How Women Founders + Funders Can Leverage the Family Office

“Family offices have a less urgent need for liquidity than other investors…and are unconstrained by traditional fund cycles, making them an attractive and logical partner for entrepreneurs, innovators, and venture funds,” notes family office advisor and venture capitalist Kjartan Rist.

A “trifecta” of factors is contributing to the increased power and involvement of women in family offices.

• More women are taking on leadership roles in their family enterprises.
• Women possess increasingly greater earning power and capital.
• And, more families are actively involving the next generation of family members in running the family office and making investment decisions.

Passing the Torch

The proportion of women and next-gen inheritors running family offices will increase in the coming years. The average age of family office principals surveyed for the Deloitte report was 68 years old, and four in 10 family offices will go through a succession process in the next decade.

“On a like-for-like basis with men, women are somewhat more likely to become the principal of the family office,” noted Rebecca Gooch, PhD, Deloitte Private Global Head of Insights. “Family offices can really focus on key stages of life, like retirement or legacy planning. And making sure the next generation is prepared.”

Today’s family offices operate more like boutique investment firms, the Deloitte report also notes, with the average family office having a staff of 15 people managing $2 billion.

Their growing assets and allocations are driving a “hiring spree.”

This hiring spree presents another huge opportunity for women (and their allies) who are leading family offices to hire more women wealth managers and advisors, and build teams—both internal staff and outside counsel—that reflect the family’s gender balance and values.

Meeting the Next Generation Where They’re At

Large amounts of capital carry significant power and potential for impact. Yet, a staggering number of high-net-worth families fail to make proper plans for the next generation to lead. The inevitable shift toward women and inheritors is making formal business structures and value-aligned investing paramount in the modern family office.

As family offices evolve, especially those managing several billion dollars, they need guidance in setting up systems to better involve women and younger generations in values-aligned investing, which they may not yet fully understand.

To make a lasting impact in the world, family offices must address the issue of children who have often been financially provided for and untrained in financial management, much less the basics of budgeting. This necessitates creating formal structures and conditions, including a clear mission statement to align family values and steward wealth responsibly through the generations.

What does the rising generation need to engage in successful stewardship of the family office? A 2024 report by Northern Trust found their top three concerns to be:

1) developing leadership skills,

2) building acumen in evaluating investment opportunities, and

3) implementing effective strategies and processes to support entrepreneurship.

Effective stewardship requires exposing younger family members early on to the basics of finance, budgeting, and investing, as well as providing opportunities to “learn by doing” to build the competency and confidence of next-gen leaders.

Key Takeaway

Unlike monolithic financial entities, family office capital is more risk-tolerant, patient, and flexible. And because many families have built their wealth by building businesses, the family office can be a significant partner in helping startups build their businesses, too.