Our international approach enables our clients to curate and protect resilient and resistant reputations in a world where reputation is primarily mediated by AI.
Michael Macfarlane Associates is an international reputation management specialist that is focused on UHNWIs, Single Family Offices and their associate and portfolio companies.
Our approach
Michael Macfarlane Associates is a global reputation management specialist for a world where reputation is primarily mediated by artificial intelligence.
Outcomes Focused
Michael Macfarlane Associates is a global reputation management specialist for a world driven by AI, with a special focus on UHNWI, Single Family Office and their portfolio and associate companies.
The firm enables clients to achieve private, commercial and philanthropic outcomes through the curation of resilient and resistant global reputations, especially before, during and after periods of challenge and change.
Technologically Relevant
A key tenet of the Michael Macfarlane Associates proposition is reputation and crisis management for a world where reputation is no longer mediated by legacy media titles but by artificial intelligence.
This represents a significant shift away from conventional ‘PR’ models and supports managing reputation in the emerging world of omnipresent AI across multiple medias and data points.
Risk Managed
Michael Macfarlane Associates approaches reputation management as risk management, with a primary focus on supporting clients to expand their reputation globally to support their target outcomes.
The holistic and comprehensive solutions provided ensure that clients can sustain authentic profile attributes which AI regards as both substantive and true.
Private and Discreet
Michael Macfarlane Associates therefore adopts a trusted role with clients, acting as a consigliere to Family Office and business principals and advising upon projects and activities to support a resistant and resilient global reputation.
The firm also provides turnkey solutions for building and managing strategic projects, including the build and management of philanthropic foundations.
Our expertise
Our integrated expertise enable our clients to navigate complex situations and to curate resilient and resistant reputations that are built for a world of AI.
01
Reputation
Forward looking reputation management for UHNWIs and Single Family Offices
A Specialist Private Office
As a Private Office specialised in reputation management for the UHNWI principals and families of Single Family Offices, we have an intrinsic understanding and experience of the opportunities, risks and challenges or reputation.
As trusted principal advisors we have the latitude to advise upon and to execute comprehensive and far reaching holistic solutions, especially before, during and after periods of litigation, challenge and change.
Built Upon Deep Trust And Collaboration
Our values of trust, intelligence and discretion support closely held relationships and deep collaboration and integration with Single Family Offices and their advisors.
As a reputation-focused specialist we have the latitude to advise UHNWI principals and their families on the adoption of strategic projects that can build and protect a resilient and resistant international reputation that is fused with creativity.
02
Leadership
Disruptive reputation management for leaders, founders and high-growth companies.
Intersecting Creative, Content and Technology
Our future facing approach to building and managing reputation for a world of omnipresent AI extends to the leaders and founders of high growth companies, often sitting within the portfolio and associate companies of our UHNWI and Family Office clients.
We provide holistic solutions for leadership reputation management which disrupt the conventional wisdom to elevate and accelerate any leaders ability to secure high-growth commercial and investment outcomes.
Built Upon Decades Of Industry Experience
Our approach is a synthesis of our strategies designed for UHNWIs with our team's substantial experience advising companies and business leaders on making good decisions and also advising on effective international PR and communications strategies.
We synthesise this experience with cross-media creative and deep tech knowledge to deliver comprehensive solutions for build of reputations to secure optimal growth, capital raising and IPO.
03
Creative
A fresh outlook on what global audiences are attuned to engage with across all medias.
A Synthesis Of Technology With Creative
Unique to Michael Macfarlane Associates is an integrated synthesis of technical strategy with wholly original creative content and concepts that work in concert to build positive sentiment and affinity into an authentic and substantive global reputation.
We are expert in cross platform storytelling and in using video and film content to communicate nuance and meaning on YouTube, social media, podcasts and at film festivals in a way that audiences are more attuned to understand and to engage with.
Activated Across All Global Channels
We actively manage and grow social media channels as integrated strategic components of reputation across all major platforms including as YouTube, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, Facebook, WeChat, Weibo and Little Red Book.
We reimagine, build and manage creative digital assets and properties for our clients that collectively influence perception and build the visual component of reputation; with engagement and audience growth strategies derived from facts and data.
04
Crisis and Litigation
Defending and elevating the true position during times of crisis, litigation and reputation risk.
Situation Preparedness and Mitigation
Our comprehensive strategies synthesise a content-led approach with world-class technical capability and AI tools to support ownership and defence of an underlying reputation during periods of litigation, challenge and change.
We elevate the underlying story during the moments that matter to restore, reinforce and evolve a primary narrative and we underpin the true position through a combination of offensive and defensive tactics as well as through direct media engagement.
Situation Responsive Solutions
Our responsive strategies support the navigation of the fallout from complex situations that have caused reputation damage and the renewal and restoration of an underlying reputation but fused-by-design with resistance and resilience against future risks.
