Govern

Family governance ensures that agreements about wealth, values and succession are made deliberately before a crisis occurs, preventing disputes from eroding assets and trust. Without explicit governance structures, families face the documented risk that 70 per cent lose control of assets by the second generation (Williams Group, 2003). Clear family constitutions, councils and decision-making protocols reduce conflict, align decision-making, and create a stable frame for stewardship across generations.

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Family charters: translating values into rules

A family constitution or charter is a written agreement that codifies a family’s vision, values and decision-making protocols. It typically addresses succession planning, compensation structures, career pathways, ownership rights, and conflict resolution procedures. The document translates abstract family values into concrete rules about who decides what, and when. Research from the UBS Global Family Enterprise Governance Report 2025 reveals the governance gap. Only 29 per cent of families surveyed have a family constitution in place. Yet measurable returns emerge from the discipline of writing one. Families with constitutions are twice as likely to rate their communication as effective and 1.5 times more likely to achieve effective joint decision-making compared to those without such frameworks (UBS & Agreus, 2025). Families with succession plans show 4 times higher next-generation preparedness. Yet only 23 per cent of next-generation members are fully or highly prepared to inherit (UBS & Agreus, 2025). A family constitution typically includes sections on family vision and mission; principles governing wealth use and stewardship; criteria for family member involvement in business or investment decisions; roles and responsibilities of family governance bodies, such as a family council; policies on distributions, employment and education; procedures for admitting new family members through marriage; and mechanisms for resolving disputes without litigation. Effective charters are written collaboratively rather than drafted by advisers in isolation. Research emphasises that governance structures developed with genuine family participation are more likely to be adopted and sustained than those imposed by external experts alone. Families that prioritise intentional participation in crafting their own governance frameworks report higher adherence and better outcomes across financial and relational dimensions.

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Family councils: deliberate intergenerational dialogue

A family council is a formal forum, typically meeting one to four times per year, in which family members across generations discuss the family’s financial affairs, values, long-term goals and potential disagreements. The council is distinct from any business board or investment committee; it is explicitly relational in function, creating a safe space for communication. A wealth manager survey by Cerulli Associates (2024) found that 89 per cent of firms identify family meetings and regular communication as a key best practice for successful generational transitions. Yet the execution gap is wide. Research from Brodies (2024) found that only 39 per cent of UK adults, and 35 per cent in Scotland, have discussed their inheritance or wealth transfer plans with their families at all. Among those aged 50 to 54, only 7 per cent have discussed inheritance in detail with their children. The Williams Group’s 20-year survey of 3,250 families found that 60 per cent of wealth transfer failures stem from poor communication and breakdowns in trust (Williams Group, 2003). This distribution reverses the common assumption that technical factors drive failure. A well-functioning family council typically meets on a regular schedule chosen by the family (quarterly, semi-annually, or annually); has a clear agenda drafted in advance and shared with all participants; includes family members across at least two generations and may include external advisers in a supporting role; separates financial discussions (investment performance, distribution decisions) from relational ones (family values, conflict resolution, education of younger members); uses a neutral facilitator or family council chairperson to manage discussion and ensure psychological safety; and maintains minutes and tracks action items, creating accountability and continuity between meetings.

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Clear decision rights: preventing ambiguity and conflict

Ambiguity about who has authority in specific decisions is a common source of intergenerational friction. A family governance framework explicitly assigns decision rights, clarifying roles and boundaries. For example, a multi-jurisdictional family with substantial holdings in equities, real estate and a family business might agree via its family charter that the family council votes on distributions to members above a certain threshold, but routine operational expenses are approved by the executive committee (typically the most senior generation); investment strategy is set by a family investment committee, which includes one younger-generation representative learning the role; decisions about the family business require consensus among family shareholders, with a dispute resolution process if consensus cannot be reached; and education and career development policies are established by the family council, but individual career choices remain the prerogative of each family member. These distinctions, seemingly simple, prevent disputes when circumstances change. Without them, a young heir may feel excluded from major decisions, a retiring founder may feel unheard about succession priorities, or siblings may disagree about risk tolerance. Clear protocols ensure that disagreement does not become existential conflict. Families with formal decision-making structures experience smoother succession planning, reduced lingering conflict, and higher emotional ownership of family assets among younger generations. The formal structure signals respect for all participants and reduces the sense that decisions are made behind closed doors.

