Location

Union League Club
38 E 37th St, NYC

DATE

Tuesday May 10, 2022

2022 NYC AGENDA

Printable Agenda Here

Last Year’s Agenda Here

8:00 AM
sign-in & Breakfast sponsored by alliancebernstein (AB)

8:30 AM
WELCOME & INTRODUCTIONs

8:40 AM
Owner Strategy: How Do You Define Success for Your Family Business?

Josh Baron, BanyanGlobal
Sarah Constantine, Esq., Arnold and Porter, Moderator

9:30 AM
Empower the Next Generation through the Design of Your Family Office

Daniel G. Berick, Esq., Americas Chair, Corporate, Squire Patton Boggs
Christine Chang, Principal, Avire Finance USA

10:20 AM
BREAK

10:50 AM
How to Design and Implement an Effective Family Business Board

Babetta von Albertini, Esq., IFG Chair & General Counsel, ATM Capital Partners, Moderator
Brendan Wall, CEO and family board member of Wall Family Enterprise

11:40 AM
keynote sponsored by Concord Trust
Importance of Family Values: Challenges and Lessons Learned

Matthew Fleming, G5 of the Fleming family

12:30 PM
Lunch & Roundtable Discussions sponsored by Willow Street

2:00 PM
How to Align Family Governance and Corporate Governance — a Case Study

Michael J. Gillespie, Esq., Debevoise & Plimpton
Ivan Lansberg, Lansberg Gersick & Associates

2:50 PM
BREAK

3:20 PM
How to Use the Family Fortune to Serve One’s Community

Joya Sonnenfeldt, G2 of the Sonnenfeldt and G3 of the Goldman family
Bruno Carvajal, G5 of the Carvajal family
Jason Ingle, G5 of the Ford family, Moderator

4:20 PM
keynote sponsored by pitcairn:
Legendary Families: How to Win the America’s Cup Multiple Times in a Row

Halsey Herreshoff, G3 of the Herreshoff family

5:20 PM
Concluding remarks

Babetta von Albertini, Ph.D. | IFG Founder & Chair

Babetta is the Chair of the Institute for Family Governance. She is an expert on family governance and U.S. tax law and has advised large domestic and international families on their governance and succession planning for approaching twenty years. Babetta is also the General Counsel of ATM Capital Partners, a single family office. Prior thereto, she was with Withers (a global trusts and estates law firm) for nine years, and Shearman & Sterling (a capital markets law firm) for three years, living and working in New York, London, Switzerland and Hong Kong. Babetta is a dual-qualified common law/civil law attorney (admitted to the bars of New York and Zurich, Switzerland) and holds both a Tax LL.M. and a Corporate LL.M. from NYU, as well as a Ph.D. in law from the University of Zurich, Switzerland. She currently serves as elected U.S. representative on the STEP Global Council (the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners).

Dennis T. Jaffe, Ph.D. | Vice-Chair

Dr. Jaffe, a San Francisco-based advisor to families about family business, governance, wealth and philanthropy, is Senior Research Fellow at BanyanGlobal Family Business Advisors. He is author of Borrowed from Your Grandchildren: The Evolution of 100-Year Family Enterprises; Cross Cultures: How Global Families Negotiate Change Across Generations; Stewardship in your Family Enterprise: Developing Responsible Family Leadership Across Generations and Working with the Ones You Love. His global insights have led to teaching or consulting engagements in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. The Family Firm Institute awarded him the 2017 International Award for service, and in 2005 he received the Beckhard Award for service to the field. In 2020 he was awarded a special commendation as an individual thought leader in the field of wealth management by the Family Wealth Report. He has a BA degree in Philosophy, MA in Management, and Ph.D. in sociology, all from Yale University, and professor emeritus of organizational systems and psychology at Saybrook University in San Francisco.

