Countplus, Infocus Make Senior Appointments

0

Veteran financial services figure Barry Lambert has stood down as the chair of non-executive chair of Countplus after nearly 11 years in the role and will move into other board roles outside financial services.

Countplus Chair, Ray Kellerman
Countplus Chair, Ray Kellerman

Countplus stated that Lambert had stood down from the role, effective immediately on 27 April, and will be replaced in the role by Countplus Director, Ray Kellerman.

Lambert will remain on the board as a Director in the short term but the move is consistent with Lambert’s stated intention to stand down from the role within a year of the 2016 Countplus annual general meeting.

The change in chair follows the recent appointment of former Financial Planning Association Chair, Matthew Rowe as Countplus Chief Executive and Managing Director.

Kellerman is the owner and Executive Director of Quentin Ayers, an implemented asset advisor, and is also a director for Goodman Funds Management Australia, Foundation Life New Zealand and Ryder Capital.

 

In related news, non-aligned advice group Infocus has announced a restructure of its leadership team which includes the appointment of three new staff to senior roles within the business.

Former Heritage Bank Head of Wealth Management, Richard Herbst has been appointed to the role of General Manager Financial Advice and will be responsible for AFSL operations across the Infocus Group.

Also joining Infocus from outside the group is former BT Financial Group staffer Michael Corcoran, who has been appointed to the role of General Manager Salaried Advice. Prior to joining Infocus, Corcoran was acting General Manager for Victoria and Tasmania with direct responsibility for BT’s salaried advice team.

Infocus has also appointed Irene Watt to the role of General Manager Marketing after stints in senior in-house and agency marketing roles, including former Head of Marketing roles with Careers Australia and Foundation Group.

Infocus CEO & MD, Rod Bristow
Infocus CEO & MD, Rod Bristow

Infocus Chief Executive and Managing Director, Rod Bristow said the group has seen rapid growth in the last 12 months, some of it from the referral program with H&R Block, and the new team brought further expertise to help manage that growth.

“We are also seeing growth in our AFSL operations, as we recruit and retain experienced financial advisers providing quality financial advice for clients; and our technology business, as more advisers leverage the real-time monitoring and supervision capability and deep client engagement and advice management tools within our proprietary
software, Platformplus”, he said.