funds & investment salary guide 2022

2021 was a hugely busy year in the funds and investment management recruitment space.

The Panel made triple the number of placements in 2021 compared to 2020, partnering with many blue-chip firms to hire their entire Irish based team.

In particular, we saw significant hiring in the Man-Co sector as firms were busy adding substance to their Irish teams in order to meet the requirements of CBI under CP86.

Demand for governance, PCF candidates remained at an all-time high and in the funds space Private Equity Real Estate continues to be the hottest skill in demand.

To date 2022, has gotten off to a strong start and we see this year being as busy as 2021 due to Ireland’s position in Europe following Brexit, CBI
requirements and ILP legislative changes.

Also, the availability of educated, English speaking talent with deep sector knowledge in the funds and investment management space, means global firms will continue to choose Ireland to establish and grow out their European hub or centre of excellence.

The Job Market 2022

For 2022 we expect to see a continued ‘war for talent’ with a tightening of candidate supply in all areas, significant demand for governance and PCF experience, salary increases due to inflation and the effects of Brexit still very much dominating the job market.

For the Man Co space, there will be continued emphasis on firms to put more substance on theground in Ireland by building out their teams. The
CBI is driving this process as they carrying out regular thematic reviews of Man Co’s both proprietary and third party.

The hottest area of recruitment in the ManCo area is DP Regulatory Compliance, DP Fund Risk, andDP Investment Management. The Panel won a
considerable amount of retained assignments to source CEO and Managing Directors for new and established areas in 2021 and we expect this will continue in 2022.

The Funds industry continues to add bench strength to their governance areas and in operations,
the focus is on Private Equity Real Estate and ETF.

We believe we can present highly attractive executive roles to senior candidates in Ireland and overseas, who are on the move. We believe hiring will continue at a pace similar to 2021.

The client is now the candidate

Across the board, clients are now realising that they are in fact the candidate and the candidate is the client. Jobseekers are now fussier on what they are looking for, and not just from a salary perspective.

Clients have to sell their firms, their culture and opportunities to candidates in order to attract them to their organisation. Candidates are very focused on culture – they are drawn to the people who they will work with, a respectful culture and a culture that promotes diversity and bringing “your whole self to work”. While money does talk, culture features very high on the list for candidates and is as important as the salary and package on offer.

The return of the counteroffer

The increased demand for funds and investment management talent has seen the return of counter offers. In a candidate driven market, counteroffers are an unwelcome feature. As firms desperately try to hang on to their teams, knowing that replacing them will take time and money, counteroffers become prevalent. Our experience is 87% of candidates who accept counteroffers move within 12 months. It’s important for firms to realise counteroffers are hugely counterproductive and only retain team members for a short period of time.

Remote working

We are going to see a return to the office from the end of Q1, 2022 with 90% for firms favouring a hybrid working model. Most companies are landing on a max of 3 days in the office 2 days remote. Some firms are offering 1 or 2 days in the office – a lot depends on the group wide policy, business requirements and employee preferences. We see many of our clients offering a hybrid arrangement as one of the integral parts of their packages to employees.

The recruitment process

Clients not only have to be more flexible in the working options they can offer candidates, they need to move much quicker during a recruitment process. The candidates they are interested in now have choices and usually involved in multiple processes. Clients that offer a more flexible working arrangement and move quickly through the recruitment process are more successful in securing talent.

Brexit & CP86

On January 1st, 2021, the United Kingdom left the European Union, under the name of Brexit. It meant that new regulations had to be put in place to better facilitate trade within the EU zone. As the only native English-speaking country in the EU, Ireland took over as a key destination for many markets.

New Fund Management Companies Guidance (‘CP86’) requirements set out by the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) came into effect in October 2020, supporting the CBI’s commitment to supporting the supervisory framework for effective governance of fund management companies. Resulting in new entrants to the Irish market needing to be aware of additional regulatory guidelines. Source: Deloitte

Foreign Direct Investment

Ireland, with over a thousand fund managers from over 50 countries worldwide, has proven itself to be a stronghold for FDI investment, UCITS and AIFs, providing not only an attractive tax regime, a large talent pool for firms to choose from, but is also offering full market access to the EU.

