What has three years in Asia taught you about the Asia region and Australia’s place in it?
My time in Hong Kong and my involvement with 11 different Asian countries has given me a greater cultural understanding of the region and how deals are done in each market. In Asia, our clients are growing more sophisticated and as a firm we are adapting to serve these complex and international themes. I now appreciate the high quality of a lot of Asian corporates and how much substance there is to their businesses. This is something I probably underestimated in the past. I also gained an invaluable insight into the regulatory constraints in each market and how to work within these rules. Internally, my relationships with senior Merrill Lynch management regionally and globally are much stronger. That will help me develop closer ties between the Australian franchise and the rest of the Merrill Lynch global footprint.

When you left Sydney you were co-country manager with Kevin Skelton. Skelton is now focusing solely on client relationships within Australia’s financial institutions sector. Why the organisational restructure?
Up until now the country manager role wasn’t a CEO role. This new CEO position gives me the mandate to bring all of our businesses together under a common platform. And it gives me the ability to boost resources from a more strategic point of view. Up until now, the firm was product driven with Geoff Brunsdon running our Australian investment banking business, Dan Ritchie running equities, Vicki Binns in research and Tom Alexy running the wealth management side. Kevin wanted to be more focused on dealing face-to-face with clients and we decided that the country manager title had run its course. The change in the organisational structure is really a statement about how important Australia is in our plans and an endorsement by the firm that we can take the business to the next level.

How will you interact with other business heads in the region?
Cross-border opportunities in and out of Australia are going to increase. We want to be a part of that and this new role will facilitate better streamlining of management decision making, resource allocation and overall strategy. I have a direct reporting line into and personal relationships with senior management in the region. I remain on the Asia Pacific region executive committee, meaning I have access to top management on a regular basis. This will benefit the business in Australia.