Chief operating officer will focus on consultancy work and non-executive board positions

AXA’s commercial lines and personal intermediary chief operating officer Max Carruthers will move into semi-retirement by the end of 2013.

His role will be discontinued, with responsibilities to be taken on by operations director Jon Mitchell and IT director Ross Burns.

Carruthers, who was responsible for overhauling the operations and IT functions to support delivery of the business strategy, will concentrate on consultancy work and non-executive board positions.

Chief executive Amanda Blanc said: “Max has made a huge impact in the time he has worked at AXA and has been instrumental in our transformation of the business, and although this move was always part of the plan, I will be sad to see him go.

“This has been planned for some time and I have every confidence that Max’s successors, Jon and Ross, will continue to build upon the great work Max has done to date.”

Carruthers said: “It has been a fantastic and demanding couple of years and I have been delighted to be part of the team that has transformed the business into a leading force in the market.

“It has been a brilliant way to finish off my employment career.  I am now looking forward to stepping back a little while still providing strategic input to the industry.”