LONDON · UHNW FAMILY OFFICE · 7 WEEKS
A TRILINGUAL EA.A BILLIONAIRE FAMILY OFFICE.SEVEN WEEKS.
7 WEEKS
Brief to accepted offer
3
Languages required
12 YEARS
Private household experience of placed candidate
4+ YEARS
Average UHNW placement tenure
THE SITUATION
A London family office managing the affairs of a UHNW principal across multiple residences needed an EA with a very specific profile. The role spanned the principal's professional and private worlds entirely. It required fluency in three languages, a background in private household management, and the kind of discretion that cannot be taught.
The family office had run the search internally for six weeks before concluding that the candidate they needed was not findable through their own network or through public advertising. The mandate required confidentiality from the outset. The principal's name could not appear in any job listing.
The search was referred to TalentSmiths through a trusted family adviser.
WHAT WE DID
UHNW mandates at TalentSmiths go directly to Inner Circle. These are the most senior members of The Circle, many of whom have supported principals at exactly this level and are known personally to James from years of direct contact.
The language requirement narrowed the field significantly. The private household experience requirement narrowed it further. What remained was a group of eight candidates in The Circle with the right combination. Three had the language profile. Of those three, two had private household experience at the required level.
Both were approached within 48 hours of the brief being confirmed. One was immediately open to a conversation. The other took longer to engage. Both were presented to the family office at the end of week three.
The principal met both candidates in separate introductory conversations over the course of a single week. The second meeting produced an immediate sense of alignment. An offer was made the following day. Accepted within 48 hours.
Seven weeks from brief to accepted offer. The EA has now been in post for over four years.
“The quality of candidates was unlike anything I had seen from a search firm. These were not people who had applied to a job board. They were introduced.”
UHNW PRINCIPAL · LONDON