Who should you hire first for a family office?

Start with the work the family needs done

There is no single first hire that suits every family. A family focused on managing a complex portfolio may need investment leadership. A family dealing with multiple entities, reporting needs, and household operations may need an experienced family office executive or administrator to coordinate the work. Families facing succession, liquidity, or governance decisions may first need legal, tax, or estate expertise.

Write down the decisions and recurring tasks the office must own. Then identify which require a dedicated employee and which can be provided by outside specialists. The first hire should close the most consequential gap and be able to coordinate with the family's existing advisers.

Decide whether to hire or outsource

A dedicated Chief Investment Officer can make sense when the family needs ongoing investment oversight and has a clear mandate for the role. But the title alone does not guarantee the right capabilities. Richard C. Wilson's book excerpt describes a virtual family office that can combine an outsourced CIO or multi-family office asset management service with other providers. It also notes that this structure can be reshaped quickly when a family's needs change, such as a shift toward co-investments or club deals.

That suggests a practical test: hire full-time when the work is continuous, central to the family's priorities, and substantial enough to support a dedicated role. Use external providers when specialist expertise is needed only periodically, or when the family wants to test a service before building an internal team.

Build a small core, then fill gaps

Before recruiting, agree on the role's authority, reporting line, and first-year responsibilities. A vague "family office head" position can struggle if the family has not decided what the office is for. Clarify who makes investment decisions, who approves spending, and how the hire will work with existing advisers.

For example, a family that wants to expand into direct investments might begin with an outsourced investment team and hire an internal executive to coordinate diligence, records, and decision-making. If direct investing becomes a sustained priority, the family can later decide whether a full-time investment leader is justified. This staged approach keeps the first hire tied to demonstrated needs rather than assumptions.

A Family Office Club event excerpt offers a related team-building idea: Wilson describes a "first team" and separates core starters from a broader bench and practice squad. That is a useful reminder to distinguish essential in-house roles from relationships the office can call on as needed.