James P. Gorman, Executive Chairman of Morgan Stanley | Columbia Business School
Morgan Stanley's Single Family Office Advisory has released its 2025 biennial compensation report, developed in collaboration with Botoff Consulting. The report provides benchmarks and trend analysis for family office leaders to make informed staffing and compensation decisions.
The findings highlight how investment-focused single family offices differ from broader trends, particularly regarding compensation. These offices are aligning compensation practices with organizational strategy and assets under management (AUM), especially through executive compensation and long-term incentive (LTI) plans. LTIs are being used to drive performance and safeguard family objectives as family members become more involved.
"Investment-focused single family offices are particularly complex, and their compensation structures are no less so," said Valerie Wong Fountain, Managing Director at Morgan Stanley. "LTIs and structured compensation offer a clear pathway for family offices to directly tie their key values, goals, and best practices with leadership."
Key findings include:
- Investment-focused single family offices rely more on LTI plans (62% vs. 54% of all single family offices), with 76% offering bonuses or rewards.
- Family members are twice as likely to hold CEO and CIO positions in these offices compared to all single family offices.
- A larger share of these offices manage investments directly within the company rather than outsourcing.
- Women hold 24% of top positions in investment-focused single family offices.
The complete study is based on insights from over 100 investment-focused single family offices.
Morgan Stanley’s Family Office Resources supports the growth of the family office community by providing valuable resources and insights.