Breakspear to step down in October
FinancialPlanning Associationchief executive Ken Breakspear will step down from the role on October 10, indicating he would not renew his contract and end his 15 years with the industry association.
FPA board chair Steve Helmich announced the move to association staff in Melbourne last Friday. He says the move was not a complete surprise given the length of time Breakspear has spent with the association and with him approaching the end of his current contract.
Head of professional standards, June Smith, will be acting chief executive until a permanent replacement is found.
His departure follows reports the FPA board met informally in Melbourne two weeks ago to discuss Breakspear’s future and express concerns over his handling of the role in recent months.
However, Helmich denies this, saying the decision to stand down at the end of the current contract rested fully with Breakspear and the board did not pressure him to make the move.
“I have been speaking with Ken since about April regarding his long-term intentions as we were all aware his contract would finish in October, and so we are not totally surprised that he is leaving,” Helmich says.
“It has not been an easy step for Ken to leave an organisation he has been involved with for 15 years and we will have to live with that decision.”
Breakspear has not indicated what his next role will be but says he has spent all of his career in commercial and financial services and would look at similar roles.
“I am 52 at present and I feel I have at least another 10 years to do something else. For some there is never a right time to leave, but for me I think this is it,” Breakspear says.
His move rounds off a turbulent first half of the year for the FPA which came under heavy scrutiny after the release of theAustralian Securities and Investments Commission(ASIC) and Australian Consumers’ Association (ACA) Quality of Advice shadow shopping survey.
This was followed by criticisms that the FPA and Breakspear had not handled the findings of the survey, or the ensuing media and consumer barrage.
However, Breakspear has no regrets about what the association has achieved in the past few years and says the agenda for a professional industry has been set.
“The report card we received earlier this year has made us think harder and provides an opportunity to leverage up, and the FPA has a clear mandate from members to lift standards,” he says.
Breakspear’s last day with the FPA will be October 3, meaning he will miss this year’s annual convention being held on October 7, at which stage Helmich says the association will be able to announce Breakspear’s successor.
In his 15 years with the group, Breakspear held the role of head of policy and professional standards before taking on the chief executive job after the departure of Michael McKenna who stepped down in June 2000, 14 months short of the end of his contract.
The FPA has engaged an executive search, Highland Partners, to find a replacement for Breakspear. Helmich says the association will consider staff already with the association, as well as external candidates.
AUTHOR
Jason Spits
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