Narva, Richard
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(Article) Why fiduciaries fail family-controlled enterprises - the problem of trustee succession
01.12.2017
Richard Narva looks at the challenging role that trustees have. He compares the duties of a fiduciary and the traits of a salesman, not very flattering to the trustees! He worries about the conflict between the legalistic trustee roles and the culture and values of the family: "[F]iduciaries must understand that when family life is controlled by legal documents a displacement of the culture of the family of origin occurs, as the legal values . . . take precedence over the historic core values of the family." He closes with the inevitable conflicts of interests in the investment role. This thoughtful article contains a host of alerts. -
(Article) Media review - The Post
01.06.2018
The Post, a movie about the control of the Washington Post newspaper, has many lessons about families and control, with more than a hint of gender assumptions. Richard Narva, a previous contributor and family consultant in the Boston area, chooses a key line by Katherine Graham (Meryl Streep): ?The Post, she reminds one oleaginous male adviser who has counselled her not to publish the Pentagon Papers, is ?no longer my father's paper nor my husband's paper. It's my paper'.? -
(Article) Single family office executive coaching: challenges and solutions
01.12.2019
An intriguing article on executive coaching for family office executives by Richard Narva, Boston, USA, and Freya Griffiths and Anthea Boehmke, both from South Africa, where the three of them developed this special approach. As they note at the beginning of their detailed article, single family offices by their very nature are ?complex, private and closed environments?. As an executive - whether a member of the founding family or a non-family professional - one is inserted into the family dynamics of the founding family, but at the same time expected to run the SFO as a business. Other family office executives will quickly see whether someone really does understand their unique and complex role. -
(Article) Investment performance, family control and family harmony - thoughts on successful SFO advice
01.06.2021
Richard Narva and Simon Sabel focus on the single-family office, in "Investment performance, family control and family harmony - thoughts on successful SFO advice". They begin by noting that a single-family office is by definition a family-controlled enterprise, and as such "Family history, culture and ethnicity, and relationship issues all impact decision making on matters both insignificant and grand". This constant family focus makes it difficult for traditional advisers. To be effective they must understand the particular family culture in each entity. They must also encourage solid governance protocols and dispute resolution mechanisms. They stress that this need by family offices can be met by advisers who have "deep-rooted personal professionalism and independence; technical excellence with a safe compass to navigate between the spheres; and courage to seek the light".