John E. Oden | Vice-Chair

John is a Principal and twenty-five year veteran of AllianceBernstein ("AB"), a global money management and research firm with over U.S. $500 billion under management through forty-eight offices in twenty-three countries. He has senior responsibilities in working with the firm’s non-U.S. and offshore clients, and currently heads the firm’s family office and private wealth business in Asia. In addition to similar client responsibilities in the U.S. John is the Founder of the China-U.S. Business Alliance, an organization of the senior professional advisors in both the U.S. and Asia who concentrate their business activities in China. He is a former Chairman of the New York Branch of STEP. A strong supporter of athletics, John writes and speaks about the sport of boxing. His first book, White Collar Boxing – One Man’s Journey From the Office to the Ring, was published in 2005. It was followed in 2009 by Life in the Ring – Lessons & Inspirations from the Sport of Boxing. He holds BA and MBA degrees from the University of Texas at Austin.

David R. York | Vice-Chair

David R. York, Esq. CPA is a Co-Founder and Managing Partner of the Salt Lake City law firm York Howell & Guymon. He has extensive experience in designing and implementing advanced tax and estate planning strategies for high net worth clients, along with non-profit and business planning counsel. He is a Fellow with the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), a member of the Utah State Bar Budget and Finance Committee, and former Chair of the Utah State Bar Estate Planning Section. Noted as a Mountain States Rising Star in Super Lawyers Magazine, Utah Legal Elite in Utah Business Magazine and as a Top-Rated Lawyer in Trusts & Estates with Martindale-Hubbell, David has successfully represented clients before the Internal Revenue Service at all levels (Audit, Appeals, and Tax Court). David is co-author of Entrusted: Building A Legacy That Lasts and Riveted: 44 Values That Change the World. He is also the creator of Rivets™ Core Values card game and Rivets™ Certification Training.

Josh Baron | BanyanGlobal

Josh Baron is a co-founder and Partner at BanyanGlobal. For the last decade, he has worked closely with families who own assets together, such as operating companies, family foundations, and family offices. He helps these families to define their purpose as owners and to establish the structures, strategies, and skills they need to accomplish their goals. Josh is also an Adjunct Professor at Columbia Business School, where he teaches a class called "Managing Conflict in Family Business." Josh has written extensively for Harvard Business Review, and also written for The Huffington Post, Trust & Estates Magazine, and Family Business Magazine.

Sarah Constantine | Arnold and Porter

Sarah Constantine counsels high-net worth US and international individuals, their families, family offices, and closely held business on an variety of US-based and cross-border estate planning and wealth preservation matters with a particular focus on estate and gift tax minimization strategies. Her experience includes assisting international clients on creating tax efficient strategies for US-based investing, as well as other US income and transfer tax matters including trust and probate issues, matters relating to migration to and from the US, expatriation, and asset protection planning. Sarah also focuses on matters relating to IRS, state and local tax controversies and assists clients in the process of becoming compliant with US tax laws and related reporting obligations.

Daniel G. Berick | Squire Patton Boggs

Daniel Berick is partner in the Global Corporate Practice and is the co-head of the firm’s global Family Office team. Dan advises family offices and private equity and venture capital firms in connection with portfolio company investments, acquisitions and dispositions, fund investments and co-investments, fund formation and structuring, and securities and corporate law matters. He is a graduate of Columbia University and the University of Chicago, and has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America since 2006 for Corporate Law, Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity Law, Securities and Capital Markets Law, and Mergers and Acquisitions Law. He has been named an Ohio Super Lawyer since 2011 by Thomson Reuters, has been recognized in The Legal 500 US as a Leading Lawyer in middle market M&A and by Chambers USA as a leading M&A practitioner, and has been named a Star Lawyer by legal industry research firm Acritas. He is a recipient of the Burton Awards 2020 “Law360 Distinguished Legal Writing Awards” for the article, “The Top 10 Legal Mistakes Made By Early-Stage Companies – A ‘Field Guide’ For Family Offices,” published in the July 23, 2019, edition of Private Wealth.

Christine Chang | Avire Finance USA

Christine is Principal of Avire Finance, USA, as the US representative of a European family office. With 25 years of traditional and alternative investment experience serving institutions and families, she has led senior management teams to build and scale companies, operational and regulatory infrastructure and technology, governance and best practices. Christine has helped hedge, private equity and venture funds, and family offices with investment vehicles and portfolio companies in transition. Christine serves as Chairman of the Board of Blueprint Capital Advisors, LLC and an advisory board member of Hike2, an innovative digital transformation consultancy. Christine is a member of TBD Angels, a group of angel investors who are current operators at leading startups and executives at major companies. Christine earned her B.A. from Cornell University and is a member of the Presidential Council of Cornell Women and the Cornell Alumni Admissions Ambassador Network. She is a board member and previous Chairman of Bottomless Closet, a not-for-profit empowering women in NYC to achieve financial self-sufficiency.

