Portfolio careers

This collection will appeal to feminists interested in women’s employment trends and challenges, as much as to practitioners dealing with all aspects of family business in fields as diverse as wealth transmission, art investment and philanthropy. 

Some chapters are practical, with advice on juggling family and work, balancing tradition and innovation in the family firm, and dealing with guilt (almost universal among women); as well as (implicit throughout though rarely spelt out) sexism and misogyny. The value of mentors, networks and role models is highlighted, as are the business benefits of diverse experiences, styles and viewpoints. Other chapters focus on personal experience, featuring interviews with women ‘changemakers’, presented either verbatim or in summary from referenced research projects. These life stories are often the most interesting features of the book, partly as illustrations of what is possible, often simply as glimpses into the lives of very rich people. I loved the sentence in one chapter – ‘Clients want to live their best life, to travel, work and live with peace of mind’ – because it put travel first!

In the UK, we learn, 37% of family office CEOs are now women, with numbers rising. In some other parts of the world, however, conservative gender norms remain entrenched, and there is advice on how to deal with cultural differences. Also rising is women’s share of personal wealth, in part due in England to this country’s position as ‘divorce capital of the world’, as we learn from Miranda Fisher’s helpful summary of developments in family law. But women do not invest their money as much as men do, and when they do their returns are smaller – different risk assessment or different values? It seems that women are more interested in ethical investment, and many ultra-rich women support initiatives to benefit women and girls. 

I found the chapter on Art Investments fascinating, knowing nothing about the subject. Until recently, the work of women artists hardly appeared in auction rooms but it has rocketed in appeal, aided by the appointment of female gallery chiefs and museum directors. Family firms are increasingly adding art to their wealth portfolios. I relished the author’s description of an art-collecting couple, clients of hers, who divided responsibility between his work of acquiring contemporary art for its investment value and her contribution to choosing the pictures to hang in their private residences. The emphasis here is on aesthetic value and ‘liveability’.  For me, this called into question the very meaning of art, as well as reinforcing some decidedly stereotypical views of the sexes.

Intersectionality – where the combination of different forms of disadvantage, such as race, class and sexuality, leads to different treatment and experience – is discussed in one chapter, but by and large the view of women in this book is common-sense and recognisable. The absence of pointless theorising and debate on this issue confirms the publisher’s promise of accessibility and usefulness.

Rosemary Auchmuty is professor of law emerita, at the University of Reading