Mortgage Choice appoints new CEO

December 23, 2014

Mortgage Choice has today announced the appointment of John Flavell as Chief Executive Officer.

Mr Flavell, who is set to join the company on 7 April 2015, comes from National Australia Bank's MLC where he is the executive general manager, wealth advice.                       

Speaking about Mr Flavell's appointment, Mortgage Choice's Chairman Peter Ritchie said he was delighted to welcome a man of such high esteem to the company.

“It gives me great pleasure to announce the appointment of John Flavell as the chief executive officer of Mortgage Choice,” he said.

“Armed with more than 20 years experience in executive leadership positions and 15 years in financial services, John is set to bring a wealth of experience to the role.

“More specifically, John has significant management experience in the mortgage industry, having held the position of National Australia Bank's general manager third party distribution for five years until 2013.

“In addition, John held senior roles at Aussie Home Loans where he was part of the executive team responsible for the successful transition of the business into mortgage broking. Further, John was the general manager for RAMS Home Loans' southern half of the country, during which time he managed to drive brand awareness and provide the non-bank lender with a significant place in the market.

“John's broad financial services experience incorporating lending, broking, third party distribution and wealth management, means he is ideally placed to lead Mortgage Choice to continued success.

“The Board is confident that John's background combined with his experience developing and managing businesses and people will help Mortgage Choice to deliver a strong performance across its existing operations as well as its emerging businesses.”

Commenting on his appointment, Mr Flavell said he could not be more pleased to be joining such a robust and successful company that is committed to helping all Australians live a rich life.

“22 years ago, Mortgage Choice changed the way lending is done, by delivering an incredibly valuable home loan service to hundreds of thousands of Australian families,” he said.

“Today, Mortgage Choice is more than just a mortgage broker, with the group now offering a broader range of financial services to all Australians.

“With the growth and success of the company, Mortgage Choice has created the opportunity for hundreds of franchisees to build prosperous and vibrant businesses. This has created thousands of jobs across the country over the same period.

“I have been very fortunate to have worked closely with a large number of the franchisees and employees of the Mortgage Choice network over the last eight years and, during that time, I have seen firsthand just how passionate, capable and driven these people are.

“I cannot think of any other group in the industry that is as professional or dedicated to delivering value to their customers.

“Mortgage Choice's current chief executive officer Michael Russell has created a wonderful culture. He has got the business delivering great outcomes and importantly, he has positioned the business for continued success in the future.

“I have the utmost respect for Michael and I could not ask to take on the business in any better shape.”

Mr Flavell said he was looking forward to working alongside the Mortgage Choice executive team, Board, and Chairman Peter Ritchie to ensure the company continues to go from strength to strength.

“While I cannot wait to start in my new role, I am going to take a break for a little while to spend some time with my three daughters. I will then come back fresh in April and ready to work closely with Michael and the executive team on accelerating the business for further success in 2015 and beyond.” 

Michael Russell, who was responsible for successfully transitioning the business into a fully fledged financial services powerhouse, will work alongside John Flavell in a transition phase and then depart the business at the end of the 2014/15 Financial Year.