The report, Top CEOs of Family Offices on the Challenges of Hiring, is written by the global family office and wealth management recruitment firm . It is based largely (95 per cent) on responses from chief executives at single family offices and 5 per cent from CEOs working at multi-family offices. Click here to download it for free.

It emerged that the tasks overseen by all the CEOs differed based on the individual purpose of the family office rather than the organization’s structure, indicating that the majority of family offices in recruitment mode are looking for similar skills/attributes in a candidate (although these may vary depending on the precise role).

Almost all the 100 CEOs interviewed said they require the backing of either a committee, a board of trustees or the family office principal before confirming a hire, making the whole procedure much longer and complex than would be the case at a larger financial institution.

According to Family Office Exchange's Family Office Compensation & Benefits report - released last November - finding and retaining talent is a family office’s top challenge when it comes to human resources. Indeed, it has been argued that in a client service-based industry such as wealth management, it is the people that make or break the business.

Three prevalent issues: structure, expectation and culture

On the issue of structure, Agreus’ report acknowledges that the services provided by family offices often require similar skills and roles to that of a smaller bank. However, the family office working environment, related responsibilities, expectations and team dynamics are very different and often overlooked by candidates considering a move into the sector.

This in turn affects expectation; in a family office environment, for example, there is a greater chance that the responsibilities of a particular role will change – potentially on numerous occasions - to reflect the evolving needs of the family.

And it all boils down to culture, as having the right candidate on paper doesn’t guarantee that the person will be a good “fit.”

Key questions raised by family offices during the hiring process will therefore likely include: Does the person have the right mentality for working in the family office environment? Do they understand the family office model? Will they have long-term commitment to the family’s objectives?

Tayyab Mohamed of Agreus previously said he believes that SFOs in particular need to have a clearer definition of the roles they hire for. Similarly, Sara Hamilton, founder and chief executive of to hire appropriately, looking for candidates who may prefer flexible work accommodations for instance, rather than fast-paced advancements,” Hamilton told Family Wealth Report.

“Not all candidates are well-suited for a service-oriented role, where it’s important to always put the needs of the family first,” she said. “You can’t just hire an experienced attorney or accountant for a senior role. Aside from the professional qualifications, they need to have a service orientation, be part psychologist, part coach, and understand the dynamics of the family.”

She added: “Also, because most professionals in a family office need to wear many hats, you need to find a range of skills plus the flexibility to adapt on demand.”

Hiring strategy

An overwhelming 90 per cent of the CEOs surveyed in Agreus’ report said they initially turned to their immediate network when looking to make a hire – a strategy that ultimately proved unsuccessful due to “very limited choices in candidates.”

The report recommends that using specialist consultants can prevent the above-mentioned issues that manifest during the recruitment process from happening.

However, Paul Westall of Agreus previously noted that when an SFO reaches out to make a hire, they will often use a generalist recruiter who doesn’t necessarily understand the sector.

On the other hand, Hamilton said the family office industry “is not huge” and therefore “a vast number of recruiters is not necessary.” She added that “there may be more demand in the coming years with the wave of retirements we foresee.”

Hamilton believes a good consultant will start any search by interviewing the family members themselves, as well as the candidate, to get a real feel for what the family is looking for. Importantly, interviews need to include more than one generation because there will be transitions in the family, she added. “As a result, it is important to know what the rising generation is looking for as well.”

The issue of recruitment generally in the wealth management arena has intensified in recent time as the US experiences both the aging of its advisor workforce and changing client demographics - issues which present opportunities as well as challenges. However, according to Hamilton, the way family offices approach recruiting hasn't changed much in recent years.

“Most offices do approach searches utilizing recruiters,” she said. “We can tell this from our members’ inquiries of each other on our online discussion board. We are seeing larger family offices more widely using industrial psychologists to help assess the cultural fit of candidates. This is applying a practice used more broadly in top-level corporate hires and is due to the realization that cultural fit is so important.”