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Bordier’s deliberate hybrid governance model: family leadership plus external expertise

A particularly instructive example of governance architecture that endures is the structure of Bordier & Cie itself. The firm operates as a partnership limited by shares (Société en Commandite par Actions, SCmA) under Swiss law, with four managing partners carrying unlimited personal liability for the firm’s obligations. This structure embodies the governance principles that Bordier advises families to adopt. The four managing partners are Grégoire Bordier (fifth-generation family member and Chairman of the Association of Swiss Private Banks), Evrard Bordier (fifth-generation family member, managing partner specialising in family office and multi-generational wealth strategies), Christian Skaanild (external professional, former Capital Group and Accenture executive, appointed April 2020), and Nicolas Porchet (Head of Business Development, member of the Executive Committee, appointed September 2026). This deliberate hybrid governance model combining deep family ownership and continuity with external professional leadership creates a structure neither pure-family firms nor hired-management banks typically achieve. Family expertise is preserved; external perspective and operational discipline are assured. Succession risk is distributed across both axes. This governance model is not abstract positioning; it is material structural choice, documented and sustained through generational transitions. The SCmA restructuring in June 2020 preserved unlimited partner liability (a trust signal rarely found in modern banking) while modernising accounting and governance frameworks. Grégoire Bordier’s election as Chairman of the Association of Swiss Private Banks in 2021 formalises Bordier’s standing as a thought leader on exactly these governance and continuity questions. For families advising with Bordier, the bank’s own governance structure is evidence that multi-generational continuity, family leadership, and professional rigour are not in tension; they are mutually reinforcing. A private bank that has sustained five generations of family ownership while integrating external expertise demonstrates that the governance principles underlying the Continuity Compact work at institutional scale.

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Structures that endure: from agreement to habit

The durability of family governance depends on embedding it into regular practice rather than treating it as a one-off planning exercise. Many families complete a family constitution but then allow it to gather dust. The most resilient frameworks combine a written charter with a living governance structure (councils, committees) that meets regularly and revisits the charter periodically. Best practices include annual review, where the family council formally reviews the family charter each year, noting areas where practice has diverged from the written agreement, and updating language if circumstances have changed; succession of leadership, where the family council chairperson or family office chief transitions to a younger-generation member on a planned schedule, ensuring that governance does not depend on any single person; education for incoming members, as new family members join through birth or marriage, they should receive formal education on the family’s governance framework, values, and decision-making history; and adaptive mechanisms, where the charter includes a procedure for amending itself, allowing the framework to evolve as the family and its circumstances change, while still preserving core principles. Families that sustain governance structures across three or more generations typically assign a professional to the role of family office chief or governance coordinator who manages meeting schedules, develops agendas, maintains documents, and ensures continuity. This person may be a family member or a trusted external professional. The investment in governance infrastructure, modest in comparison to overall family wealth, correlates strongly with long-term wealth preservation and family cohesion.

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The governance-communication link

The underlying principle is simple but often overlooked: the structure of communication shapes outcomes. When families leave communication to chance, hoping disagreements will surface naturally or assuming silence means agreement, conflict often emerges only when a crisis forces discussion. By contrast, regular, formal forums for dialogue create accountability, psychological safety and shared understanding. This principle is central to Bordier & Cie’s engagement model with multi-generational families. As a private bank with a 182-year commitment to long-horizon stewardship, Bordier regards family governance not as a secondary matter or compliance box, but as central to its fiduciary function. Bordier’s advisers regularly work with families to establish or refine family charters, facilitate family council meetings, and help translate governance agreements into investment and distribution decisions that reflect the family’s stated values and priorities. The goal is not to replace the family’s own decision-making, but to provide a stable, expert stewardship environment in which that decision-making can unfold over decades and across generations.