Location

Norton Rose Fulbright
1301 Ave of the Americas, NYC

DATE

Tuesday May 13, 2025

2025 NYC AGENDA

Printable Agenda Here

Last Year’s Agenda Here

8:15 AM
sign-in & Breakfast sponsored by alliancebernstein (AB)

8:45 AM
WELCOME & INTRODUCTIONs

9:10 AM
How to Use Organizational Values as a Force for Innovation and Excellence

Dennis Jaffe, Phd, BanyanGlobal
Gabriella Orengo Lyons, Esq., The Heritage Group (moderator)

10:00 AM
Family Governance Tools: How to Use Shareholder Agreements Effectively—Dos and Don’ts

Sarah Constantine, Esq., Arnold & Porter, private clients partner
Mark S. Kingsley, Esq., Arnold & Porter, corporate partner
Ben Francois, Managing Partner, BanyanGlobal (moderator)

11:00 AM
BREAK sponsored by deutsche bank

11:30 AM
keynote sponsored by Dasein Advisors
How to Empower the Next Generation through Entrepreneurship

Dr. Matt Allen, John L. Ward Clinical Professor of Family Enterprises & Executive Director of the Ward Center
Mark Haranzo, Holland & Knight, ACTEC Fellow (moderator)

12:20 PM
Lunch & Roundtable Discussions sponsored by Willow Street

2:00 PM
When Purpose Meets Planning

David York, Esq., ACTEC Fellow, YorkHowell

2:50 PM
BREAK

3:10 PM
How to Identify and Train the Next Generation of Family Leaders

Laird Koldyke, G5 and former Chair of Laird Norton & Founder of Winona Capital
Colleen Ritzau Leth, G4 of the Tauck family
Michael McGrann, BBH Center for Family Business (moderator)

4:10 PM
When Succession is Done Well: R. Seelaus & Co. Case Study

Annie Seelaus, G2 & CEO of R. Seelaus & Co.
Drew Mason, IFG Advisory Board Chair (moderator)

5:00 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 US tax law and has advised large domestic and international families on their governance and succession planning for 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 is a former Vice Chair of STEP New York and served for three years as elected U.S. representative on the STEP Global Council in London (the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners).

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

Dennis, 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 a 30 year veteran of AllianceBernstein, a global investment management and research firm, with approximately US$760 billion under management through 51 offices in 26 countries. He specializes in working with complex global family relationships in the implementation of investment planning and asset allocation advice, and has taken a leading role in the development of the firm’s international private client business. John is a former Chair of the New York Branch of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), an international organization for professionals involved in cross-border tax and estate matters. He is the Founder and Chairman Emeritus of the China-US Business Alliance, a 13-year-old organization of senior professional advisors in both the US and Asia who have business activities in China. 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, Esq. CPA | Vice-Chair

David 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.

Dennis T. Jaffe, Ph.D. | BanyanGlobal

Dennis, 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 or co-author of the following books:  Wealth 3.0: The Future of Family Wealth Advising; Borrowed from Your Grandchildren: The Evolution of 100-Year Family Enterprises; Finding Her Voice and Leaving a Legacy; 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. The Family Firm Institute awarded him the 2017 International Award for service, and in 2005 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. His global insights have led to teaching or consulting engagements in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. 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.

Gabriella Orengo Lyons, Esq. | The Heritage Group

Gabby Lyons serves as an Executive of a SFO trusted advisor to family offices and family- and founder-owned and controlled businesses in complex and transformational matters while formulating and navigating governance structures and implementing strategies to preserve family wealth and harmony while achieving business and personal goals. She is adept at designing collaborative methods for decision making surrounding legacy assets and the connection between family and business.

Gabby has held several business and legal leadership roles with prominent family offices, family-owned and controlled businesses and family investment entities. Currently, Gabby serves as Executive Director of a family office based in Indianapolis, Indiana. 

Gabby is a frequent speaker on topics of family dynamics and multi-generation stewardship and succession.

