The Role of Recruitment Firms for Crisis Management in Family Offices

Human capital is necessary for organizational success, though it presents a huge challenge for family office recruiters and their clients. Ultimately, talent shortages and inflation are escalating the costs associated with staffing, but the nature of family offices creates complexities hindering retention and candidate acquisition.

Family offices are highly popular, so many new ones are being formed and must hire employees. However, it’s crucial to navigate the obstacles and scale the family office for longevity.

Here are the top family office challenges to consider and how a family business executive search firm can help you formulate a strategy to address them.

 

Family Office Disconnect and Reputation

Reputation is crucial when attracting the very best talent, but it’s a tricky subject in the family office industry. There are a few privacy concerns and no media coverage on how they operate or who they deal with. Though this is crucial for obvious reasons, it does seem to work against family offices because they can’t build a reputation outside of their inner circles.

Being in the Know

Those in the know will often construct opinions about a family office, using their personal networks, experience, and knowledge of the space. However, most people fall outside that view.

If someone does hear of family offices, they don’t understand much about the values, brands, ethos, or objectives. Therefore, it’s challenging to connect with them or build a career with them. Ultimately, family members want to protect themselves through wealth management, which leads them to keep things hidden or secret whenever possible.

New Possibilities

Clearly, family office services must focus on the family legacy and protect it at all costs. In most cases, they are working with a family business and must ensure they fully understand what is involved.

Though new boutique family offices are launching and more awareness has come about as to what they are (whether it’s a multi- or single-family office), attracting talent can be a huge challenge.

Ultimately, when someone earns a financial degree, they focus on getting jobs at investment banks or other big players because they’re well known. Executive leadership is crucial in those areas, but candidates must be willing to think outside the box when dealing with a family office. It’s usually small with an unknown brand.

Data and Other Essentials

Likewise, family offices often struggle to get relevant information on the new talent because what’s out there is too generic for specialty needs. This ultimately exacerbates the disconnection they feel.

Now, family offices must focus on their public profiles and expand their circles. Brand-building exercises are helpful here, and they should be on various social media platforms.

 

Attracting Talent Through Family Office Recruitment

Attracting Talent Through Family Office Recruitment

Industry insiders often understand the advantages of working with a family business. Such a unique organization helps employees participate in an ecosystem that will shape the future. There are touchpoints in many industries, and the best talent will be exposed to new technologies regularly. Ultimately, a career here offers creativity and so much more.

However, only the inner circle knows this, and those talent pools have dried up or will soon. Therefore, family office executive search is crucial.

Most people don’t know where to turn, so family office executive search is the easiest option. This means family offices will get the wealth management and succession planning they require without having to sift through unqualified candidates.

A Shift from the Inner Circle

Personal networking is often how family offices run, but market conditions are necessitating a shift. Fewer resources focus on the family office and its employees.

Instead of using a job board that might not bring in the talent you need, family office recruitment is your best solution. Though you could reach out to the top universities in the area to find young candidates, this often leads to confusion and upset because they don’t have the skills you require.

 

Transparency

Typically, family businesses are discreet, and information is kept confidential. There are reasons for this, of course, but it can make it difficult to find the best talent. You may also attract the wrong candidates because you’re ambiguous in the job description and responsibilities.

How Family Office Recruitment Can Help

Ultimately, when you hire a family office headhunter, you can be straightforward with them about your needs. They will work hard to find appropriate talent for financial planning, succession planning, and everything else. Likewise, they can search outside your network and bring people in quickly who are already vetted.

 

Benefits and Compensation in the Family Office Sector

Family businesses often neglect their employees, providing small compensation amounts and few benefits. However, the family office professionals are the ones keeping your legacy up and running. Therefore, it’s important for single- and multi-family offices to do better, and here are a few tips:

More Interests and Profit Sharing

The Global Family Office Compensation Report claims that family offices are now introducing participation schemes, such as employee ownership trusts, rise in B corps, and profit sharing. On the personal side, many family office settings are changing their compensation structures to incentivize longevity and excellence.

Salary Increases

The Morgan Stanley Compensation Report has indicated that roughly 40 percent of family offices show salary increases of between four and 10 percent. This outdoes the national average by three percent.

Reviewing Packages for the Best Results

Ultimately, each family office must review its compensation packages to ensure they’re staying competitive and offering things candidates want.

 

Talent Integration and Retention

Family office recruitment is only one challenge a family business faces. They must also focus on retaining their talent. Compensation and benefits are powerful tools, but it might not be about the money.

Soft Factors

Soft factors might be at play. When one transitions from a big company to a family office, there’s a culture shock. Executive search can only go so far.

Family office candidates might now focus on succession planning when they dealt in other areas of finance before at a wealth management firm.

Having a Strong Hiring Process

Ultimately, a strong hiring process is crucial, both for the existing team and new hires. A family office recruiter can assist here.

 

How a Family Office Executive Search Firm Can Benefit You

How a Family Office Executive Search Firm Can Benefit You

Family office clients often need direct access to qualified candidates at a moment’s notice. The Quest Organization can help single- and multi-family offices get what they need with family office executive search. Please call 212-971-0033 or email info@questorg.com to request your free consultation.

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