Virtualizing the Family Office Investment Function With Jeffrey Croteau and Kate Dumas

Today, it is my pleasure to speak with Jeffrey Croteau and Kate Dumas of Tide Cycle, a specialized firm that serves as the outsourced chief investment officer for large, ultra-high-net-worth families and individuals, providing customized investment solutions. Jeff is Founder and CIO of Tide Cycle, which he founded after a successful tenure at Prime Buchholz LLC and Mercer Investment Consulting.

With a background in mathematics, Jeff's investment journey began as an analyst and evolved into leadership, guiding families and institutions through major market events like the tech bubble, the financial crisis, and the Covid pandemic. He serves as a Board member of the Foundation for Seacoast Health, a member of the Dean's Advisory Council for the College of Science at Northeastern University, and coaches cycling at Portsmouth High School.

Kate is Chief of Staff and Deputy CIO at Tide Cycle. She joined the firm following a brief career pause to explore philanthropic pursuits. Kate was previously a Managing Principal and Consultant at Prime Buchholz LLC where she built successful investment programs for a variety of clients.

Prior to Prime Buchholz, Kate worked at Deutsche Bank AG in New York and Mellon Trust in Boston. She is a member of the Sustainability Advisory Board at the University of New Hampshire, the Finance Committee at the Southeast Land Trust, and the Boston Economic Club. Kate volunteers with Invest for Better and CFA? (Society) Boston to promote financial literacy.

Jeff and Kate, and their firm Tide Cycle, are valued Advisor members of FOX, and we are privileged to have their knowledge and expertise in our membership community.

One significant and growing tendency in the family office space is for wealth owners to consider and create virtual family offices. Jeff and Kate give an overview of the family office virtualization trend and describe the latest developments in this space.

As part of the virtualization trend, outsourcing the investment function is increasingly common among family offices. Jeff and Kate share their perspective on the evolution of the OCIO function and practice in recent years, explaining how the function is defined and how has it changed.

One major practical consideration for family offices is how to envision what to outsource and what to keep in-house. Jeff and Kate offer their tips for wealth owners and family office leaders on how to make this important and consequential decision.

Another piece of practical advice Jeff and Kate have for family office principals and executives is to consider the full investment function by analyzing the full value chain of activities and players. They talk about this important consideration and highlight how family office professionals can best accomplish that goal.

Do not miss this highly instructive conversation with two of the foremost leaders and practitioners in the OCIO space serving top UHNW families and their family offices.