Babetta von Albertini, Ph.D. | IFG Chair

Babetta is the Chair of the Institute for Family Governance. She is an expert on family governance and U.S. tax law and has advised large domestic and international families on their governance and succession planning for approaching twenty years. Babetta is also the General Counsel of ATM Capital Partners, a single family office. Prior thereto, she was with Withers (a global trusts and estates law firm) for nine years, and Shearman & Sterling (a capital markets law firm) for three years, living and working in New York, London, Switzerland and Hong Kong. Babetta is a dual-qualified common law/civil law attorney (admitted to the bars of New York and Zurich, Switzerland) and holds both a Tax LL.M. and a Corporate LL.M. from NYU, as well as a Ph.D. in law from the University of Zurich, Switzerland. She currently serves as elected U.S. representative on the STEP Global Council (the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners).

Brendan Wall | Wall Family Enterprise

Brendan Wall is a second-generation owner, together with his nine brothers and sisters, and was elected to the Enterprise board in 2017. Brendan has more than 30 years of experience managing and growing multimillion-dollar businesses. He is the past president and owner of Hatch Building Supply, a wholesale distributor and rebar fabricator that serves concrete and masonry contractors throughout Wisconsin, with revenues over $10 million annually. He and his wife sold the business in June 2018. Brendan is a longtime member of the Loyola Business Center, the UW Family Business Center, and Family Business International. He has served 40-plus years on the National Ski Patrol; serving as past president and chair of Madison East Rotary Club; serving on the Wall Family Charitable Contributions Committee; and serving on the WFE Governance, Audit, and Business Advisory committees of the board. He has also served the Madison Leukemia Society, Edgewood Campus School Capital Campaign, Boy Scouts of America Troop 5 as Scout Master, and numerous professional trade associations in the construction industry. He is married to LeAnna, a civil engineer with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, and they have two children: Grace, a senior at Seattle University, and Zachary, a sophomore at Notre Dame University. In his spare time Brendan enjoys skiing and sailing with his family.

Matthew Fleming | G5 of Fleming family

Matthew Fleming is a G5 of the "James Bond" family that also used to hold a stake in London based Robert Fleming (which owned 50% of Jardine Fleming, the Hong Kong based merchant bank, and a JV with US based T Rowe Price called Rowe Price Fleming). A former army officer, Matthew joined the family firm in 2012 after thirteen years as a professional cricketer, where he also played for England. Matthew has held various positions within the family business, including Managing Partner of Fleming Media and Director of Ian Fleming Publications and James Bond Enterprises. He currently also serves as the Head of Family Governance and Succession at Stonehage Fleming and is responsible for helping families develop and implement plans for passing on their legacy to subsequent generations.

Michael J. Gillespie | Debevoise & Plimpton

Michael Gillespie is a corporate partner advising senior management, boards of companies, and family enterprises acting throughout the world, including the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and India and various other jurisdictions and regions. Mr. Gillespie is a senior member of the M&A, TMT and Latin America practice groups, among others. Over three decades, he has served as trusted advisor to some of the largest companies and family groups globally, and his work has covered a broad span, from family enterprise governance, M&A and other strategic transactions to critical compliance and risk management issues. 

Mr. Gillespie has been engaged in the firm’s talent strategies throughout his time as a partner, including as Hiring Partner and while serving two terms on the firm’s Management Committee.  He currently serves as Co-Head of Diversity & Inclusion at the firm. 

Mr. Gillespie holds degrees from Amherst College (B.A., summa cum laude), and Harvard Law School (J.D.).

Ivan Lansberg | Lansberg Gersick & Associates

Ivan Lansberg grew up in an entrepreneurial family in Venezuela. He has consulted with complex family businesses in the USA, Canada, Asia, Europe and Latin America, and has made significant contributions to the understanding of family business governance and succession. His book, Succeeding Generations, published by Harvard Business School Press, has been widely praised as a landmark work. Ivan is a frequent speaker at family business programs organized by universities and industry groups, and currently serves on the faculty of Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. 

