has there been a specific failure that you've learned a great deal from?
• [56:00] Apart from education, what else came through as fundamentally important from your parents?
• [59:40] Nike's letter to her kids.

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Nike Anani.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• Nike Anani — Nike is the founder and CEO of Nike Anani Practice, Ltd. With over a decade of experience working with select business families in Africa, Nike Anani helps owners lead their family organizations to long-term impact and legacy.
• Nextgen – the turning wheel | Nike Anani — Nike Anani's clients choose to engage her, not only because of her extensive professional training, but also because of her practical experience as both a business founder and a NextGen
• Building a Generational Bridge in Africa - Women in Family Business
• Podcast: The Connected Generation with Nike Anani — The Connected Generation Podcast with Nike Anani

Tiho is a Global Citizen & Investor, and today runs the multifamily office, The Atlas Investor on behalf of his family and other ultra high net worth families and individuals.

I've been fortunate to build a friendship with Tiho since connecting last year and always enjoy our multi-hour conversations about the state of the world, investment opportunities and challenging each other to see things from different perspectives. Tiho has a mind like no other person I've met and it's a privilege to listen and learn to him whenever I'm given the opportunity.

To hear Tiho's first appearance on the podcast, please visit: Tiho Brkan – Global Deal Flow for Family Office Investors.

Standout Quotes:

• "Is Cash going to be King or is cash going to be trash?" - [Tiho]
• "While it's easy to make money today and everything seems to be working, the question for very smart investors is to anticipate what's around the corner" - [Tiho]
• "If you think about a Real Estate cycle, you have 4 stages; Early-stage, mid-cycle, late-stage, and downturn... in Early-stage, you want to be in equity as much as possible" - [Tiho]
• "We don't do deals with any developer that doesn't have more than one exit strategy" - [Tiho]
• "If a senior lender is doing 37 million, talk to them, ask them about the due diligence because they're putting far more money than you are and they've done it all" - [Tiho]
• "The way that you diversify your portfolio, you can also diversify your life" - [Tiho]
• "Stick around very experienced people who have been around for a long time, who have survived the cycles... Stick with a talented group of people who have a low personnel turnover" - [Tiho]
• "Negotiate... Negotiate... Negotiate" - [Tiho]

Key Takeaways:

• Mike's previous episode with Tiho Brkan is one of the most downloaded episodes, and by popular demand, he had to bring him for a 2nd episode.
• Tiho shares that a lot of investors in this period want to make a lot of money as quickly as possible, as this time is not very suitable for long-term investment.
• He explains the reasons why this recession has been the worst in a long time, but this does not reflect in some assets and certain locations.
• In normal valuation, reprisals happen where you hold cash which gives you optionality and the ability to be selective, but where money supply around the world is increasing at a rapid speed, is cash going to be King or is cash going to be trash?
• Tiho explains that as a contrarian investor, you ride a certain wave until valuations become extreme for you, understanding that high valuations today entail future disappointing returns and so rather, you go and look for relative value elsewhere.
• Family offices don't have to be restricted to one type of asset, they have an 'Open Mandate' and Tiho describes the various opportunities available for family offices. Most investors are asking, 'how much money can I make by next Monday?' while he is asking 'How do we only lose 20% rather than 50% in the upcoming downturn?'
• The capital stack' and 'Mezzanine debt': There are 3 Real Estate strategies which are Core Real Estate, Value add Real Estate or Opportunistic Real Estate. Mezzanine debt is most commonly a strategy seen in opportunistic Real Estate investment. Mezzanine debt exposure is the most versatile in all 4 stages of the Real-estate cycle(early, mid, late, and downturn). With Mezzanine debt, you can get up to 15% returns per annum.
• Tiho's due diligence process before investing: First, the deal must be 'shovel ready' meaning construction starts immediately. Next, note the purpose or theme and planning of the project, location of the project, the track record of the borrower, feasibility studies, the general contractor or quantity surveyor, Securities, and the Exit Strategy.
• What is the Monitoring process? This involves Weekly and fortnightly communication to get updates on the project. it may also involve site visits by you or a Real Estate expert, and construction status updates.
• Discussing Residence Planning perspective: What is the purpose that we're trying to accomplish here?
• The OECD tax model: This is divided into 4 segments of how income is taxed. First is the "No Income Tax", second is "Territorial Tax". "Residence-based Taxation" is third. Last is "Citizenship Based Taxation".
• An important investing lesson: Stick around very experienced people who have been around for a long time, who have survived the cycles. Stick with a talented group of people who have a low personnel turnover.
• Everything is negotiable in the world of finance.

