It is challenging enough to find the right candidates for family offices, however when you lose a valuable employee it can have a significant effect on the family office and morale overall.
There are significant differences between the working environments of a typical corporate office and a family office. One of most important differences is the “cultural” difference. Typically when we are performing a search for our family offices, we look for candidates that are coming from another family office or a service provider that works with family offices. Similar to someone from a fortune 100 company going to a small entrepreneurial business, it usually doesn’t work.
Some of the key elements to retaining key employees in family offices are:
-Compensation – market value or higher base salary plus discretionary bonuses which are now becoming more common. For senior executives there are numerous tools that can be utilized including deferred compensation plans, carried interest, co-investing programs, equity in portfolio companies, sharing of profits in deals, etc.
-Appreciation-making your employees feel like they are truly valued and a significant part of the family office, not only through compensation but through the way they are treated and communicated with.
– Culture- similar to other businesses, being open and honest and providing feedback to your employees on a regular basis is essential. Creating a “team” culture for the entire firm is most important.
For additional information on how to retain key employees and how to find them, please contact Michael Rosenblatt at: Michael@questorg.com or via telephone 212-971-0033.
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