UBS announced that Lisa Golia will take over as head of its U.S. wealth management advisers in the field on March 1, after two years serving as the business' chief operating officer. Golia, who spent more than two decades at Morgan Stanley earlier in her career, will be responsible for leadership, hiring, retention and compensation for the firm's field advisers.
Colleagues reacted positively to the promotion. "Lisa's someone who can get things done," said Ken Gunsberger, a private wealth adviser in New York. "This is going to be very good for us because she's one of us," he added, noting Golia's career trajectory from branch-level roles up through management.
Golia will report directly to Mike Camacho, UBS' head of U.S. wealth management. Camacho will reallocate his time toward strategic priorities, including accelerating efforts to build out UBS' U.S. bank - a unit that has received conditional approval from regulators - as well as coordinating business flow from other divisions and developing products tailored to wealthy clients.
Advisers emphasized the practical priorities the change may enable. "Every department is fighting for funding to do more - Lisa is helpful in trying to prioritize where the money needs to be spent," said Michael Chudd, a private wealth adviser based in Las Vegas. He highlighted technology for advisers as an example of an area where investment decisions will be important.
The appointment of Golia triggers a set of leadership moves across the wealth management organization. Under the new structure, the following changes will take effect:
- John Vander Zee will succeed Golia as chief operating officer.
- Ben Firestein, who joined UBS after more than three decades at Morgan Stanley, has been named head of national sales, field leader and financial adviser development and recruiting, reporting to Golia. His remit will include attracting, retaining and developing advisers.
- Regional directors Chris DiMuria, Julie Fox, Rick Gonzalez, Lauren Gorsche, and Jon Ramey will report to Golia under the revised structure.
- Other executives reporting to Golia will include John Mathews, head of private wealth management; Bill Carroll, head of high-net-worth strategy; and Len Golub, head of the WealthAdvice Center.
UBS framed the reorganization as a means of clarifying responsibilities for day-to-day adviser leadership while allowing Camacho to concentrate on broader strategic goals. The firm will now have a senior leader focused on field operations and adviser development, while senior management pursues initiatives tied to the U.S. banking expansion and product development for high-net-worth clients.
Note: The personnel moves described here reflect the changes announced by UBS and the internal reporting lines as stated in the firm communication.