More of the region's family offices are looking to hire outside talent

Demand set to pick up amid leadership and wealth transfer to heirs over next decade

- Chor Khieng Yuit

Single family offices (SFOS) in the Asia-Pacific, including Singapore, are recognising increasingly that such offices are sometimes best led by a professional from outside the family office.

This was one of the insights from an inaugural family office report from Deloitte Private and Raffles Family Office.

The Asia-Pacific edition of the Family Office Insights Series surveyed 89 family offices from the region between September and December 2023.

In-depth interviews were also conducted with 15 senior family office executives in the region.

The report found that four in 10, or 43 per cent, of SFOs in the AsiaPacific are looking to shift towards more professional and non-family staff in 2024, higher than the global average of 29 per cent.

This will raise the proportion of SFOs in the Asia-Pacific which are led by a professional from outside the family office to 31 per cent, from 22 per cent currently.

The proportion is still lower than the global average, where 49 per cent of family office heads are expected to be an external professional.

Dr Rebecca Gooch, global head of insights for Deloitte Private, said SFOs now want to get the best talent in the market as they begin to realise that sometimes, another family member may not be the best fit for the job.

She added that these family offices are hiring mainly from the financial services, consulting and accounting fields.

However, some of the family office executives who were interviewed for the study highlighted concerns over the limited pool of talent with the necessary skill sets.

Mr Matt Norman, chief investment officer at Japanese SFO Kenjiro Private Office, added that the talent pool shrinks further when family offices narrow down candidates to those who fit into the culture of the family office.