The market for phenomenal CFOs is highly competitive for investment firms and their portfolio companies alike. Currently, asset management firms are rapidly hiring senior finance leaders to address rising complexities around capital formation strategies and registration concerns and challenges. We—SPMB’s Investment practice–recently completed a comprehensive analysis of financial officer talent in investment management to better understand key factors in the acquisition of top talent.
Our CFO Practice | By The Numbers
Placements (2021 – Present):
~75% self-identify as diverse hires
~75% joined investment managers with similar investment strategies to where they were previously employed (i.e. venture to venture, private equity to private equity)
~50% relocated for their new roles
~100% received title promotions at their new firms
Search Finalists (2021 – Present):
~59% self-identify as diverse candidates
~53% currently are at investment managers with similar investment strategies to where they are interviewing
~41% are local to client headquarters
~65% interviewed for more senior titles/roles than they currently have
C-Level Financial Talent | Key Takeaways
Our recent search work suggests that to attract top talent:
- PROVIDE GROWTH
As firms battle for exceptional finance talent, investment managers attract candidates with substantial titles and competitive compensation packages. Candidates are motivated to move to top performing firms not only for upward mobility, but also for rapidly growing assets and top tier performance.
- HIRE FOR EQ AND BEST PRACTICES
Clients are receptive to hiring candidates who today may not yet be adept with certain investment strategies but demonstrate the learning agility to develop greater asset class and market knowledge. By broadening the search parameters to include talent from other investment strategies, firms can inherit the institutional skills and best practices of prestigious investment managers.
- LOCATION MATTERS
While we continue to see workplace flexibility at the portfolio company level, investment firms generally emphasize a return to office for their investment and leadership teams. Proximity to investor networks and entrepreneurial hubs remains a priority for firms and their people.
- REGULATION IS REAL
As investment firms grow in assets under management, CFOs are more and more frequently owning the challenges of moving to regulated entities and filing for registration. Hiring strong financial officers with exposure to this skill set has become increasingly important to the majority of our clients.
SPMB’s Recent Placements | Financial Leadership Projects
- 8VC | Chief Financial Officer | Venture Capital
- Alpine Investors | Controller | Private Equity
- Binance.US | Controller | Cryptocurrency Exchange
- Chime | Vice President, Finance | Financial Technology
- Jellysmack | Vice President, Financial Planning and Analysis | Media
- Lonsdale Investment Technology | Chief Financial Officer | Financial Technology
- NewView Capital | Chief Financial Officer | Venture Capital
- Pear VC | Chief Financial Officer | Venture Capital
- SafeSend | Chief Financial Officer | Financial Technology
- Sequoia Heritage | Chief Financial Officer | Investment Management
If you are hiring your firm’s first financial leader or thinking about bolstering your team’s bench, please reach out.
