The Investment Advisory Center defines GenSpring's investment philosophy and all investing activities, including research, asset allocation, investment strategy and manager due diligence and selection. In addition, the Investment Advisory Center supports GenSpring's Family Investment Officers in all investment oversight and management activities, including portfolio construction, across all asset classes, including private equity, real estate and other real assets.
Wealth Advisory Center
The Wealth Advisory Center has deep expertise in tax, estate planning, financial planning, family education and family governance and supports all of GenSpring's Family Wealth Advisors with their advisory work in these areas. In addition, the Wealth Advisory Center provides GenSpring's family offices with up-to-date information on legal and regulatory changes and develops resources and tools for use with client families.
Family Business & Fiduciary Center
The Family Business & Fiduciary Center supports GenSpring's family offices on US, international and cross-border trust structuring, governance, and administration issues. In addition it has dedicated resources to serve the sophisticated wealth management needs of families with operating businesses. The Center provides the tools and resources required to offer fiduciary services and solutions to families and their trustees, including serving as trustee through affiliates of the firm.
Innovation & Learning Center
The Innovation & Learning Center provides a variety of learning experiences for GenSpring clients nationally and partners with GenSpring's family offices to offer regular learning opportunities regionally, locally and in individual family meetings. In addition, the Innovation & Learning Center conducts research into non-investment aspects of wealth, authors and publishes white papers, and innovates new tools, activities and learning programs for GenSpring clients.
Operations Group
The Operations Group provides consolidated financial and investment reporting to GenSpring's family offices and client families, including aggregating investment information from a wide array of custodians. In addition, the Operations Group supports advisors in the completion and execution of subscription documents, trade execution for families with individual securities, and satisfying clients' regulatory requirements.
Technology Group
The Technology Group is responsible for the information technology architecture, systems and security used by GenSpring's family offices in their service of clients. In addition, the Technology Group provides clients with online access to specific financial information and facilitates secure electronic data sharing between clients' other advisors and dedicated family office staff, when applicable.
GenSpring's Resource Center houses centralized activities: advisory centers for planning, investment and fiduciary experts, a learning center, and operations and technology groups. The specialized areas of the Resource Center work synergistically with each local family office to provide our GenSpring clients with:
Deep, shared expertise
Buying power
Thought leadership
Shared best practices
Family office infrastructure
Ernest N. Dawal, Jr., CFA Chief Investment Officer
Ernie Dawal is the chief investment officer of Wealth & Investment Management for SunTrust Banks, Inc. and for GenSpring Family Offices, an affiliate of SunTrust Bank. In these roles, Ernie is responsible for oversight of the investment strategy for all business units within Wealth & Investment Management and for oversight of GenSpring’s investment organization. He is based in Atlanta and maintains a secondary office in Jupiter, Florida.
Ernie rejoined SunTrust in 2011, as chief investment officer. He originally joined SunTrust in 1992, as senior portfolio manager and vice president, and managed a team of portfolio managers, providing investment services to high net worth personal trust, investment agency, retirement and endowment investment portfolios. His previous experience includes: executive vice president and senior director of investments for Wells Fargo Wealth Management, and Wells Fargo-Wachovia merger, as well as chief investment officer for Wachovia’s Wealth Management Business.
Ernie began his career working for the U.S. Government in a variety of positions within the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of Defense. He also served as a financial analyst for US Airlines and Piedmont Aviation.
Ernie earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration and International Studies from the American University, Kogod School of Business & School of International Service, Washington, D.C. He earned a Master of Business Administration from Wake Forest University’s Babcock School of Management, and holds a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation.
Timothy M. Tallach, JD, CPA Head of Wealth Advisory Center
Tim Tallach leads GenSpring’s Wealth Advisory Center. In this role he is responsible for the firm-wide development and support of all non-investment deliverables offered to GenSpring client families. Tim has been with GenSpring since 2003 when he joined as a family wealth advisor in the Atlanta family office. In 2006, he assumed a leadership role in our Wealth Advisory Center where he provided direct technical support to our community of wealth advisors and assisted in the ongoing integration of GenSpring’s unique holistic approach to wealth management across all of the firm’s service offerings
Tim has over 16 years experience working exclusively with ultra-high net worth individuals on tax, financial and estate planning matters. Prior to joining GenSpring, Tim worked as a tax manager with a global accounting firm as part of its Product Development and Family Wealth Planning Specialty Team. There he worked in the design, development and implementation of proprietary financial products and tax strategies for affluent private clients as well as managed multiple Forbes 400 and Fortune 1000 estate planning engagements.
Tim graduated magna cum laude from Centenary College (B.S. Accounting / Business) and earned his J.D. from University of Arkansas School of Law. He is a licensed attorney, Certified Public Accountant and has held several securities and life insurance related licenses and certifications.
