Starting or creating a family office
What Background Checks Are Appropriate for Family Office Employees?
Short answer. Use a consistent screening process tied to each role's access and responsibilities. Check employment history and references, and consider identity, criminal, education, or credential checks when relevant and permitted. Apply clear criteria to relatives and outside candidates alike, document decisions, and talk with your attorney about local rules before collecting sensitive information.
Use a consistent screening process that reflects the employee's responsibilities and access to family information, accounts, property, or investment decisions. A background check can surface information that ordinary interviews miss, but it is one part of a careful hiring process.
Set a Policy Before Recruiting
Write down which checks apply to each type of role, who reviews the results, how concerns are assessed, and how records are stored. Consider identity verification, employment history, education or professional credentials, references, and criminal history where relevant and legally permitted. Some families also use drug testing, as described in How to Start a Family Office. Talk with your attorney about consent, privacy, and employment rules that apply where the candidate and office are located.
Use the same process for family members, friends, and outside candidates, subject to applicable law. This reduces the risk that personal relationships replace the office's stated hiring standards. The hiring policy should also explain how the family will handle a discrepancy, a conviction, or a refusal to participate in a required check.
Combine Checks With References and Role Review
A screening report does not tell you whether someone can perform the job, work well with relatives, or handle confidential information responsibly. Check references, confirm relevant experience, and ask role-specific questions. In How to Start a Family Office, I describe calling and emailing at least four references and trying to meet at least one. Treat that as a useful process example, not a substitute for judgment or legal requirements.
Match the depth of screening to the role. A staff member who handles sensitive records or can move money may warrant different checks from a short-term office support role. Define the access the employee will receive, and avoid granting access beyond what the job requires. For a senior role, clarify the position and authority before you recruit. The experience needed in a first senior hire page can help frame that decision.
Use Results Fairly and Protect the Information
Review results against written criteria and the actual duties of the position. Verify material discrepancies with the candidate and give them a chance to explain. Avoid treating an unverified claim as fact. Restrict report access to people with a legitimate role in the hiring decision, and keep records only as allowed by applicable rules.
My book The Single Family Office describes background checks as a standard practice that can improve the chance of avoiding a scam or fraud, while also making clear that they do not guarantee protection. Keep the process connected to references, interviews, and clear expectations for conduct. An ethics policy helps state what the office considers acceptable and how staff are held accountable. See single family office governance and confidentiality expectations for employees for related planning.
A background check is a standard practice that helps increase your chances of avoiding a scam or fraud and gives you a better sense as to whom you are entrusting your money.
Sources: How to Start a Family Office, The Single Family Office. Informational only, not financial, legal or tax advice.