Episode Timeline:

• [00:50] Introducing 2nd-time guest "Tiho Brkan", by popular demand.
• [02:30] From your perspective, what have you seen evolve over the last few months from this pandemic?
• [09:03] Are Contrarian investors nowadays taking advantage of the increased supply of money or sitting on their hands?
• [13:52] Discussing the impact of the increase in money supply on preferences regarding the duration of family investments.
• [22:38] 'The Capital Stack' and 'Mezzanine debt' in Real Estate projects.
• [35:03] Tiho describes in critical detail, his due diligence process before investing in a deal.
• [46:00] The 'Monitoring Process'
• [52:50] Are there advantages to the double taxation agreement in a cross-border environment that investors should be thinking about?
• [57:26] The OECD tax model
• [01:05:10] An investing lesson to his kids

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Tiho Brkan.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• The Atlas Investor — Changing the way investors diversify into alternative assets
• Tiho Brkan (@TihoBrkan) / Twitter

A serial social enterprise entrepreneur, co-owner of the WNBA Seattle Storm, and a writer, Ginny continues to look for ways to expand the footprint of women's professional sports in the U.S.

Standout Quotes:

• "The way that people really become good at something and grow wealth is by concentration" - [Ginny]
• "There are gifts hidden in tough times" - [Ginny]
• "You should keep doing something only as long as you're learning and growing" - [Ginny]
• "For any family that's lucky enough to have financial wealth you've got to think about whether you are going to insist that people get along, and at what price" - [Ginny]
• "The biggest thing that's probably shifted is recognizing what we really want, which is adult relationships with our adult children" - [Ginny]
• "If you want to see change in the world, well, you've got to invest, cos nothing's going to happen if you're not going to invest" - [Ginny]
• "What's really most important to most people is Human Connection... and if you really want to be connected, you've got to deal with the stuff that's the toughest" - [Ginny]

Key Takeaways:

• After making many mistakes starting a nonprofit, Ginny set up a business that helps start-up nonprofits avoid similar mistakes and achieve their goals.
• Early in her career, she had goals that were not related to working in the family business.
• Having a financial cushion had benefits, like the freedom to work without being tied to a focus on amassing wealth, although it came with less attention from their father.
• When the time came for a transition of the family business, she knew she had to step up to the responsibility placed on her despite her lack of knowledge or passion in the family business.
• There has to be a lot of very direct conversations if you want to be in business with your siblings.
• Ginny clearly explains that she has no passion for the investment business, but got involved, for the love of family, the financial security, and the business relationships that come with it.
• Having an investment office rather than a family office with bells and whistles was geared at equipping her kids to be independent, self-sufficient, and capable human beings.
• Honesty has been hugely instrumental in navigating the family dynamics in Ginny's family, she also had to understand the importance of having adult relationships with her adult children.
• When things go wrong, that's when you have to figure it out and it's also when you find out the relationships that are solid.
• The importance of dealing with difficult family relationships: it's so easy when life is good to think everything is fine but as soon as life gets hard if you haven't dealt with challenges and learned how to disagree and resolve differences, you're not going to make it through the hardest parts of life.

Episode Timeline:

• [00:49] Meet Ginny Gilder; sharing her personal and professional background.
• [01:34] Her family history and the origin of the family business
• [08:20] How Ginny got into the investment business.
• [22:50] What was your father's position when you started your nonprofit organization?
• [29:00] Ginny describes how the family dynamics affected the transition of the business to her generation.
• [30:42] What would you say that you've learned from the separation of roles between family and business?
• [33:22] What is the family business structure going forward?
• [40:05] How do you differentiate your investment office from a family office?
• [41:20] About Gilder Office for Growth
• [48:56] How do you navigate through your family dynamics in the world of wealth?
• [53:15] Tell us about what you're most passionate about in terms of one of the businesses that you own today.
• [01:00:40] Ginny's letter to her kids

*For more episodes go to *
BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter at https://www.businessoffamily.net/newsletter

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Ginny Gilder.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• Seattle Storm — Ginny Gilder is the co-owner of the WNBA Seattle Storm
• Gilder Office For Growth — Ginny Gilder is the CEO & Founder of Gilder Office for Growth

Standout Quotes:

