ANZ Wealth has announced a key restructure of its advice and distribution businesses.
ANZ’s new General Manager, Advice and Distribution, Paul Barrett, announced the changes to ANZ Wealth and OnePath staff last week, telling them the new model is about ensuring the business has the right leadership to deliver on its strategic priorities.
The new structure merges the OnePath and ANZ Wealth advice and distribution businesses, which were previously run as two separate operations. Mr Barrett now has seven direct reports, including a Head of Distribution Business Transformation, a role which he says is designed to help the business manage the challenges arising from the Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) reforms.
“FoFA represents the most significant set of reforms the financial services industry has ever faced,” Mr Barrett told riskinfo this week.
“Whether it be our IFA customers, or our aligned groups, everyone’s facing the same challenges.”
Mr Barrett said the creation of the Head of Distribution Business Transformation role was an acknowledgement of the scope and complexity of the reforms.
“You need to have a dedicated focus (on the reforms) at an executive level,” he said. “Not everyone has the luxury of being able to think through all the issues all the time. I wanted someone on the executive committee to help the leadership team debate and discuss the issues; someone whose job is to focus solely on the reforms.”
While this role has yet to be filled, Mr Barrett has already made two appointments within the new structure.
- Steve Cullen has been appointed to the role of Head of Advice Development
- Jaimie Sach has been appointed Head of Business Management
Both roles were filled by internal candidates and are effective immediately.
“I want to attract really good people, both internal and external, so we’ve created roles with large scope and scale, and the mandate is there for people to run the business the way they want,” Mr Barrett said.
We can replicate the strengths of the life insurance model across all our products and streams
He added that he was also keen to leverage the strength of the group’s life insurance offering. “The organisation really does have its act together in that regard. It backs up the product offering very well, whether that be through sales and marketing, or right through to administration,” he said.
“The unique thing is that the structure within ANZ Wealth is end to end… so we’re in a position where we can replicate the strengths of the life insurance model across all our products and streams.”
“The atmosphere internally is one of excitement,” Mr Barrett said. “For the first time, ANZ owns the entire wealth management value chain. So while there are changes to be made in the investment and superannuation areas, they are definitely achievable.”
