By: Zoie Teytelbaum, Managing Director, HR & Talent Acquisition
For many asset management firms in the New York Tri-State area, growth happens faster than infrastructure. Headcount creeps from 40 to 75 to 120, and suddenly the “scrappy” approach to HR—spread across finance, operations, and whoever has the most bandwidth—starts to crack.
If you’re a COO or CFO at a firm with ~150 employees or fewer, this probably feels familiar. You didn’t set out to run HR. Yet you’re approving comp changes, navigating compliance questions, managing performance issues, overseeing benefits, and worrying (quietly) about what might be slipping through the cracks.
The good news: you don’t need a large HR department to scale responsibly. You need the right HR structure. One that’s lean, senior where it counts, and built to support growth without distracting leadership from core responsibilities.
The hidden cost of “scraping by” on HR
In early stages, handling HR internally feels efficient. It avoids new headcount, keeps decisions centralized, and generally works…until it doesn’t.
What we tend to see in smaller asset management firms is not catastrophic failure, but cumulative drag:
- Leadership time pulled into employee relations and admin work
- Inconsistent hiring processes that slow growth or introduce risk
- Reactive compensation and performance decisions instead of strategic ones
- Compliance anxiety without clear ownership
- Culture and retention issues that surface after key talent leaves
None of this shows up neatly on a P&L, but it absolutely impacts performance, scalability, and risk exposure.
What a lean-but-mighty HR team actually looks like
A common misconception is that building HR means building volume. In reality, effective HR at this stage is about leverage.
Here’s what we’ve seen work best for firms under ~150 employees:
1. Start with senior, strategic HR leadership (not junior support)
Instead of hiring a junior HR generalist and hoping they grow into the role, many firms benefit from experienced HR leadership early, which could be either full-time or fractional.
This person:
- Designs the HR foundation (policies, comp frameworks, performance cycles)
- Advises leadership on people decisions with real business context
- Anticipates issues instead of reacting to them
- Acts as a true partner to finance and operations
Senior HR leadership creates clarity, reduces risk, and saves leadership time almost immediately.
2. Pair strategy with lightweight execution support
Once direction and structure are set, execution can be lean:
- A junior HR coordinator or office manager handling admin
- External partners for payroll, benefits, and compliance
- Recruiting partners who understand asset management nuances
This avoids over-hiring internally while ensuring the work actually gets done.
3. Build for today and the next stage of growth
The best HR leaders don’t just solve current problems, they build systems that scale:
- Clear role definitions and leveling frameworks
- Consistent hiring and onboarding processes
- Compensation philosophy aligned with firm economics
- Performance management that supports accountability, not bureaucracy
This allows you to grow from 80 → 120 → 200 employees without rebuilding from scratch.
How this frees up your C-suite
A well-structured HR function gives leadership something invaluable: focus.
For COOs, it means fewer operational distractions and smoother execution as teams expand.
For CFOs, it means:
- More predictable compensation and headcount planning
- Reduced compliance and employment risk
- Better data for workforce decisions
- Fewer “surprise” people issues impacting the business
In short, HR becomes an enabler of scale rather than another operational burden.
HR is a growth investment, not an overhead cost
Smaller asset management firms often delay building HR because it feels like overhead. In practice, the absence of intentional HR structure is what becomes expensive through lost time, missed hires, turnover, and risk.
A lean but mighty HR team doesn’t mean doing more. It means doing the right things, at the right level, at the right time.
If you’re at the point where HR responsibilities are pulling leadership away from running the business, it’s likely time to rethink the structure.
At Landing Point, we work closely with COOs and CFOs in asset management to help them thoughtfully build HR functions that support growth without unnecessary complexity. The goal is always the same: clarity, leverage, and trust—so leadership can stay focused on what matters most.
About Zoie Teytelbaum
Zoie Teytelbaum is a Managing Director at Landing Point, leading HR & Talent Acquisition executive search across the Tri-State area and Florida. With a background in sales and a sharp focus on operational and human capital leadership, she oversees searches for chief administrative officers, heads of human resources, and senior executive assistants within asset management, private equity, hedge fund, and family office platforms.
Zoie regularly advises clients on hiring trends, compensation benchmarking, and candidate experience strategy, often mentoring fund leaders who are launching or scaling new teams. As someone integral to the growth of Landing Point, she also spearheads initiatives to elevate internal collaboration and technology adoption. A Florida native and University of Florida graduate, Zoie loves stand-up comedy, exploring coastal cities, and discovering new restaurants with her husband.