Ivan holds B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Columbia University and taught at the Columbia Graduate School of Business. He then became a professor of organizational behavior at the Yale School of Organization and Management for seven years before going into consulting.

Joya Sonnenfeldt | G2 of the Sonnenfeldt Family and G3 of the Irving Goldman Family

Joya is an attorney based in New York and for over a decade, has been actively engaged in her family’s philanthropic activities including the Goldman Sonnenfeldt Foundation and the Joyce and Irving Goldman Family Foundation. In 2019-2020, Joya coordinated the rapid deployment of emergency COVID funding, assisted existing grantees in navigate emerging challenges, and made significant investments in nonpartisan efforts to ensure a safe and accessible 2020 election. Through the Goldman Sonnenfeldt Foundation, Joya has worked on issues involving climate change, education, and economic and democratic stability. Through the Joyce and Irving Goldman Family Foundation, Joya has focused on issues including early childhood, Jewish life, workforce development, and the environment. Joya holds a J.D. and an M.E.M. from Yale University and a B.A. from Williams College.

Bruno Carvajal | G5 of the Carvajal Family Council

Bruno Carvajal is a 5th generation member from the Carvajal Family from Cali, Colombia. Family dynamics have kept Bruno close to the family and the business, contributing by holding different leadership positions in the governance structure. A longtime member of the Carvajal Family Council, he acted as president between 2017 and 2021 revitalizing the family dynamics and engaging the new generations. He was a board member for Carvajal Espacios, a company that focuses on office furniture and logistics equipment. He was also part of the board of directors for the Carvajal Foundation and other foundations in Colombia. An Industrial Engineer by training, Bruno graduated from Georgia Tech and IE University in Madrid with a MBA, and specializes in technology and logistics consulting.

Jason Ingle | G5 of the Ford family

Jason is a G5 member of the Ford family and a board member of the Ford Fund, the philanthropic arm of Ford Motor Company. He also serves on his family’s Investment Committee, Family Office Board of Directors, and is the Chair of their Family Council. He works individually, as well as collectively with the broader family, on integrating impact investing to move beyond just “check-writing philanthropy” for the family across the various family enterprise entities. Important questions that arise are: (i) how can the Ford Fund continue to integrate strategic philanthropy and impact investing to magnify its impact on behalf of the company; and (ii) how can G5 and G6 family members come together as a growing and geographically diverse group around a set of collective causes that are tied to the family’s legacy, but also support emerging opportunities. Jason co-founded and is Managing Partner for Closed Loop Capital, an early-stage venture capital platform investing in exceptional entrepreneurs leading ventures in agriculture technology and food system innovation within the United States and Canada. His family is also a co-founding member of The ImPact, a membership network of family enterprises (family offices, foundations, and businesses) that are committed to making investments with measurable social impact. Jason also co-founded Greener Partners, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization with a mission of building better communities through healthy food, vibrant farms, and hands-on education experiences and serving more than 12,000 children annually. Jason serves as the board chair of Equal Measure, a 25 year old 501(C)(3) organization that was originally created at UPenn Wharton tasked with supporting the strategy development and impact evaluation of many of the largest and most forward-thinking foundations and nonprofits in the US. Jason also currently serves on the boards of Greener Partners; the Ford Motor Company Fund; The Hill School; and The College of the Atlantic. Jason, his wife Sarah, and their five children and five dogs reside outside Philadelphia, PA.

Halsey Herreshoff | G3 of the Herreshoff family

Halsey Herreshoff competed in the America’s Cup over four sailing campaigns, the oldest international competition in the world: from 1958 on Columbia as bowman through 1983 on Liberty as navigator. The grandson of Nathaniel Green Herreshoff, his family collectively competed or designed winning boats over fourteen American Cup campaigns, an unrivaled achievement. As a sportsman and naval architect, Halsey is considered one of the world’s great authorities on competitive sailing and yacht design. Among his many contributions, he co-founded America's Cup Hall of Fame and the Herreshoff Marine Museum in Bristol, Rhode Island. Halsey’s public service includes serving as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy and Town Administrator for Bristol. A naval architect by training, Halsey is a graduate of the Webb Institute and MIT, with a master’s degree in naval architecture.

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