On August 10th, Columbia University Press published The Family Office: A Comprehensive Guide for Advisors, Practitioners, and Students by William I. Woodson and Edward V. Marshall. The book outlines a thorough guide to family offices and the best practices for wealth managers to advise them. This fall, Woodson is teaching "The Wealth Management Landscape" in Columbia's Master's in Wealth Management program.
Family offices represent a mere 7% of the world’s ultra-high-net-worth population—yet control a staggering 50% of the wealth. As only a select few families now hold a disproportionate amount of global wealth, there are significant social implications to how such assets are managed and used. The book includes a series of problem-based learning case studies that follow a single family’s journey, from a significant liquidity event, to the creation, staffing, and management of their family office, to its succession.
Woodson is the Executive Vice President and Head of Wealth Advisory and Family Office Services at Boston Private. He has 30 years of experience advising wealthy families, closely-held business owners, and family offices across a wide range of wealth management disciplines, including investment management, taxation, estate planning, philanthropy, wealth education, and family office best-practices.
