Book Susan to Speak!
“Susan nails it every time! She first spoke at Opal’s Annual Family Office & Private Wealth Management Forum back in 2014, and we’ve invited her back to speak every year since. Our audiences love her insight and actionable takeaways, and our in-house event planners love her flexibility and responsiveness.”
— Doug Borths, (former) SVP, Head of Production, Opal Group
MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER TO THE FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY ON ATTRACTING AND SERVING THE UHNW MARKET —
“One of the few women on the national speaking circuit who is guiding financial services firms and their clients to connect with the human side of the client relationship.” — Family Wealth Report Awards 2020
In today’s turbulent world of ruthless competition in the financial services industry, business can be won or lost on subtle differentiators. The stakes have never been higher. Yet too often, firms approach their prospect and client meetings as nothing more than performance and product reviews, and lead with their pitch books. They are squandering a critical chance to focus on what keeps client families up at night, and often lose those business opportunities to firms who treat clients as families and not just as assets under management.
As a self-described “recovering” Trusts & Estates Attorney and CPA, and former principal at a white-shoe trust company catering to ultra-high net-worth families and then family ambassador to a $600 million single family office, Susan R. Schoenfeld, JD, LL.M. (Taxation), CPA, MBA, award-winning thought leader, has the “secret sauce” to help audiences learn to connect with the soft side, the human side, of the client relationship so that their firm can create a competitive advantage, and win and keep more business.
For more information, please visit www.SusanSchoenfeld.com
Click HERE to visit Susan’s YouTube page to see her in action!
***Click HERE for Susan’s Speaker Video
Speeches
What People Say About Susan
“Susan nails it every time! She first spoke at Opal’s Annual Family Office & Private Wealth Management Forum back in 2014, and we’ve invited her back to speak every year since. Our audiences love her insight and actionable takeaways, and our in-house event planners love her flexibility and responsiveness.”
— Doug Borths, (former) SVP & Head of Production, Opal Group
“Susan connected immediately with a diverse audience and held them rapt for the entire presentation. Her points were well supported, not just with data (over which she showed her mastery), but also with real-world, first-person experiences from her personal and professional background. Also importantly, she was a world-class person with whom to work. Our team loved getting to know her and were genuinely delighted at how friendly and pragmatic she was. She’s permanently on our short list of future speakers!”
— Michael M. Godsy, General Counsel & Director of Operations, LionsGate Advisors, St. Louis, MO
“We were honored to have Susan as a keynote speaker at our professional advisor seminar. Her presentation was exceptionally well-received. Susan’s insights resonated deeply with professionals across various disciplines, including attorneys, financial advisors, CPAs, and wealth planners.
Attendees were not only impressed by the rich content but also captivated by Susan’s skillful integration of storytelling and practical exercises. These elements effectively underscored key concepts and provided actionable advice for implementation in their respective practices.
Due to the overwhelming positive feedback, we are enthusiastic about inviting Susan back to address other targeted groups. Without hesitation, I highly recommend considering her as a speaker for your upcoming event or conference. You will undoubtedly find her expertise and delivery both insightful and engaging.”
— Gary Garcia, Vice President of Philanthropic Partnerships, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas TX
“Susan spoke to our network of professional advisors about the importance of the ‘soft’ topics when discussing family wealth. Her message hit home with our group, and it helped facilitate some amazing conversation about charitable giving within families of wealth. Her presentation was precise, thoughtful, and provided some amazing takeaways for our network of advisors. We absolutely loved working with Susan and would recommend her to anyone looking for a knowledgeable speaker!”
— Halee Cunningham, General Counsel/Director of Planned Giving, Blue Grass Community Foundation, Lexington KY
“As an advisor who deals with money behavior issues each and every day, it was great to have Susan speak at a recent client event of mine. Not only is she articulate and to the point with her message but she really shares a unique angle of openness to the fragile topic of Family ‘money talks.’”
“Susan spoke at our annual conference, and we invited her back to speak at our regional summer conference. An accomplished speaker, Susan addresses the topics foremost in the minds of family enterprise owners and stakeholders, as well as the attorneys and others who serve them. Her organization and responsiveness from planning through follow-up make her a pleasure to work with.”
— Andrew N. Karlen, Esq., (former) President, Attorneys for Family-Held Enterprises
“Susan is amazing! She was the coolest person at the conference.”
— Peter B. Zwack, Brigadier General U.S. Army (retired), Senior Russia-Eurasia Fellow, National Defense University
“Thank you so much for speaking for our group this morning. It was a fantastic event and I received excellent reviews from audience members so wanted to thank you again.”
–Eva Minsteris, CPA, Senior Managing Director, JSB Partners
“Thank you Susan for your fantastic talk at our Marcum Wealth Dimensions meeting. Your insights are spot-on, and the audience just loved it. Everyone was completely engaged.“
–Rorrie Gregorio CPA, Partner and Family Office Practice Leader, Marcum LLP
“Family Wealth — A Hard Look at the “Soft” Issues”
A motivational discussion of the “soft issues” of the Ultra-High-Net-Worth community, for UHNW families and the professionals who serve them — or want to!
- Wealth managers and advisors
- Insurance professionals
- Financial planners
- Estate planners
Topics include:
– How much to give, and when? How much to tell, and when?
– The equal vs. equitable debate
– Communication is Everything
– Prenuptial Agreements
– Family Governance / Family Meetings
– Family Philanthropy
“The Answer is Communication, Not Control”
“The Magic Bullet”
“Muscle Memory”
“Teaching Children Responsibility”
Family Business (Or Family Office) Succession Planning
This talk guides financial advisors, wealth advisors and business advisors with essential tools to help steer your family business founder clients down the emotionally fraught path of succession planning.
Family Foundations – A “How To”
Six Steps to Planning and Operating a Family Charitable Foundation
“Top 10 Tips and Traps for Trustees”
There is much guidance to those creating a trust on who they should select to be trustee, but there is very little advice to those named as trustee to help them determine whether to accept the appointment, and how to manage their fiduciary relationship with the trust beneficiaries. Susan will share her Top 10 Tips for Trustees to help you avoid getting sued.