Bennetts to relinquish executive helm of PIS

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 the licensee’s operational matters.

Grahame Evans, the managing director of the PIS’s parent company, Professional Investment Holdings (PIH), announced the proposed new appointment as part of a broader business briefing at the group’s annual conference in Hawaii.

PIS’s website states that Bennetts is responsible for the overall operations of the PIS group of companies. Bennetts, based in PIS’s head office state of Queensland, has been heavily involved in the day-to-day running of the licensee business.

Bennetts will remain as chief executive of the group, Evans said, but with a more targeted focus on the growth and development of the advice business. Bennetts, who entered the industry as a financial adviser and was one of the original founders of the group, hinted in mid-2009 about the appointment of another key executive in the group.

Evans, who is Sydney-based, will continue in his role as PIH managing director, responsible for the group’s broader strategy.

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.

Evans said 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.