The long-standing chief executive of big general insurer QBE, Frank O’Halloran, is to retire in August and will be succeeded by the chief executive of the company’s global underwriting operations, John Neal.
The changes were announced to the Australian Securities Exchange today by QBE chairman Belinda Hitchinson, who said that a six-month handover period had been initiated.
O’Halloran has been at the helm of QBE for 14 years.
Hutchinson said detailed succession planning for the group chief executive role had been underway for over two years, including a rigorous internal and external candidate review process.
She said O’Halloran had agreed to return as a non-executive director before the 2013 annual general meeting.
