Family Business Audiocast

R. Adam Smith hosts Shelley Forsythe, Director and Family Office Lead at BMO Private Wealth. With extensive experience in family governance, Shelley advises multi-generational families on building resilient structures that balance business priorities with family harmony. She discusses how BMO's platform integrates family office services with wealth management, serving over 700 families globally. S...

This week on the The Family Business Audiocast, host R. Adam Smith welcomes back Richard Wolkowitz, founder of Xylogenesis and trusted family enterprise advisor. Wolkowitz breaks down nine critical differences between founder mentality and family mentality that impact family business succession. The conversation explores how governance structures can bridge these differences, the evolution of entr...

Adrienne Penta and Lane McDonald from SCS Financial Services join host R. Adam Smith to discuss the complex interplay between family wealth management, next-generation preparation, and legacy building. Adrienne shares insights on using philanthropy as a gateway for meaningful family conversations about wealth purpose, while Lane explores how emotional detachment in investing yields better outcomes...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Octavian Pilati, an investor, strategist, and founder of The Anti-Fragile Family consultancy. Born into an Austrian aristocratic family with a millennium of heritage, Octavian shares his unique journey into family enterprise leadership following a crisis. The conversation explores critical aspects of family financial planning in multigenerational contexts, including next-gen...

In this fortieth episode of The Family Business Audiocast, R. Adam Smith welcomes Judith Pearson, founder of Precision Brokers and Nomadx. As a recognized leader in fiduciary risk management, Judith shares insights on evolving trust structures and insurance innovations that protect family wealth. The conversation explores private trust companies across different states, the shift in next-generatio...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Bill Stranberg, second-generation leader and managing partner at Stranberg, a firm specializing in executive search and talent strategy for family-owned businesses. Drawing from his own experience joining his parents' firm in 2013, Stranberg shares insights on the delicate balance between honoring family legacy while pursuing evolution and growth. The conversation explores t...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Robbie Heeger, founder and CEO of Endaoment, the first blockchain-powered community foundation revolutionizing philanthropy for digital asset holders. Heeger shares how his journey began with a simple quest for tax efficiency when donating cryptocurrency, revealing the gap in the market for donor-advised funds (DAFs) that could accept digital assets. The conversation explore...

R. Adam Smith welcomes economic anthropologist Bridget Kustin of Oxford Saïd Business School and Associate Professor Emanuela Rondi of the University of Bergamo for an insightful academic perspective on family enterprise dynamics. Kustin shares findings from the Ownership Project 2.0, examining how ultra-wealthy families approach impact investment and the disconnect between their self-perception a...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Christina Wing and Maryann Bell of Wingspan Legacy Partners for an illuminating discussion on family enterprise governance and multi-generational wealth stewardship. Christina, who teaches "Demystifying Families in Business" at Harvard Business School, and Maryann bring their extensive experience helping elite families navigate the complexities of succession planning. The co...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Bobby Stover, leader of Ernst & Young's Americas Family Enterprise and Family Office Business. Bobby shares his framework of four essential pillars for successful family enterprise longevity: growth strategy, company capitalization, shareholder liquidity, and generational transition strategy. The conversation explores how technology is blurring the lines between single a...

In this episode, host R. Adam Smith welcomes Brandon Henry, founder of Mosaic Advisors. Brandon shares insights from his work advising first-generation family enterprise owners whose wealth is primarily tied to illiquid assets. The conversation explores the intersection of family wealth office technical planning and the human dynamics that shape family legacy decisions. Brandon's unique "fixed fee...

