Linda Mack of Mack International was a guest on a webcast sponsored by FEUSA on August 15, 2024. The topic was "Questions to Consider before Hiring C-Suite Talent for a Family Office" and how to preserve a legacy in dealing with rising generations.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. , Sept. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Linda Mack of Mack International was a guest on a webcast sponsored by FEUSA on August 15, 2024. The topic was "Questions to Consider before Hiring C-Suite Talent for a Family Office." Pat Soldano, President, Family Enterprise USA was the moderator. The webcast covered questions to ask prior to launching a search, the one pivotal role to focus on, how to sidestep common pitfalls, and the surprising challenges represented by the rising Gen Z. Below is a synopsis of some of Linda's comments during the discussion.
What to know prior to launching a search:
For those building a family office, Linda uses the analogy of building a house. "You don't build a house a room at a time, you must have the blueprint with your vision and start with the foundation." Linda emphasized knowing what you are building; who you are building it for in the long-term; the scope of clients it will serve; what services will be provided, and which will be direct versus outsourced; having the right people in leadership positions; and reasonable budgets and timetables – all are very important for a solid foundation
The pivotal role you must lock in:
While every C-Suite executive plays an important role within the organization, Linda cites one particular individual as being crucial. "I call it the Expert Generalist. The is the person who not only understands all the functions across the horizontal spectrum, but also how they relate to one another. Nothing happens in isolation. The expert generalist must also have the peripheral vision—an essential skill to see that when something happens 180 degrees to the right, what things they need to focus on 180 degrees to the left to keep everything in sync and coordinated internally and with external advisors. Beyond that, they are highly resourceful. They may not have all the answers to the "unknowns" that arise, but they know the right questions to ask and what resources to tap to get the information needed to make decisions."
The top two reasons family office searches fail:
Since enormous time and energy are involved in finding leadership talent, it is important to know why these searches may fail. Linda talked about the two main reasons. "The first is the FO will hire who they know and trust, but the person does not have the requisite experience or skills to do the job. The second is hiring someone who might have been a rock star at another office but is not a culture fit for the family. Culture fit is paramount for success."
The latest on compensation:
A perennial hot topic, compensation is an important tool for attraction and retention. Linda made the point that compensation practices are evolving to being more structured and varied depending upon the family's philosophy and goals. According to Linda there is a continuing trend toward the use of long term incentives (LTIs). The most frequently used LTIs are deferred compensation, co-investment and carried interest programs. Bonuses, which in large part have historically been discretionary, are also including more specific qualitative and quantitative performance metrics. Linda cautioned "Be sure you are benchmarking on an "apples and apples" basis based on job content when determining compensation. Families need to have a firm understanding of the content of the specific job being benchmarked because titles can be misleading." Linda also made the point that compensation is only part of what attracts and retains ideal candidates. Clear business mandates, resources and authority commensurate with accountability and a strong onboarding plan, among other considerations are also key.
Assembling the right demographics for the search committee:
Linda believes smart families make it a priority to have several generations at the table during an interview with prospective candidates. "To be successful in attracting leadership talent it is important to include next gens in the search process. They will likely evolve into family leadership roles themselves during the tenure of the hired candidate. If next gens are not a stakeholder and part of the process, when they eventually assume roles of leadership, governance and succession, they could decide they want their own "person" versus the individual hired by their predecessors. To the candidate considering a commitment of 10-15 years to the family, it helps to mitigate risk when they see the rising generation represented in the decision."
Dealing with the next generations of rising Millennials and Gen Z:
Latest research shows a huge disconnect between the younger generations and current leaders of Family Enterprises. Both Linda and Pat discussed the high stakes involved in capturing the attention of the next gens. "So much of bridging the gap has to do with communication," said Linda. "Smart families start early familiarizing them in understanding the family business through education, mentoring and age appropriate involvement on a small scale and building from there. Some families we know encouraged volunteer work and philanthropic efforts that help young family members see the power of giving back to the community. Others have formal investment committee training with mentors to prepare next gens. Both formal and informal grooming should take place with open communication between the generations, so everyone is heard."
The webcast closed with a Q&A session. The feedback on the information shared was very positive. To access the recording, click on the link below.
https://familyenterpriseusa.com/family-businesses/questions-to-consider-before-hiring-c-suite-talent-for-a-family-office-mack-international-webcast-replay/
About Mack International
Mack International is the premier boutique firm that specializes in providing retained C-suite executive search and strategic human capital consulting solutions to family office, investment firm and enterprise clients on a national and international basis. Clients range from first generation business enterprise owning wealth creators through multi-generational families of six or more generations. Headquartered in West Palm Beach, Florida, clients also include multi-client family offices and select investment and wealth management firms that serve family offices and ultra-high net worth clients. In addition to its executive search services, Mack International provides customized strategic human capital/talent management consulting solutions. The scope of consulting services includes succession planning, governance, next generation engagement, compensation practices, and performance metrics.
Media Contact
Isabel Bolt, Mack International, 8173015461, [email protected], www.mackinternational.com
SOURCE Mack International
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