• “Multi-family businesses are acts of inadvertence in the initial years or the initial generation, they're usually a force of necessity, and then it becomes more opportunistic as the family gets bigger, and by the time you get to the 3rd generation it's more process-driven and ultimately becomes strategic” – Spencer Burke
• “At the end of the day, it's not about having a board and all that, it's about the quality of the people, the vision, the culture and purpose of the organization; that's what creates great companies of all kinds and family business is just a large subset of great companies in the world” – Spencer Burke
• "In the United States, you can own 100% of the votes and not own any of the economics of a company" – Spencer Burke
• "I don't think there's anything better to own than your own company and the ability to compound earnings" – Spencer Burke
• “When it is time to sell the business that's great, that's not a failure” – Spencer Burke
• “The key to happiness is, don't let other people be the measure of your success; If you're not happy doing what you're doing, go do something else” – Spencer Burke

Key Takeaways:

• Some families walk away from a wealth of knowledge because they don't know what they're getting; although they need the advice, they just have the wrong person giving it to them
• Multi-generational family businesses are acts of inadvertence in the initial years or the initial generation, but get more opportunistic as the family gets bigger, and by the third generation, ultimately becomes strategic and process-driven.
• “Hygiene" refers to some cost-free measures that can be set up in the beginning to increase your chances of getting beyond the 2nd and 3rd generation, however, if not taken care of, you have no chance of success
• The key characteristic shared by enduring companies whether family business or not is "Total Control by One Person”
• In most families where there are issues, how the socio-emotional wealth is getting shared is just as prominent as how the money is being shared.
• To succeed over long periods (100 years), successful families have extracted a great deal of wealth out of the business so they have the resources to protect the business when necessary.
• The 3 fundamental factors that may impede the success of a family business; the Family tree is the first because it tends to grow faster than most business
• One of the number 1 keys to family business success is "Set the policies for the future when there are no names attached to them".
• The matriarch of the family is usually the keeper of family harmony, the patriarch of the family is usually the keeper of running the great business, but the patriarch more often than not, does not have the power in that family.
• The three interest groups represented in a family business; the people in the business, the people that own the business, and the people that are just in the family neither as owners nor in the business.
• The key to happiness is ‘don't let other people be the measure of your success; If you're not happy doing what you're doing, go do something else’

Episode Timeline:

• [01:28] A concise overview of Spencer's professional background
• [07:55] Spencer's thesis on starting a multi-generational family business
• [10:50] Instead of a Family Business Course, Spencer calls his course Ownership Insights
• [11:36] Common characteristics shared by enduring companies whether family business or not
• [14:19] The concept of Spoils of Ownership
• [16:35] The 'tyranny of the internal rate of return' versus 'creation of real wealth'
• [20:41] The 3-circle diagram in family business education depicts Family, Business, and Ownership, with how they interact.
• [22:32] The 3 fundamental undertows that affect a family business
• [28:57] The continuum of behaviors; a Business Family and a Family business.
• [35:20] The tradeoff between running a great business and maintaining family harmony
• [38:00] How is family harmony maintained as businesses progress through multiple generations?
• [53:40] A letter from Spencer to his kids.

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter at https://www.businessoffamily.net/newsletter

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Spencer Burke.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• The St. Louis Trust Company Multi-Family Office — We provide holistic, high-touch client service combined with customized, independent investment management and a full range of family office services.
• Washington University's Olin Business School

Tiho is known to visit up to 20 countries per year, all the while observing global economic trends, purchasing offshore real estate and executing investments on behalf of his clients.

Standout Quotes:

• “The margins in luxury real estate can be insanely profitable as long as you know what you’re doing and as long as you choose the right deal.” - Tiho Brkan [21:27]
• “Asian millennials are now becoming the most important demographic for the whole global economy.” - Tiho Brkan [35:30]
• “The beautiful thing about mezzanine debt is that it has equity-like returns and bond-like downside protection or margin of safety, and that’s why we like it. ”- Tiho Brkan [42:05]
• “Focus on learning from the right source and really moving the needle on what’s important and what counts.” - Tiho Brkan [1:03:55]

Key Takeaways:

• How to master the blend between an entrepreneur and an investor
• Learning world cultures through travel
• The importance of diversifying your capital into alternative assets as a high net worth individual or family office
• Understanding the global tax scene when investing across the world
• Capital Stack and the difference between senior and mezzanine debt

Episode Timeline:
[1:35] Tiho shares his background both personally and professionally
[4:05] He shares the reason why he travels and how it has changed the way he views the world
[9:02] How Atlas Investor helps investors gain access to extremely attractive private deals plus using the mastermind model with their investors
[13:50] He talks about his clientele and how COVID-19 has affected the investing world
[16:18] The five strategies they use when investing in real estate across the globe
[24:15] The experience of buying and selling luxury real estate
[27:44] He explains how he handles tax when he lives and conducts business globally
[35:12] The macro view, why the Asian millennial will play a big role in the future global economy
[38:37] The advantages of real estate mezzanine debt investment and why real estate investors prefer it over senior debt
[46:49] Tiho explains what they look for when investing in real estate developments
[54:27] How mentors that included his father played a huge part in his success
[1:00:33] He explains the involvement of his family in the business and the importance of learning from the right sources as a younger person