R. Adam Smith hosts an insightful panel discussion with three renowned family business experts: Jason Ma (CEO of ThreeEQ), Emily Bouchard (family wealth transition specialist), and Chelsea Toler (next-gen researcher and Logictry co-founder). This dynamic conversation explores the tensions between generational approaches to family investment, entrepreneurship, and governance. The panelists share pr...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Jim Grubman, founder of Family Wealth Consulting and pioneering thought leader in the family business space. With over three decades of experience, Jim discusses his groundbreaking Wealth 3.0 paradigm, which shifts family wealth advising from fear-based strategies toward engagement and resilience. Throughout the conversation, Jim offers profound insights on preparing next-ge...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Kristi Daeda, CEO of The Family Business Consulting Group, to discuss the nuances of family business governance and succession planning. Drawing on insights from her 30 years of experience, Kristi shares how family enterprise leaders can build durable relationships and decision-making structures that withstand generational transitions. She emphasizes that effective family go...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Shaun Parkin, founder of Hall Road Investments, an Australian firm specializing in family office investment governance. Drawing from over 25 years of experience in asset management, Shaun shares insights on how his company helps family offices develop robust investment committee structures and reporting infrastructure. The conversation explores the increasing complexity of a...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Dr. Kirby Rosplock, founder of Tamarind Partners and Tamarind Learning, to discuss the educational gaps facing family enterprises. With over 20 years of experience, Kirby shares insights on how her educational platform addresses crucial knowledge deficits in trust beneficiaries and next-generation family members. The conversation explores how family financial planning educat...

In this episode, R. Adam Smith welcomes Valerie Galinskaya, Managing Director and Head of the Merrill Center for Family Wealth. With 18 years of experience helping ultra-high-net-worth families, Valerie shares insights on effective family financial planning strategies and the importance of intentional communication about wealth. She discusses her framework of Five Core Competencies for family weal...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Tom Deans, international best-selling author and global authority on family wealth transfers. Drawing from his groundbreaking book "Every Family's Business" (with over 1 million copies sold in 100+ countries), Deans challenges conventional wisdom about family business succession planning. He presents a compelling case for selling family businesses to the next generation at f...

In this episode of The Family Business Audiocast, host R. Adam Smith welcomes sports industry veterans Drew Sheinman (Brand Velocity Group) and Brett Johnson (Benevolent Capital). The guests explore how their unique investment platforms are revolutionizing the sports industry through family-focused approaches. Drew shares BVG's innovative "Share the Gains" program, allocating 10% of carried intere...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Ilya Strebulaev, tenured professor of finance and private equity at Stanford Graduate School of Business and founder/director of the Stanford GSB Venture Capital Initiative. Celebrating 20 years at Stanford, Strebulaev shares insights from his extensive research and teaching experience in venture capital and entrepreneurial finance. The conversation explores his recently pub...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Wendy Diamond, Chicago Office Tax Managing Partner and head of the US Family Enterprise platform at Deloitte. With over 25 years of experience advising multi-generational businesses, Diamond shares valuable insights on family office management challenges and strategic growth opportunities in today's complex business environment. The conversation explores key findings from De...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Emily Bouchard and Jim Benedict from PNC Private Bank Hawthorn for an insightful discussion on guiding ultra-high-net-worth families through business transitions. As leaders in family enterprise advisory, they share complementary perspectives on the multifaceted challenges families face before, during, and after selling a business. The conversation explores crucial pre-sale...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Dave Specht, Director of the Drucker School Global Family Business Institute and renowned family enterprise advisor. Drawing from his extensive experience at Wells Fargo and as author of "The Family Business Whisperer," Specht shares his expertise on succession planning through his innovative "Five C's" framework - contingency plans, cash flow planning, compensation, communi...

R. Adam Smith welcomes Karen Costa, National Leader of the Family Office Advisory Center for RSM US. With over 20 years of tax consulting experience, Costa shares valuable insights on the evolution of family wealth office services and explores the holistic approach needed for effective family financial planning. The conversation honors her colleague Tony Wood's legacy while examining the intricaci...

In this milestone episode, R. Adam Smith welcomes Kyle Chapman, President of Barry W. Miller Group, a $3 billion industrial manufacturing conglomerate. Chapman details how his family wealth office evolved from a $20 million company to a global enterprise while maintaining their people-centered leadership philosophy. The conversation explores the unique hybrid private equity model they've developed...