As the role of CFO evolves, family offices are turning to CFOs to prepare the next generation and provide long-term strategy. Family offices are increasingly being seen as an alternative to investment firms and private banks for those who want to manage their wealth.

Whether it’s real estate entrepreneurs or tech founders, high-net-worth individuals are working with family office CFOs to manage and expand their portfolios, while also succession planning. Family Office CFOs have one of the most diverse ranges of responsibilities for any CFO, overseeing asset management, talent development, technology strategy and regulatory compliance.

Family offices are increasingly becoming more formalised with many CFOs now choosing to specialise in the niche, developing their career from a junior level to become a CFO and a potential future CEO.

FD Capital is the leading London recruitment agency for family office CFOs, connecting companies and candidates across the UK to work in-house and on a remote basis.

Start your search for a family office CFO today by contacting our team at recruitment@fdcapital.co.uk or 020 3287 9501.

Managing your family’s wealth and diversifying its portfolio can be difficult. A family office CFO is uniquely positioned to build relationships throughout industries and with financial institutions, identifying potential investment opportunities.

1. Financial and industry-specific expertise

FD Capital can connect you with a CFO with specialist knowledge in industries you’re interested in investing in. Our portfolio of CFOs includes specialists in insurance, technology, hospitality, and e-commerce.

Your family office CFO will provide expert advice and strategy, developing a long-term plan for your wealth management and investments. A CFO’s financial expertise enables them to put safeguards in place to secure your wealth, including overseeing governance and compliance.

2. Strategy and Reporting

Family office CFOs must have a close working and trusting relationship with the main leaders in the family, feeling empowered to guide and direct the company’s investments and strategy for the future.

CFOs are therefore in an ideal place to act as a catalyst for change, taking a strategic role within the organisation. The relationship between the family and CFO will ultimately determine the scope of their responsibilities and duties. Our headhunting services enable family offices to take an active role in determining the sort of candidate they want as a family office CFO.

Most family office CFOs will oversee strategy and financial reporting, leveraging data and forecasting to offer practical insight to feed into decision making. A family office CFO will start in their new role by deep diving into the company’s business enterprises, philanthropic activities, and private investments to under its ethos.

Strategic planning is vital for family offices are they experience rapid growth to manage assets as they increase in value. CFOs provide big-picture thinking with critical thinking to enable family offices to determine future investments and succession planning.

3. Stakeholder Management

Recruiting a family office CFO gives you the peace of mind to focus on other aspects of your business and life. A CFO will manage your family’s financial affairs and act as an independent voice to offer a high-level overview of your wealth management, including overseeing legacy and succession planning.

Family office CFOs will work with individual members of the family to develop strategies that consider their goals and interests. Recruiting a CFO provides stability for your family office as it grows and evolves over time.

Many of our CFO candidates are experts within areas as diverse as law, property management, and estate planning. They’ll take a holistic approach to your financial affairs, allowing management and strategy to be more synchronised by acting as a liaison with different family memories.

Part of a CFO’s stakeholder management responsibilities includes managing the flow of information and advice between the family and family office, including overseeing review recommendations. A family office CFO will ensure that the family’s recommendations are correctly implemented by advisors, while also ensuring reporting and regulatory compliance are being met.

Having a C-suite executive in charge of compliance and documentation enables the family to focus on other aspects of their business, investments, and philanthropic work.

While the role of CFO in family offices is largely determined by their relationship with the family, they face a similar set of challenges.

Many family offices begin their life within the family’s main business, before evolving to become a separate office that requires its own personnel and the support of executives who understand the family’s ethos and objectives.

Deloitte’s 2022 National Family Office Forum found that “educating and motivating” the family’s next generation and “managing existing enterprises” were the two major challenges identified by family office CFOs.

Every family office CFO will have a different scope of responsibility, meaning there needs to be a clear line of communication between the family and the CFO. Working with a recruitment agency can help you set out the responsibilities and duties of your family office CFO from the outset to avoid miscommunication. It’s vital to remember that the family is effectively a client of the CFO who will provide a range of services to them. The first step of recruiting a CFO is to determine what the family office needs.

FD Capital takes a curated approach to recruitment, identifying the specific needs of your family office to offer a hands-on recruiting experience.

Our talent pool of candidates has the financial knowledge to realise your long-term objectives, from overseeing philanthropic projects to determining investment strategies and assisting with succession planning.

FD Capital’s recruitment team has extensive experience working with family businesses seeking to diversify and manage their family wealth. Our recruitment and headhunting services are uniquely positioned to recruit a family office CFO to oversee the guardianship of your family’s wealth.

FD Capital has an undisputed reputation as the UK’s leading choice for CFO recruitment. Our family office CFOs are available to work throughout the UK on an in-house and remote basis. Start recruiting your family office CFO by contacting our team at recruitment@fdcapital.co.uk or 020 3287 9501.

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