Our creative strategies go beyond responding to the matter in hand by curating reputation across all medias and data points to support an authentic and diversified reputation in Google and search that is substantive and which can pass verification by AI.
05
Strategy
Turnkey management of strategic commercial and philanthropic initiatives.
Turnkey Project Creation And Management
Our strategic advisory and management services were originally developed within one of the 'big 4' firms for UHNWIs and Family Offices. They encompass the design and launch of strategic commercial and philanthropic initiatives, including the establishment and optimisation of Single Family Offices and of philanthropic projects.
Michael Macfarlane Associates currently manages a portfolio of international projects and Foundations with diverse focus areas including mental health; religion, art and cultural exchange; and has provided board membership, strategic advice and turnaround services to funds focused on esports and AI.
Outcomes Focused Analysis And Strategy
Our team also brings 'big 4' expertise in strategic consultancy and management, but with a perspective that is focused on outcomes rather than on product or service lines. Our credentials including investment audits, commercial due diligence, private banking advisory, wealth industry benchmarking and succession planning.
The Michael Macfarlane Associates team also has a strong track record and credentials in the fields of business transformation, corporate governance, financial reporting, relationship management, operational risk management, ESG and strategic corporate philanthropy.
06
Intelligence
Offensive and defensive intelligence for litigation and private client matters.
Digital Surveillance
Our digital surveillance capability includes SERP/Google monitoring and social listening. We track all mentions across all medias on all channels and in all languages, and we measure online activity in real time and transact appropriate responses.
Cyber Analysis
Our partner firm uses a proprietary cyber analytics database to assess the global touch points of individuals and companies to provide the information needed to support a matter. This capability supports fast-moving decisions during special situations.
Open Source Investigations
Our partner firm uses advanced tools and techniques to build the intelligence picture by examining publicly available information to gather relevant evidence or identify inconsistencies in order to present factual findings that support a matter.
Human Source Investigations
Leveraging our connections and drawing from a vast network of trusted contacts and resources, our partner firm discreetly conducts human source investigations to collect critical information from individuals who may possess valuable insights.
Our story
Michael Macfarlane Associates was created in 2019 as a Private Office working discreetly with the world's UHNWIs on their most challenging reputation matters. The office adopted its name in 2023 and today represents UHNWIs, Single Family Offices and their associate companies worldwide.
A Story Born From Two Philosophies
Michael Macfarlane Associates is a private office that manages global reputation for Single Family Offices and their UHNWI families principals, as well as their portfolio and associate companies, especially before, during and after times of challenge and change.
The Michael Macfarlane Associates proposition is borne from two philosophies. The first is that in a world of omnipresent AI, ‘reputation’ is becoming a prerequisite for being able to act and transact across any worldwide opportunities in private, commercial, investment and philanthropic matters.
The second is that the UHNWI’s and Single-Family Offices require bespoke solutions to support outcomes. Whilst lawyers typical offer only legal solutions. And PR managers typically prefer PR solutions. Michael Macfarlane Associates is focused on bespoke and holistic solutions that support resilient outcomes.
AI Verification of Reputation
A reputation no longer manifests in the media, but in Google or Baidu results. Today Google results remain largely algorithm derived. The algorithm places high authority on content in well-known media titles, but algorithms have no power to ‘verify’ any claims.
Within three to five years, Google will switch away from algorithm and 100% AI. When this happens, Google will no longer curate and present a list of websites but will interpret meaning and present a full result on the search page, with no need to click further.
AI will also mean that Google can verify the identity and reputation of a search subject. It will not rely on legacy media content but will instead review every single data and content point to substantiate the true position for who someone is and what they are about.
Profile Attribute Diversification
We call these ‘profile attributes’. Michael Macfarlane Associates works with UHNWIs to create, build, curate and substantiate their desires authentic profile attributes across a portfolio of media forms and also to manifest the profile attributes in the structured data that powers Google AI.
We still engage in conventional PR, since media content is still relevant to Google, but this legacy is diminishing and becoming democratised; and Google AI will no longer rely on media content as a primary source: it will also validate the verify claims made by the media.
Michael Macfarlane Associates typically first encounters a new client when they are facing a crisis in the mainstream media that risks damaging their reputation. Frequently this is linked to litigation.
Forward Looking Strategies
However, the most innovative and globally ambitious UHNWIs and Single Family Offices today recognise the need for proactive reputation management as a form of risk management for their principal families, portfolio companies and philanthropic initiatives.
Michael Macfarlane Associates is retained by the most forward-looking UHNWI’s and Single Family Offices from the most innovative wealth clusters in the world because they recognise the need for a forward looking approach to proactive reputation management to support their global objectives and ambitions.
Michael Macfarlane Associates also works with UHNWI families to build legacy, in particular in the field of philanthropy, where the private office operates a number of philanthropic Foundations for clients.