It has a well-established and committed funds industry set up, ready to welcome new assets to the market as they become available. According to findings by IDA Ireland “a total of 18 out of 25 top financial services companies are based in Ireland.

According to Irishfunds.ie “over 75% of the assets of Irish domiciled funds are held in UCITS”, ensuring an unrivalled Irish competitiveness.

They also refer to Ireland as the largest alternative investment fund centre in the world, with more than 40% already operating from here. That makes Ireland a highly attractive option.

Referring further to Irish Funds, it can be confirmed that over 60% of the total European ETF market is based here, with the Irish domiciled ETFs representing around 62% of the overall ETF market. Sources: Irish Funds, IDA Ireland

Benefits packages

• Share options and LTIPs normally have a vesting period in place.
• A LTIP can be used by a private company to incentivise their “C” suite without having to give equity.
• An increase in paid holidays is a common way for clients to sweeten a salary package.
• Some clients give a fixed amount to their employees in addition to base salary – a flexible benefits package, which they can spend in any way they want to. This replaces all other benefits.

Your Funds & Investment Management Team

Anne Keys, Joint Manging Partner leads The Panel’s executive search in the Funds and Investment Management sector and is uniquely placed to partner with firms in hiring executives, board members and independent non-executive directors.

Anne works with a large number of the investment firms establishing a presence in Ireland following the Brexit vote and has had great success sourcing Country Heads/CEOs, PCF and DP roles for her clients.

Anne’s key differentiator is her extensive network developed over 25 years in recruitment and her technical knowledge of the roles she recruits for, in the funds and investment management space. She provides consultancy advice on the talent landscape, talent availability and is hugely knowledgeable on the sourcing requirements driven by the CBI under CP86.

Anne was instrumental in the set up and launch of 100 Women in Finance in Ireland and is Co-Chair of the steering committee in Dublin. She is driving 100WF workshops for their executive female members, advising them on how to launch their independent non-executive director careers.

Anne has been invited to speak at key industry conferences in Dublin, London and Amsterdam on “CP86 Dear Chair – Getting the plan right”, “The talent landscape in Investment Management sector in Ireland”, “ The War for Talent”, “ The benefits of an international board” and “The benefits of a diverse board”.

She also supports basis.point, the Irish Fund industry’s initiative to come together to help make a difference to those in need.

e: anne@thepanel.com

t: +35316377088

Liam Murphy, Associate Director specialises in the recruitment of roles between manager and executive level on behalf of various financial services entities including Asset Managers and Fund Management companies based in Ireland and overseas.

Areas Liam recruits for include:
Transfer Agency, Fund Accounting, Compliance, Trustee, Custody, Middle Office, Risk, Distribution, Regulatory, Depositary Data, Operational Oversight as well as other niche roles.

e: liam@thepanel.com

t: +35316377027

Finlay Barry is a Senior Manager within The Panel’s Financial Services Department. Finlay specializes in sourcing senior Risk and Compliance professionals for Ireland’s leading wholesale banking and investment management institutions.

Finlay has a proven track record of placing PCF holders into new and established firms across Ireland and the UK. Finlay works closely with Managing Partner Anne Keys and Partner Alan Bluett.

Finlay has over 6 years recruitment experience in a top Irish FS recruitment business. Prior to this he worked in investment operations for a global bank.

e: finlay@thepanel.com

t: +35316377024

Farah Daoub is a Recruitment Administrator for our Funds & Investment Management and Banking & Treasury practices.

In this role, she supports our Joint Managing Partner Anne Keys and our Banking & Treasury Partner, Alan Bluett, and is responsible for the support of both divisions, sourcing suitable candidates, interview preparations, onboarding processes, reference checking and interacting with clients on behalf of the partners.

e: farah@thepanel.com

t: +35316377000