Sarah Constantine, Esq. | Partner, Private Client Services

Sarah is a trusts and estates partner who focuses her practice on counseling high net worth domestic and international individuals, family offices, fiduciaries and closely held businesses. With deep experience in both U.S.-based and cross-border estate and tax planning, he advises on a wide range of wealth preservation strategies, with a particular emphasis on U.S. income and transfer tax planning, and minimizing U.S. estate and gift tax exposure. Sarah received her B.S., with honors, from the University of California, Berkeley, and her J.D. from Fordham University School of Law.

Mark S. Kingsley, Esq. | Partner, Mergers & Acquisitions

Mark represents clients in a variety of business transactions, with a particular emphasis on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and other public and private equity and debt investments on behalf of public and private companies, private equity funds, and other investors. As part of his M&A practice, Mark represents buyers and sellers of both healthy and financially-distressed businesses. Mark's clients invest in a broad range of industries, including aerospace and defense, government contractors, and life sciences. He obtained his B.S., cum laude, from The Wharton School, The University of Pennsylvania, and his J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.

Ben Francois | Managing Partner, BanyanGlobal

Ben has more than 20 years of experience advising families as they make and implement decisions about the things they do together. His recent work has focused on two main areas: working with families who own multiple businesses to design structures and allocate financial and human resources to achieve success; and helping owner-operators design and implement inter-generational transitions. Ben has written on family business and family office topics for Harvard Business Review, among other publications. He is a frequent speaker on family business topics, including Thinking Like an Investor, Family Business/Family Office Governance, and Next Generation Development. He lives in Newport Beach, California, with his wife and their three children.

Dr. Matt Allen | John L. Ward Clinical Professor of Family Enterprises & Executive Director of the Ward Center

Dr. Matt Allen is the John L. Ward Clinical Professor of Family Enterprises and Executive Director of the Ward Center for Family Enterprises. His expertise is in the area of family learning, family entrepreneurship and the development of the next generation. Professor Allen has taught entrepreneurship and family entrepreneurship courses at the undergraduate, graduate and executive levels. His teaching approach has earned him numerous awards and invitations including the Poets and Quants Best Undergraduate Business Professors for 2020. Professor Allen is a leader in the field of family entrepreneurship and his research has been published in top academic and practitioner outlets including the Harvard Business Review, Personnel Psychology and Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. In addition to his work at Kellogg, he was the founding Faculty Director of the Institute for Family Entrepreneurship at Babson College and the Academic Director of the Global STEP Project for four years.

In addition to the experience gained working for his family's business, he worked as a financial analyst at both IBM and Hewlett Packard before entering academia. Professor Allen earned his B.A. in accounting from the University of Utah, M.B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and Ph.D. from Cornell University.

Mark Haranzo | Holland & Knight, ACTEC Fellow

Mark is the chair of Holland & Knight's New York Private Wealth Services Group. He focuses his practice on domestic and international private client matters for affluent individuals and their families. Mark’s clients include entrepreneurs, corporate executives, family offices, real estate developers, business owners, investors and investment bankers, as well as artists, entertainers, writers, collectors and philanthropists. Mark has more than 25 years of experience in all aspects of estate and gift planning for individuals and families, including matters with complex multigenerational or multi-jurisdictional issues. Mark is a member of ACTEC.

David York, Esq. | ACTEC Fellow, YorkHowell

David 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. David 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.

