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When Robert Forsythe joined Third Lake Capital as COO in 2015 (later becoming CEO in 2020), the single family office was operating like many others: using a combination of SharePoint, Excel, and QuickBooks. This traditional setup, while functional, created significant challenges in scaling operations and managing data effectively for a multi-generational family.
"As you look to scale, and ultimately, we're a multi-generational family, there's just a ton of challenges in terms of trying to bring the data together in a way that can be meaningful for clients and also for the people in the office to ultimately make good decisions and have good data," explains Forsythe.
The breaking point came during a year-end close. "I hit a point at the end of December 31st as we're trying to wrap things up and said, 'Man, this is really cumbersome to try to do with these technology solutions which weren't really adopted for family offices or built that way.'"
This realization kicked off a multi-year journey to transform Third Lake's operations. While the family office technology landscape has evolved significantly since 2015, Third Lake's early recognition of the need for purpose-built solutions positioned them ahead of the curve in adopting next-generation technology.
The limitations of traditional document management systems became increasingly apparent as Third Lake grew. Tebbi Purvis, President and CFO of Third Lake Solutions, painted a vivid picture of the challenges: "I think of it as sort of like working in an assembly line with your team working in an assembly line in the dark, and you don't really know what someone else is doing."
This lack of visibility and coordination created multiple pain points:
"iPaladin offered not just a way to organize all of our documents and make it so that we can find them," Purvis explains, "but also to be aware of what all of our team members are doing. When something, a document comes up like a capital call, then you know exactly the steps that need to be taken with that document."
The need for modernization wasn't just about organizing documents—it was about transforming how the entire team collaborated and executed their responsibilities. The goal was to move from reactive management to proactive operations, where processes were clear, automated, and transparent.
Having experienced the challenges firsthand as a trust and estate lawyer and family office COO, Jill Creager built iPaladin to address the systemic issues plaguing family office operations. "When you're reactive, you're not always—you're always playing catch up. You're putting out fires. You're fixing mistakes," Creager explains. "But when you're proactive, you're actually in control."
iPaladin's approach differs from traditional document management systems in several key ways:
This approach resonated with Third Lake's vision for streamlined operations, setting the stage for an even more powerful solution when combined with Canoe's automation capabilities.
Robert and the Third Lake team adopted iPaladin for family office operations in 2019.
While iPaladin provided the operational foundation Third Lake needed, the sheer volume of documents requiring manual upload presented a new challenge. "We have sometimes a thousand or more documents in a month that we need to have uploaded," explains Tebbi Purvis. This volume made finding an automated solution crucial.
Enter Canoe Intelligence.
The integration between Canoe and iPaladin created a seamless flow where Canoe automatically collects and categorizes documents, while iPaladin transforms them into actionable workflows. This partnership particularly shines in three key areas:
Automated Document Processing: "Canoe gathers the documents; iPaladin makes them work," Jill Creager explains. "The metadata that [Canoe was] actually providing for those documents allowed us to do some really powerful things. It curates them in the libraries inside of iPaladin, but it also then associates them with whether they're just recurring processes that just run, like reconciliations or reporting, but also they trigger capital call notices or distribution notices."
Comprehensive Coverage: Robert Forsythe notes that Canoe's extensive coverage was a key differentiator: "We evaluated a number of solutions in this space, and the coverage wasn't always necessarily very great for a lot of your competitors, but Canoe ultimately overlapped with us in such a meaningful way that it really was a complete solution for us."
The collaboration between both platforms was crucial for Third Lake. As Purvis emphasizes, "A key component was that we needed Canoe to be able to integrate with iPaladin. Otherwise, we just would not be getting enough benefit from that solution, because we knew we wanted to stay with iPaladin, we liked everything we'd set up."
The result is a technology stack that automates document collection while maintaining the sophisticated workflow and compliance capabilities that modern family offices require.
The integration of iPaladin and Canoe has transformed Third Lake's operations from reactive to proactive, creating strategic advantages that extend far beyond simple document management.
For Third Lake, the technology stack has become a key differentiator in the market. Robert Forsythe explains: "Most [clients] are doing like we talked about—they're using Excel, or potentially QuickBooks, and it's a slow process. Service providers out there generally have worked on a basis of doing things manually and doing things the way they've always been, and most of them are in the business of billing hours."
Key Strategic Benefits:
The combination of iPaladin and Canoe has enabled Third Lake to build a sustainable, scalable operation that's prepared for future generations and regulatory changes.
The integration between iPaladin and Canoe represents more than just a technology solution—it's a transformation in how family offices can operate. As Jill Creager summarizes, "It wasn't just about efficiency. It was truly about staying ahead and being ready for whatever comes next into that family."
For family offices looking to modernize their operations, the key lessons from Third Lake's experience are clear:
The future of family office management lies in the ability to harness technology that not only solves today's challenges but anticipates tomorrow's needs.
Learn more about how iPaladin and Canoe can transform your family office operations.