Mr. Riverso is CEO and chief investment officer at Jesselton Capital Management Inc.
When I co-founded Continuum Private Wealth Partners Inc. in 2016, one of the first orders of business was to establish a governance structure, not only at the corporate level but also around the portfolio of assets held by the two founding families. Having come from a registered background, my partner and I wanted to ensure that Continuum, ahead of our application process with the Ontario Securities Commission, implemented an institutional-level governance structure. So, we established a board of directors and an investment committee. The committee consisted of three family members, two family office employees (myself and my partner) and three external members (two lawyers and one accountant).
Although we were a regulated family office, subject to Ontario’s securities regulations, non-regulated family offices could also benefit from implementing similar governance structures—and specifically, establishing an investment committee comprising individuals who can add long-term value to current and future family members.
Current status of investment committees
According to the 2025 UBS Global Family Office Report, 86 per cent of family offices determine their strategic asset allocation in house, but only 61 per cent have an investment committee. For those with investment committees, on average, four family members sit on the committee along with three family office employees and three independent and/or external members. It should be noted that compensation for independent/external members is approximately $25,000 per quarter, perhaps influencing the composition of an investment committee. Most investment committees meet monthly or quarterly.
Why should a family office have an investment committee?
An investment committee helps a family office make disciplined, transparent and repeatable investment decisions, particularly as portfolios grow, complexity increases, and generational involvement expands. Family offices with formal investment committees tend to be more resilient through market cycles, better aligned across generations, and less exposed to behavioural and concentration risks.
1. Improves investment discipline and long‑term decision‑making
A formal investment committee establishes structured debate, documented decisions, and accountability, reducing ad‑hoc or emotionally driven actions—especially during periods of market stress. The 2025 UBS Global Family Office Report emphasizes that formal governance frameworks support long-term, diversified investment strategies and avoid reactive decision‑making in volatile markets. The report also notes that family offices utilize governance to maintain strategy discipline across generations.
2. Helps remove blind spots and reduce ‘key person’ risk
Many family offices start with a single decision‑maker (the founder or patriarch/matriarch). While efficient early on, this model creates concentration risk in judgment, experience and temperament. Sharing decision‑making reduces “key person” risk, particularly as a portfolio evolves to include non-traditional asset classes. Furthermore, a diverse investment committee significantly reduces groupthink and allows for constructive challenges, especially during periods of market exuberance or stress.
From my own experience, the Continuum investment committee met more frequently during the COVID market meltdown, given the heightened level of uncertainty. We spoke with economists and our investment managers as we attempted to make sense of what was happening. The discussions led to a consensus strategy to navigate the market and adjust the portfolio through the market lows. A single decision-maker may have navigated that period without the benefit of input.
3. Aligns investments with family objectives and values
An investment committee ties family goals, objectives and values, which should be formalized in an Investment Policy Statement, to investment decisions and overall portfolio construction. An investment committee ensures adherence to the established Investment Policy Statement, ensuring that all decisions are made in the context of the agreed-upon objectives.
As family offices mature, they increasingly resemble institutional investors, albeit with family-specific constraints.
Dan Riverso
4. Enhances oversight of risk, performance and costs
As family offices expand into alternative asset classes such as private equity, private credit, hedge funds and direct investments, oversight becomes more complex and resource‑intensive. An investment committee can assist in reviewing performance, fees, liquidity risk and concentration exposure. This is how an investment committee can support family office employees—by providing insight, experience and another perspective on an asset class, a direct investment or an investment manager.
5. Professionalizes the family office and supports continuity
As family offices mature, they increasingly resemble institutional investors, albeit with family-specific constraints. As I noted above, they require an institutional-level governance structure. UBS notes that more professionalized family offices (with boards, committees, charters and formal processes) are better positioned for succession planning and continuity. The objective is to build institutional knowledge rather than depend on any single individual, whether a family member or family office employee.
Constructing an investment committee
An investment committee should include members of the family and their employees, including the founder or patriarch/matriarch and, depending on age and other factors, members of the next generation.
This group can be supplemented with external and independent members. At Continuum, our external members were very experienced in real estate, given the significant exposure to that asset class. I would suggest that any external or independent member brings the necessary knowledge and experience that would fit the investment strategy of the family office. For example, if the family office expects to participate in direct deals, someone with deal experience would be valuable. Alternatively, if the strategy incorporates investment managers across asset classes, someone with investment manager due diligence and portfolio construction expertise would be an asset to the committee. (This person may also be able to effectively negotiate fees on behalf of the family.)
Additionally, and most importantly, look for members who can act objectively and in the best interests of the family office, and who take the time to understand the goals and objectives of the family. Other family offices, investment managers or other professionals can recommend people. Otherwise, headhunters can also assist in a search.
Summary
An investment committee provides a family office with disciplined governance, diversified judgment, and alignment across generations—helping protect capital, improve decision quality, and sustain wealth through market cycles. The long-term value a well-constructed investment committee provides will far outweigh any associated cost.
Dan Riverso is Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer at Jesselton Capital Management Inc., where he brings 20 years of experience advising Canada’s wealthiest families. Dan, who sits on Canadian Family Offices’ Editorial Advisory Board, specializes in portfolio construction, investment manager selection and multigenerational wealth strategy. He is regularly called upon to provide strategic guidance on investment management.
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