About Us

Born into a very successful enterprising family, Kirby learned family wealth basics the way most affluent offspring do (or don’t). . . in real time, around the board or dining room table. Humbled by her upbringing, today Kirby is a recognized teacher, advisor, author, and speaker in the family wealth industry. She is the founder of Tamarind Partners, Inc., a research, advisory, and consultancy firm where she and her team work with families, operators, advisors, and institutions connected to the family office landscape. Kirby provides leading edge insights, knowledge, and family education that is curated, practical, and hands-on. Kirby is Dean of Family Office at the Purposeful Planning Institute, a Fellow and Family Governance Faculty of the Family Firm Institute (FFI), co-trustee of the Harbeck Family Foundation, and is on the advisory board of Merton Venture Philanthropy and the board of directors of Hope Trust. She speaks and consults internationally on her research, books, and experiences with wealth and enterprising families.

Dr. Jaffe, a member of Wise Counsel Research, is a San Francisco-based advisor to families about family business, governance, wealth and philanthropy. He is author of Borrowed from Your Grandchildren: The Evolution of 100-Year Family Enterprises; Cross Cultures: How Global Families Negotiate Change Across Generations; Stewardship in your Family Enterprise: Developing Responsible Family Leadership Across Generations, and Working With the Ones You Love. His global insights have led to teaching or consulting engagements in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. The Family Firm Institute awarded him the 2017 International Award for service, and in 2005 he received the Beckhard Award for service to the field. In 2020 he was awarded a special commendation as an individual thought leader in the field of wealth management by the Family Wealth Report. He has a BA degree in Philosophy, MA in Management, and Ph.D. in sociology, all from Yale University, and professor emeritus of organizational systems and psychology at Saybrook University in San Francisco.

Dr. Victoria Vysotina is the Chief Investment Officer of a single-family office located in New York. As their CIO, Dr. Vysotina is responsible for all aspects of managing a diverse portfolio of assets including venture capital, private equity, and marketable securities, both funds, and direct investments. Dr. Vysotina has nearly 20 years of experience in capital markets and investment management.  She began her career working in the fixed income divisions of Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse.  During her tenure on Wall Street she gained an in-depth knowledge of fixed income markets and managed a number of high-profile distressed restructurings, both sovereign and corporate globally.

Dr. Vysotina moved to asset management in 2003 and later became a member of the Investment Committee with HSBC’s Alternative Investment Group that oversaw over $40bn in hedge fund investments.  In 2007 she joined the Rockefeller Foundation as a Portfolio Manager for the $1bn hedge fund and distressed portfolios and a co-Manager for the fixed income, portable alpha and long-only equity portfolios.  Dr. Vysotina founded a consulting firm V V Strategic Group in 2011 which provides a range of services to family offices from a full outsourced CIO capability to custom portfolio diagnostic engagements with focus on asset allocation, risk management and manager selection across traditional public (equity and fixed income) and alternative asset classes. Dr. Vysotina received her Ph.D. in Mathematics from Emory University.  She continues to be a passionate supporter of the education field and is a member of the Advisory Board for the Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) in New York.

Dr. Barbera is an Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Strategy at The Ted Rogers School of Management at Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada. His teaching and research interests encompass a wide range of topics related to family business entrepreneurship, strategic management, leadership development, and education. In 2014, he received his Ph.D. from Bond University while working at the Australian Centre for Family Business. Francesco is an award-winning author and educator and regularly presents at international conferences and workshops. His research has been published in journals such as the Journal of Business Ethics, Family Business Review, Long Range Planning, Small Business Economics, and the Academy of Management Learning and Education journal. Francesco’s expertise in the family business field includes designing and delivering various family business curricula in Australia, Canada, and the USA, directing the Family Business centers at both the University of Adelaide as well as Stetson University, as well as leading various industry and academic-based research projects all over the world. He is a long-serving member on the Editorial Board of the Family Business Review, provides online training for family business advisors on behalf of the Family Firm Institute and Family Business Australia, as well as regularly coaches at the annual global Family Enterprise Case Competition in Vermont.

Rita Gatta received a B.S. in Finance from New York University.  She is a licensed C.P.A. in New Jersey.  Rita worked for Single Family Offices in New York/New Jersey for over 12 years, in public accounting for over 11 years, and money management/wealth advisory for 5 years.

After both children left home for college in 2016, Rita relocated to Jupiter, Florida for her husband’s business venture and a more desirable lifestyle.

Rita Gatta founded Tandem Wealth Consultants LLC in July 2018.  Tandem is an outsource CFO solution which provides remote back office services to single family offices. Her focus as a CFO for Single Family Offices is tax planning.  Although all aspects of accounting, reporting, treasury and the “bucket of SFO activities” have greatly benefited her clients, her tax planning strategies implemented have led to her success.

She is the Hayes Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship/Founder of the Entrepreneurship Programs at The University of North Carolina Greensboro. Her research includes women-owned family businesses, family business franchising, and the Psychological Capital (PsyCap) and creativity of family businesses that includes 24 refereed journal articles and 37 presentations on family business out of over 100 refereed journal articles.  She is a Certified Family Business Advisor and Fellow with the Family Firm Institute. She is the recipient of the Barbara Hollander Award for lifelong contributions to family business.

A Partner in the Personal Wealth, Estates and Trusts Practice, Russell Fishkind focuses his practice on high net worth estate planning, business succession planning, family office consulting, estate administration and probate litigation.

Prior to joining the Firm, Russell served as Chair of the Trusts & Estates Team at Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer P.A. in Woodbridge, New Jersey. Following law school, he was a trust and estate administrator and financial officer for the United States Trust Company of New York. He was also the founding partner of Rudolph & Fishkind in New York City and East Brunswick, New Jersey.

