ANZ names Alexis George deputy CEO

Speaking to bluenotes on video, Elliott said the bank had a broader range of stakeholders to deal with than ever before and the deputy CEO position – no longer that common in the corporate world - was a “really valuable” role George was well suited to.

"Being able to talk to somebody who comes at it from a different angle is incredibly valuable in these kinds of roles.” – Elliott

George will maintain her position leading the Australian wealth business, including the divestment of the superannuation, insurance and aligned dealer group businesses.

“Being able to talk to somebody who comes at it from a different angle is incredibly valuable in these kinds of roles,” Elliott said, adding George is “broadly-experienced, thoughtful [and has] lots of empathy.”

“[She] brings, frankly, a different perspective and has a different background than I do.”  

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As part of the role, George – who joined ANZ in 2013 - will take control of ANZ’s group service centres and assist Elliott with government, regulatory and employee engagement.

The appointment comes after incumbent ANZ deputy CEO Graham Hodges announced plans to step down after 27 years with the bank.

George will take the new responsibilities in addition to her current role as group Group Executive Wealth Australia and will also manage wealth partnerships following the divestment of the wealth businesses.

Elliott said the bank remained committed to offering wealth solutions because it was “important to our customers”.  

“Wealth is [George’s] number-one priority but obviously there is a little bit of a horizon to that because in years’ time… we’ll have a different business,” he said.

ANZ has also announced the appointment of Mark Hand, currently Managing Director Business and Private Banking, as Group Executive, Australian Business & Private Banking.

Elliott said the move reflected the importance of small business to the bank’s strategy, which aims to position ANZ as “the best bank for people who want to start, run and grow a small business”.

“When we looked around our [executive team], we didn’t really have a voice for that,” he said. “We want to have that voice back on our table.”

Andrew Cornell is manging editor at bluenotes