Laird Koldyke | G5 and former Chair of Laird Norton & Founder of Winona Capital

Laird is a G4 of the founding family and a former Chair of Laird Norton. He is also a founding partner of Winona Capital Management, a Chicago based private investment firm focused on growth investments in  branded consumer companies.  Winona Capital manages investments on behalf of high net worth families, institutions and individuals. Laird has served on the boards of numerous consumer companies including Chipotle Mexican Grill (Chairman) , Einstein’s Bagels (Founding Investor), Wild Oats Markets,  Fat Brain Toys, Petsense, Kjus Apparel, Fusion Academy, Monica Vinader, PLC. He is currently a director of CYMI, Inc., Rodd and Gunn, LLC , Indie Lee, LLC,  Ancora Beauty, Evereve, and the Desire Company. Laird holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Northwestern University and a Masters in Management (MM) from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management. He previously served on the Board of Trustees of the San Miguel Schools; a Chicago based schools initiative serving crime ridden city neighborhoods; is a former trustee of Northwestern University and is a founding member of the Springboard Foundation, a venture philanthropy group based in Chicago. Laird is a board member of Naturally Chicago, the Chicago Lakeshore Improvement Committee and also served as the ranking Commissioner of the Chicago Park District for 15 years. He resides in Chicago with his wife Deirdre, they have four grown children. After rooting each and every summer for as long as he can remember, Laird was ecstatic when the Chicago Cubs broke the curse in 2016.

Colleen Ritzau Leth | G4 of the Tauck family

Colleen is a G4 co-owner of Tauck, Inc. She has served in various governance positions for the family enterprise, including as a member of the Voting Owners Assembly, Co-Chair of the Stewardship Council, member of the Board of the family office, and President of the Board of Directors of the Tauck Family Foundation. Outside of her work with Tauck, Colleen is a specialist in museums and cultural affairs, with over 20 years of experience in international strategy, business development and capital project planning for organizations including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Sotheby's, the National Gallery of Denmark, and the Egyptian Ministry of Culture. She serves on the boards of the Château de Versailles, American Friends of SMK, and The Cora Foundation. Colleen holds a BA from Barnard College, an MA from New York University, and an MBA from the University of Oxford, where she was Chair of the Oxford Art & Business Network. She lives between London and New York.

Michael McGrann | BBH Center for Family Business

Mike spent his career working with family firms and family offices. His dedication to supporting them through the challenges and successes of managing their wealth, relationships, and businesses led him to found the Telos Group. As a consultant focused on growth and transition strategies for enterprising families, Mike also serves on the board of several growth companies. He is a researcher, educator, and curriculum developer, with teaching experience at several universities. Mike founded the Initiative for Family Business and Entrepreneurship at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. Mike grew up in Colorado and now lives outside Philadelphia.

Annie Seelaus Mitnick | G2 & CEO of R.Seelaus & Co. 

Annie is the CEO of R. Seelaus & Co., LLC and a Principal of Seelaus Asset Management, LLC.  Her decades of experience covering financial markets have been diverse and she brings a wealth of experience to the firm. Annie spent nine years with HSBC, beginning in the Graduate Training program at the bank’s London office, and later served as a senior vice president on both HSBC’s credit sales and emerging markets trading desks in New York. Annie joined R. Seelaus in 2009 to lead the firm’s expanding taxable trading department and took over as CEO in 2015. Annie grew up in Summit where she attended Oak Knoll School and graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor’s degree in History.  There she was a member of the Division I Varsity Women’s Ice Hockey Team and is currently a ice hockey youth development coach. Annie is on the Community Board of Overlook Hospital, a member of FINRA’s Industry Diversity Advisory Committee, and The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) Diversity Finance Advisory Board. Annie holds Series 7, 63, 24 and 57 Licenses.

Drew Mason | IFG Advisory Board Chair

Drew is managing partner at Jade Capital, a private investment fund focusing on venture and growth capital. Prior to Jade Capital, Drew founded the Technology Sector Group in Asia Pacific for UBS Warburg. As a social impact investor, he was instrumental in the founding of Sohu.com, credited with helping bring the internet to China in the 1990s, and more recently, a leader in socially inclusive finance, listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Drew has served on a number of private and public boards, is on the advisory board of the U.S. Navy League, and has spoken at Harvard, Brown University, Wharton, and the National Defense University. He received his MBA from Harvard Business School and his honor’s degree in History from Brown University.

Registration

$950 for IFG Members
$1200 for Non-Members

Membership

Annual Membership
$250
Learn more about IFG