In this episode of dakota live, host Robert Morier sits down with Stephanie Szymanski, Chief Investment Officer of Lakeview Capital Management, for a wide-ranging, practitioner-level conversation on how single-family offices actually invest.
Stephanie pulls back the curtain on what it means to run portfolio construction inside a single-family office, covering how family office CIOs think differently from endowments and foundations when it comes to asset allocation, manager selection, liquidity, and after-tax outcomes.
This episode is essential viewing for:
• Asset managers seeking to work with single-family offices
• Emerging managers navigating early allocations
• Allocators and CIOs comparing family office vs institutional models
• Students and analysts interested in family office careers
Topics covered include:
• How single family offices structure multi-asset portfolios across public and private markets
• The role of hedge funds as diversifiers, return enhancers, and risk reducers
• Why many family offices invest earlier than institutions—and how they assess manager risk
• Active vs passive decision-making in global equities
• How family offices evaluate emerging market and ex-US equity managers
• The realities of private equity pacing, distributions, and capacity constraints
• Why many family offices do not focus on direct investing
• Manager due diligence, triangulation, and relationship-driven underwriting
• What asset managers misunderstand most about family offices
• Career advice for analysts and investors interested in allocator roles
Stephanie also shares practical insight into:
• Running a lean investment team
• Hiring and developing junior analysts
• Building conviction without rigid RFP processes
• Why focus and strategy discipline matter more than scale
If you want a real-world look at how single family offices make investment decisions, this conversation delivers clarity, nuance, and uncommon transparency.