For more episodes go to BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter at newsletter.mikeboyd.com.au

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Tiho Brkan.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• Book: Think and Grow Rich: Napoleon Hill — In the original Think and Grow Rich, published in 1937, Hill draws on stories of Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and other millionaires of his generation to illustrate his principles.
• The Atlas Investor — Changing the way investors diversify into alternative assets
• Tiho Brkan (@TihoBrkan) / Twitter

It was Rob who first introduced me to the phrase "The Business of Family" and ignited in me a passion to explore this topic deeply.

The Robson Family approach to structuring their family partnership and stewarding their assets for succeeding generations is some of the best work I've seen in this area. I have no doubt that you'll have many take aways from today's conversation.

Key Takeaways:

• The growth strategies you can employ to sustain and expand your family business
  
• How to apply the two concepts of business of family and family business in your business
• How to make your business a great place to work and entice the family to want to work there
• Learning to let go off your dream for the greater good of future generations
• The importance of putting as much effort in the business of family as the family business

Standout Quotes:

• “We made it a goal to make our business interesting for our children…our children really became great critics of our business and that was pretty tough on the business.”- Rob Robson [16:46]
• “Give as much attention to the business of family as you would to the family business.”- Rob Robson [34:57]
• “Sometimes life isn’t fair but it’s livable and it’s the ability to adapt and change.”- Rob Robson [42:14]

Episode Timeline:
[0:49] Intro
[1:40] He explains how and why he and his wife travel the world sailing 5-7 months a year.
[4:55] He narrates how he and his wife expanded his parent’s grocery business by researching and employing innovations over the years.
[11:01] The two aspects of the business of family and the family business explained.
[14:30] Rob explains how he and his wife made an intentional decision to actively involve their children in their business from a young age.
[16:43] How they made the business an interesting place to work over the last 30 years and how the ownership of the business is distributed across the family.
[19:58] He describes the process of his family counsel partnership and how it works.
[22:47] The four rules of Harvard on the relationship between the family and the family business.
[25:16] The change of generations as time goes by in a family business.
[28:24] Why it is not automatic for a family member to be offered a position in Rob’s business.
[29:04] He explains how they handle the family business’ funding among the family members.
[33:27] How and why they invested in a family business.
[34:55] Lessons you can learn from Rob on how to grow a multigenerational business.
[37:44] He describes his legacy as having put the effort in both the business and the family.
[40:25] Rob shares what he would include in a letter of a life lesson he believes many parents don’t teach their children.

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter at newsletter.mikeboyd.com.au

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Special Guest: Rob Robson.

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.

Links:

• Book: Family Wealth - Keeping It in the Family: How Family Members and Their Advisers Preserve Human, Intellectual, and Financial Assets for Generations: James E. Hughes Jr. — The landmark book that changed the way exceptional families think about their heritage, their wealth, and their legacy to future generations.

Join Mike Boyd on The Business of Family Podcast as he interviews members of some of the world's most interesting families about how they pass knowledge, resources, values and wealth to the next generation.

• Family Constitutions and annual letters
• Family meetings and retreats
• Succession planning
• Stewardship
• Family Office investing
• Multi-generational wealth creation and preservation
• Enduring companies and familes
• Family enterprise
• Human, Intellectual and Financial Capital

I’ve been fortunate enough to meet some extremely successful families in my travels and gleaned insights from how each are shaping their legacy.

Many will tell you that it’s the human, intellectual and spiritual capital that makes them successful for generations & that financial capital is simply a function of their success in these areas.

If multigenerational families and businesses fascinate you too, subscribe now to The Business of Family Podcast.

I hope you enjoy sharing this learning journey with me and would greatly appreciate any feedback, resources or referrals you have to offer.

https://twitter.com/MikeBoyd/status/1277889154601201664

For more episodes go to
BusinessOfFamily.net

Sign up for The Business of Family Newsletter at newsletter.mikeboyd.com.au

Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeBoyd

If you feel it's appropriate, I'd so appreciate you taking 30 seconds to Leave a Review on iTunes, I receive a notification of each review. Thank you!

Sponsored By:

• The Business of Family Newsletter: The newsletter compliments the podcast with subscriber-only articles, bonus content and a great list of book recommendations.