In business, an oft-repeated adage proclaims, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” Relationships are the lifeblood of successful business organizations. And the strength and depth of your business relationships often determine the success or otherwise of your company’s business and, ultimately, the rise or fall of your company and career. This is certainly the case in the world of the ultra-rich and for the family offices that serve their needs. Because of their years of experience in their respective fields, many of the family office professionals working for the world’s wealthiest family businesses have come to know and understand this simple truth through hard-won experience. And since veteran investment professional Marc J. Sharpe founded The Family Office Association in 2007, these professionals have been part of a private network of billionaire family office executives, where they share resources, knowledge, and fellowship in a safe, confidential environment.
The Family Office Association (TFOA) was founded after a chance meeting between a group of family office executives in the law offices of the storied law firm Vinson & Elkins in Houston, Texas. Although this small collection of family business professionals came to deal with their own business affairs, they quickly realized the value of networking with and learning from the other family office executives in the room. Since that chance encounter, TFOA has blossomed into an exclusive global network of family office executives sharing their knowledge, expertise, and proprietary deal flow, essentially for free.
The organization is founded on a belief that all stakeholders should benefit, and it prioritizes relationships above short-term monetization, operating as a private peer network rather than a commercial business. For this reason, TFOA donates proceeds from its annual symposium, which is a closed-door event featuring world-class speakers to charity. Past symposiums have featured speakers such as TPG’s David Bonderman and the George W. Bush Presidential Center’s Kenneth Hersh, among others.
Since its founding, the establishment and growth of The Family Office Association has been the brainchild of Sharpe, who currently serves as an Operating Partner at Satori Capital, a multi-strategy investment firm guided by what it calls “conscious capitalism,” a business approach that emphasizes extraordinary long-term outcomes for all stakeholders. Originally a native of the UK, Sharpe initially came to the United States for a training program for the boutique investment bank. After six weeks of living in New York, he decided to stay and build a new life in America.
After receiving master’s degrees from both Oxford University and Cambridge University, Sharpe continued his education in the United States, receiving a Fulbright Scholarship and an MBA from Harvard Business School. A brief investigation into his history also confirms that he served stints at Goldman Sachs and Wasserstein Perella in the fields of investment management and investment banking, respectively.
Sharpe is now also a business educator, teaching a class on family offices and entrepreneurship as an adjunct professor at Rice University and Southern Methodist University. When asked about his thoughts on the current state of family offices, he will typically refer people to the many white papers he has written and published on the TFOA website. From his activities, it is clear that he has a keen interest in the creation and sharing of knowledge within this very specialized field.
Despite his long list of credentials, Sharpe is quick to downplay his role as the mastermind behind this secret world of family office networking, seeing himself more as a facilitator for other family office professionals who want to learn from each other. “My role is providing a buffer of anonymity so others can come together and network safely away from the usual conferences and forums where they are typically a target for service providers and high-pressure solicitations,” he said. “TFOA is a safe place for family offices to come together where members can receive impartial and unbiased advice from their peers.”
Sharpe’s unassuming attitude belies his hopes for the organization’s future. He envisions TFOA symposiums growing in size and importance and points to the World Economic Forum at Davos as a model. If Sharpe is able to fulfill this ambitious goal, TFOA will serve a unique role on the world stage as a highly exclusive private members club that truly brings outstanding value to all its stakeholders.