Russell is an Assistant Adjunct Professor in New York University's Department of Finance, Taxation and Law where he teaches estate and business succession planning. He frequently writes and lectures about trusts and estates related issues. He is the author of Legacy of a Lifetime, a layman's guide to understanding estate matters; a co-author of J.K. Lasser Pro's Estate Business Succession Planning - A Legal Guide to Wealth Transfer, and the author of Probate Wars of the Rich & Famous: An Insider's Guide to Estate Planning and Probate Litigation.

Torri is the Chief Learning Officer (USA) with a decade of experience working with enterprising families. Having experienced the variety of joys and challenges of being part of a family business herself, Torri is passionate about helping next-generation members build their confidence and credibility through empowerment and learning. Torri loves to candidly share her experience as a next-gen and business owning woman and has had the opportunity to speak at various conferences and industry events including Family Office Exchange's Forum, Family Business' Transitions Conference, and Purposeful Planning Institute's Rendezvous. 

Torri lives with her husband and her dog Murray in New Jersey. She holds an undergrad degree in family enterprise, credentials as a certified family business and wealth advisor, and a master's degree in strategic human resources.

Cindy helps families understand and navigate the complexities and opportunities that come with wealth drawing on over 30 years of legal, fiduciary, trust, and governance experience.  She provides an objective perspective of how complex family, business, and ownership structures impact family dynamics and family wealth continuity.

Cindy believes that education is crucial to successful cross-generational family wealth stewardship with specific emphasis on the unique challenges and opportunities inherent in family trusts.    

After obtaining her Chartered Accountant designation in 1986,  Cindy was the Controller at a pre-eminent Canadian law firm.  In this environment, Cindy discovered an interest in law and went on to obtain her LL.B and LL.M degrees and practiced tax and trusts law with national and boutique law firms as well as national financial institutions, including a multi-family office.  She also was the CEO of a private trust company. 

Throughout her career, Cindy has been a very active speaker, author, committee, and board member for a variety of professional organizations, including TEC Canada / Vistage International, the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, the Chartered Professional Accountants of Alberta, and the Canadian Tax Foundation. She currently serves as Chair of the STEP Worldwide Business Families Global Steering Committee. In 2018 Cindy was awarded the prestigious global STEP Private Client Awards – People’s Choice Trusted Advisor of the Year.  Cindy completed the Family Enterprise Advisor designation in 2016, is a Leaders Council Member in the UHNW Institute, and is an active member of the Purposeful Planning Institute.

Cindy’s charitable causes are focused on individual and community mental health. She is a former board member for both the Canadian Mental Health Association – Calgary and Alberta. Cindy is also proud to be an alumnus of Outward Bound Canada summiting Kilimanjaro in 2012 in support of OBC’s Women of Courage program.        

John manages the operations at Tamarind Learning. He is an experienced business leader, visionary, and entrepreneur with a commitment to improvement, who has facilitated teams and organizations to achieve breakthrough successes. John’s career and experience are multi-faceted. He is experienced in real estate, finance, operations, accounting, tax, IT, project management, conflict resolution, legal, and marketing. John’s early career started with a third-generation family business where he worked for more than a decade. He worked in project management for Florida Power and Light and Northwestern Mutual, and he is an experienced business owner. John successfully launched an antique furniture import business which was sold in 2013, co-founded a family office direct investment business in 2016, and has grown Tamarind Partners into the success it is today. John earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee and earned his MBA in Finance from Florida Atlantic University. He holds a real estate license in the State of Florida and served in the United States Marine Corps Infantry. In his free time, John takes his two talented daughters to their events and he also enjoys traveling, golf, tennis, and hockey.

For over 25 years Todd worked on various education projects related to Learning & Development, Test Prep, eLearning, mLearning, and Consumer Education.  Todd has developed his expertise in conceptualizing, developing, and launching ed-tech projects on time and on budget. Todd began his career as an educator and then moved into the ed-tech space, so he understands how to solve problems for Tamarind Learning from multiple lenses and uses this unique vantage point to foster best practices and innovative education solutions for Tamarind Learning.

Caroline Samis is a vibrant and personable wealth educator dedicated to fostering meaningful connections and guiding families toward building a lasting financial legacy. With a warm and approachable demeanor, Caroline specializes in wealth legacy planning, helping individuals and families navigate the complexities of preserving and passing on their wealth across generations.

Drawing from extensive experience as a trusted advisor at Frost Wealth Advisors and Northern Trust Corporation, Caroline understands the importance of not only growing wealth but also nurturing relationships and values within families. Her passion lies in empowering clients to articulate their unique wealth legacy goals and values, ensuring that future generations benefit from their financial wisdom and heritage.

Beyond traditional financial planning, Caroline believes in the power of storytelling and personal values as essential components of wealth legacy planning. Through thoughtful conversations and personalized guidance, she helps families articulate their vision for the future, addressing not just financial assets but also intangible legacies such as values, beliefs, and philanthropic aspirations.

With a background in History from Southern Methodist University and a fellowship experience at Trinity Forum Academy, Caroline brings a rich tapestry of knowledge and insight to her work. As a board member for organizations like The Cliburn and Union Gospel Mission of Tarrant County, she understands the importance of community and stewardship in shaping a meaningful wealth legacy. 

Whether facilitating family discussions, wealth education training, or providing one-on-one guidance, Caroline is committed to nurturing strong, intergenerational relationships and helping families leave a lasting impact for generations to come.