Welcome to the Circulus Newsletter

Welcome to the Circulus newsletter. This is a monthly newsletter dedicated to uncovering the best investment perspectives and frameworks for family office executives and family members.  Through my podcasts, articles and events, we will learn about how sophisticated investors view markets and manage portfolios, how entrepreneurs build businesses, the intricacies of business models and how family offices could be optimized.  My plan is to use this newsletter to continue my long exploration of the psychology of wealth and investing.  

This first issue will highlight my recent intriguing discussion with Scott Sperling, Co-CEO of Thomas H. Lee Partners, as well as links to recent stories and reports worth reading in the family office world.

I’ve been in the family office space for over twenty-five years, managed investments for a family office, ran one of the largest family office networks in the world, and currently direct The Inheritance Project, which collects and shares stories of inherited wealth.

The amount of private wealth in the US has doubled in the last ten years.  More wealth has been created in the last twenty years than the previous two hundred.  Family offices are in charge of an unprecedented amount of this wealth, which is commonly managed by small teams. This is the challenge.

Join me on this journey of exploration. 

*I am also having a conference in New York for family offices on September 19th, so please send me a message if you are interested.  It will be a very special event.

Three things I believe

• Family offices are more similar than they are different.

• Family offices don’t think strategically.

• Industry and media need to have a deeper understanding of family offices, so as to better cover their world.

I look forward to hearing from you.  Feel free to reach out on Substack, X or LinkedIn.

Scott Sperling

I’ve been wanting to interview Scott for a while, especially since I found out he worked at Harvard Management Company in the early days.  We both wondered after the call why no one had written a definitive history of the firm and its influence, which was once viewed as important as Swenson’s. 

As the co-CEO of Thomas H. Lee Partners (THL), one of the preeminent private equity firms globally, Scott has been at the vanguard of investing in and cultivating businesses across healthcare, financial technology, automation, and business services over his illustrious decades-long career.

Scott has had a truly unique and fascinating career journey that has taken him from working summer jobs loading freight trucks to Harvard Management Company under investing legends Walter Cabot and Jack Meyer. He was instrumental in helping build out the university's pioneering private equity investment portfolio in the early days before the term was in common usage.

In the mid-1990s, Scott made the leap to THL, and he has been co-leading the firm for many years now. Under his leadership, THL has evolved into a specialized investor, focusing on building franchises in defined verticals like healthcare, financial technology, business services, and automation.

Scott provides an inside look at THL's differentiated strategy that pairs investment professionals with operating partners who are genuine industry operators themselves. This integrated approach allows THL to drive operational improvements and accelerate growth across their portfolio companies.

We also discuss Scott's role as chairman of the board for Mass General Brigham, one of the world's preeminent academic medical centers on the frontlines of research, clinical care, and training future healthcare leaders.

This interview offers a wealth of wisdom and lessons. I was very pleased to be able to learn from Scott.

You can also listen on Apple Podcasts:

Links:

• Speaking of private equity, Hamilton Lane offers their overview of the space in this new report here.

• Princeton endowment chief sees “worst ever” private equity liquidity.  Andrew Golden’s exit interview has some great insight on the current market (FT) here.

• Fourth generation family members will not be part of management “unless they go through several difficult filters.”  Marc Puig, chair of the family-owned beauty group behind Jean Paul Gaultier and Nina Ricci, has his own ideas about succession (FT) here.

• JP Morgan joins the crowd covering the family office space with this new report here.

Thanks for reading!  Look forward to more next month, including interviews with Michael Weisz of Yieldstreet and Christian Stewart on family governance.