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Professional Investment Services (PIS) will appoint a new chief executive for its advice business, with co-founder and group chief executive Robbie Bennetts to take a step back from operational matters of the licensee.
Bennetts and Grahame Evans are currently the chief executive and managing director of the business respectively. Evans announced the proposed new appointment as part of a broader business briefing at the group’s annual conference in Hawaii.
PIS’ website points to Bennetts as being responsible for the overall operations of the Professional Investment Services group of companies. Bennetts, based in PIS’ head office state of Queensland, has been heavily involved in the day-to-day running of the licensee business, while Evans, who is Sydney-based, is in charge of PIS’ parent company, Professional Investment Holdings (PIH).
Bennetts, who entered the industry as a financial adviser and was one of the original founders of PIS, hinted mid-last year about the appointment of another key executive in the group. Bennetts will remain as chief executive of the group, Evans said, but with a focus on generating new strategic initiatives to develop the advice business. Evans will continue is his role as PIH managing director, responsible for the broader group’s strategy implementation.
Evans credited Bennetts with the origination of PIS subsidiary businesses All Star, Australian Loan Company, Associated Advisory Practices and Mentor. Those businesses now sit under Evans’ strategic direction, while the new chief will be responsible for operational matters at a licensee level.
Evans said the leadership restructure was still only in the early stages but that recruitment for the chief was now underway.The PIS executive leadership team, Stephen Poole, Kelly Wyman and Paul Forbes, will report to the new chief, who will be based in the Queensland head office. The three roles held by Poole, Wyman and Forbes were created last year as part of a management restructure to align the leadership team along advice, product, and licensee service delivery business lines.
The group is also looking to strengthen the board of PIH through the appointment of independent non-executive directors. Of the current non-executive directors, Ken Butler was another founder of the firm and is a practice owner, while Christopher Castles is also a practice owner with PIS. Greg Whimp was a PIS head office employee for nine years until leaving in 2006, but was re-elected as a director late last year.
