Back from the debt

John McMurdo has left his post as Hillross Financial Services managing director to take the highly contested role of chief executive of non-institutional advice group Centric.

Centric has been recruiting for a new chief since September last year when former chief Michael Pillemer departed, and will be charged with reviving the group’s growth ambitions, with the debt wobbles of 2008 now stabilised.

Centric chairman Philip Kelly said McMurdo’s experience in marketing and growing businesses was key to his appointment, in addition to his experience across Centric’s business lines of investment, insurance and lending.

Centric Wealth turned around its financial fortunes last fiscal year, posting a $10.4 million profit following a $2.6 million loss in 2007-08. The profit for the group’s consolidated entity was a profit of $5.2 million and a loss of $8.6 million over the respective periods.

Private equity firm CHAMP injected $80 million into the business early last year, allowing the group to reinvest in technology to prepare for growth, Kelly said.

Kelly said he is looking “dramatically increase” the number of the group’s representatives across all specialisations via recruitment of individuals, acquisition of practices or tuck-in acquisitions of existing firms. Kelly said the group is also open to large-scale mergers in the non-aligned dealer group space, while a medium-term ambition to list the company remains “logical”.

AMP will now conduct an internal and external search for his replacement. Ray Djani, Hillross head of growth and mergers and acquisitions, will act as managing director until a replacement for McMurdo is found.

McMurdo’s previous experience includes acting as head of AMP’s life insurance business in New Zealand, while he has also held senior roles in strategy, marketing and commercial banking with National Australia Bank and Bank of New Zealand.

For more on Centric Wealth see next Thursday's edition of Money Management.