UBS promotes from within to name new advisor head

UBS has looked inward to fill a new position charged with overseeing the hiring, retention and compensation of advisors in the U.S.

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The Swiss firm announced in a memo Tuesday that it had named Lisa Golia as “head of field” for its U.S. wealth management business. She’s now chief operating officer for that division.

In her new role, which she steps into on March 1, she’ll report to Head of Global Wealth Management-U.S. Mike Camacho. According to the Tuesday memo from Rob Karofsky, president of UBS Americas and co-head of global wealth management, the shift will allow Camacho to “focus more deeply on our strategic priorities including delivering a full-service bank, developing feeder channels and enhancing our suite of differentiated solutions.”

UBS has struggled with advisor departures since it announced changes to its compensation model in 2024 aimed at improving the profit margin for its U.S. wealth management business. In an earnings call on Feb. 4, UBS reported it ended last year with 5,772 advisors in its Americas unit, which includes Latin America and Canada. That headcount was largely unchanged from the previous quarter but down 3.3% year over year.

Before joining UBS in 2023, Golia had spent more than 23 years at Morgan Stanley, eventually attaining the title of head of wealth management strategic services. Karofsky wrote in his memo that during the past two years at UBS, Golia has “worked closely with our Advisory Councils, listening to Advisors, visiting branches and executing on the most pressing priorities.”

In her new role, her direct reports will include:

the regional directors Chris DiMuria, Julie Fox, Rick Gonzalez, Lauren Gorsche and Jon Ramey;John Mathews, the head of private wealth management, and Bill Carroll, the head of high net worth strategy; Ben Firestein, whom UBS recently recruited from Morgan Stanley and who is in charge of national sales and advisor development and recruiting; andLen Golub, the head of UBS’ wealth advice center.

Golia’s successor as chief operating officer of the U.S. wealth management division will be John Vander Zee, now head of financial advisor and service platforms.