There are three main characteristics of the Massachusetts Financial Services (MFS) anti-star system. These characteristics emphasize team performance, growing talent from within strategy, and a 360-degree subjective performance evaluation of fund managers with constant feedback. Regarding team performance, MFS built its culture to promote team play among its employees rather than focus on their individual performance. Therefore, MFS aims to develop successful teams rather than successful individual stars. This strategy lets MFS filter its potential employees easily, have an exceptional history of retaining talent, and ensure the superb long-run performance of the company.
Secondly, MFS intends to build its own talents instead of luring them into the company with more substantial compensation, as MFS does not want to compete with others in terms of individual paychecks. The company managers believe that employees attracted in such a way can later easily leave the firm for even higher compensation in a different company. Finally, one of the most significant contrasts with the rest of the industry that MFS has is the dependence of compensation on subjective evaluation of fund managers’ commitment to the organization in general.
Due to the previously mentioned features of the company, it attracts very specific employees. The MFS system prefers working with team players who understand the value of teamwork and the necessity to help and support others and lack excessive personal ambitions. Secondly, MFS potential fund managers are expected to pick culture and environment over a paycheck. While most investment firms on the market try to attract fund managers with huge compensations, MFS offers a better, supportive environment. Furthermore, due to the company’s compensation policies, its employees have more stable income inflows on average, as they can receive relatively high payments even if their funds perform poorly for some period.