Stephen G. Salley, Esq. Senior Partner, GenSpring's Family Enterprise Center and Fiduciary Services Group
As one of the two Senior Partners heading GenSpring's Family Business Center, Steve Salley, along with JoEllen Ross, oversees all family office services for family held businesses owned by GenSpring families. Additionally, they are the Senior Partners partnering with GenSpring's Fiduciary Group, the division that deals with all fiduciary operations for families and GenSpring's proprietary trust company, Teton Trust in Wyoming. Prior to joining GenSpring Family Offices, Steve was a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig PA law firm in Orlando. He is a certified tax attorney with over 30 years' experience focused on integrating family and estate planning, trust administration, and closely held business planning, as well as representing clients in tax controversies with state and federal tax authorities. His legal practice centered on representation of individuals, families and tax exempt entities, with a particular focus on the interrelationship of family planning and family enterprises.
A noted speaker and author, Steve lectures frequently on tax, succession planning, estate planning and fiduciary issues. He is a member of the Executive Council of the Florida Bar, Tax Section; co-chair of the American Bar Association's Committee on Estate Planning for Business Interests and Owners; and was formerly the Florida Bar Liaison to the United States Tax Court. In addition to being a Senior Partner for the Family Business Center and the Fiduciary Services Group he is a participant in the firm's Innovation and Learning Center, GenSpring's training and intellectual property development arm.
Prior to joining GenSpring, Steve was selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America by US News & World Report, listed in Florida Monthly as one of the top lawyers in Florida, and listed as one of the Legal Elite by Florida Trend Magazine. He received his BA with honors from Harvard University, his JD with high honors from University of Florida Levin College of Law, and his LL.M, Taxation, from the University of Florida Levin College of Law.
JoEllen Ross, CPA Senior Partner, Family Business Center and Fiduciary Operations
As one of the two national Directors of GenSpring's Family Business Center, JoEllen Ross, along with Steve Salley, oversees all services for family held businesses owned by GenSpring families.
Prior to joining GenSpring Family Offices, JoEllen was a tax consultant with the Greenberg Traurig law firm, and prior to that was the Managing Partner with Andersen's Orlando office. In both of these positions, her emphasis was on tax and financial planning for high net worth individuals.
She received her BA with honors in Accounting from Michigan State University. Her current civic passion is being on the Board and Finance Committee of Lighthouse, a not for profit organization dedicated to providing training for the visually handicapped.
Michael A. Woocher, JD, CFP® Head of Client Development
Michael Woocher is currently a member of the executive team at GenSpring Family Offices. Michael was a member of the senior leadership team at GenSpring from 2008-2011 when he served as president of the Atlanta - Buckhead family office and later had responsibility for GenSpring business development efforts throughout SunTrust Bank. Michael held increasingly responsible roles within SunTrust Private Wealth Management from 1997-2007 before joining GenSpring. He returned to SunTrust Private Wealth Management as a managing director from 2011–2012. Michael has advised wealthy families on a wide range of investment and wealth planning issues since 1997.
He is an attorney and a Certified Financial Planner™. He has held multiple securities and insurance licenses, including the Series 7, 66 and 24.
Michael received his JD from the University of Georgia School of Law and BA from Emory University. He is on the Board of Trustees of the Atlanta History Center, William Breman Jewish Heritage and Holocaust Museum and Friends of the First Tee of East Lake.
Michael is married with 4 sons and resides in Atlanta, GA.
Peter Balderston Managing Director, Operations & Integration
Pete Balderston joined GenSpring in 2006 and has responsibility for all GenSpring operations including, oversight for change management activities which seek to impart growth, scale and uniformity to the firm's expanding organization. Peter is also involved in the firm's acquisition activities, including due diligence, valuation, transaction structure and terms, and post-closing integration activities.
Prior to joining GenSpring, Peter spent 10 years at JPMorgan's Private Bank where he was most recently business manager for the Private Bank's loan and deposit products. Prior to JP Morgan, Peter worked in a New York City-based multi-family office.
Mr. Balderston holds a M.B.A. from Stern School of Business and a B.A from St. Lawrence University.
Robert Trinchet Chief Information Officer, Technology
Robert Trinchet joined GenSpring in November of 2005. As GenSpring's chief information officer (CIO), his focus is establishing and supporting the company's technology direction. Robert joined GenSpring from Kaiser Permanente where he was divisional CIO for the Midwest region and CIGNA where he supported the Midwest and Southeast regions as Vice President of Information Management and Technology.
Robert holds an MBA with a concentration in Information Technology and a BSEE in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Miami.
What would you like your family office to do for you?
Do I have enough?
Through a process called capital sufficiency ( i.e. the degree to which you have enough to do what you want to do), GenSpring helps clients answer this difficult question.
