Family offices look much different than they have in the past. Where the focus used to be on wealth preservation, tax minimization, and basic estate planning, today’s family offices operate more like massive institutional investment platforms. With that comes the need for a more sophisticated approach to investing and, more importantly, the need for improved governance within the office. As Chief Investment Officer (CIO) confirms, this new type of growth pushes these offices to formalize how they operate and has them competing for talent with asset managers and institutions. Filling the roles for who evaluates the deals is one thing, but finding the right person to handle everything that follows is critical.

What the Practitioners Are Saying

Mark Tremblay of multi-family office Cresset Capital told CIO that a strong back office matters as much as manager selection. He references an example where ten investment professionals can be brought in and make excellent deals, but the office will still run into trouble if nothing is in place to track and manage the capital calls and reporting. 

The field they are playing in is also changing, and their portfolios are becoming more diverse. According to the “Global Family Office” report from UBS, the majority of family offices (65%) surveyed are interested in investing in artificial intelligence. So now, a family that historically has evaluated deals in one sector may move into real estate. Then they invest in AI, hedge funds, private credit, or crypto. Each step carries new reporting and tax consequences. As Todd Kesterson of the accounting firm Kaufman Rossin puts it, the CFO role grows with it, and so do the demands on operations generally.

Neither is describing an investment problem. Both are describing a hiring one.

Where These Searches Go Wrong

Timing is the first mistake many offices make. When a family office realizes they need to hire for operations, it’s often too late. Just like other institutions and asset management firms, finding qualified people and offering terms that attract them is difficult. The competition does not pause while an office decides whether the role is necessary. 

Another common issue shows up in how the job is written. Offices often describe recordkeeping, interview people who have only ever done recordkeeping, and are then surprised when the hire cannot build reporting that the investment committee can act on. Writing the job description accurately is what makes the difference. That means naming the entity structures involved, the fund reporting obligations, the tax coordination required, and who the role reports to. A specific role description attracts people with the right background and makes clear the work is substantive rather than administrative.

What This Means for Principals

A family office that is operating as it always has despite investing in new and more complex spaces won’t be a problem overnight, but it will get more complicated over time. Postponing the operations hire until after the investment committee is running and the deals are closing is going to be challenging. The strongest searches start while the office is still designing its governance and operations, not after a reporting problem has made the hire urgent. Dossier specializes in figuring out who and what is needed in advance so you will have the people you need to tackle what is next. 

Regardless of size, we tailor the process to your office. Typically, larger offices above $1 billion will bring an in-house team on to handle it. We support that team by leveraging our network to fill the roles they cannot reach on their own. Alternatively, many offices often run a hybrid model, with parts or all of the process outsourced. These roles also rarely get advertised. They move through relationships, which means the search begins earlier than most principals expect. A back office built in advance turns growth into an advantage, not a scramble. Dossier places CFOs, controllers, and operations leaders for family offices, and starts by getting clear on what the job actually involves. 

Dossier is an affiliate firm of Pocketbook Agency, an award-winning boutique recruitment firm placing exceptional, high-level administrative and support roles across the US in both corporate and domestic settings. Pocketbook is recognized by Forbes as one of America’s Best Professional Recruiting Firms for 2024, 2025 & 2026, as well as by Business Insider America’s Top Recruiting Firms and Inc Magazine’s PowerParter’s List. For additional inquiries, please reach out to Hello@dossiersearch.com.

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