Auld new head of two AIG units

AIG Advisor Group, continuing to play a game of musical chairs with the executives in charge of its various broker-dealers, has replaced James Cannon with Jeffrey Auld as president and chief executive of both AIG Financial Advisors Inc. of Phoenix and American General Securities Inc. of Houston. This is the third major change in leadership since 2006 in the AIG network, which has 7,500 affiliated reps. Mr. Cannon left to pursue other interests, according to a statement from the firm. Mr. Auld officially joins AIG at the end of the month. One industry observer wondered whether Mr. Auld will focus on recruiting, which many regard as his key strength. "With AIG being a much larger firm, will he be as hands-on with recruiting" as he was with Next Financial Group Inc. of Houston, where he previously worked, asked Jonathan Henschen, president of Henschen & Associates in Marine on St. Croix, Minn. The AIG Advisor Group has recently seen significant turnover among its executives. In January 2006, Mark Goldberg left as chief executive of Royal Alliance Associates Inc. of New York, which is part of the AIG network. He was replaced by industry veteran R. Lawrence Roth, who has since risen to president and chief executive of the AIG network. Earlier this month, Boston-based LPL Financial's Mark J. Schlafly was named president and chief executive of FSC Securities Corp. and Advantage Capital Corp., both of Atlanta. He replaced Joseph B. "Joby" Gruber, who resigned from Advantage Capital and FSC in April because he allowed an underling to take continuing-education exams in his name. Mr. Roth heaped praise on the latest addition to his management team. "The advisers are excited about working with Jeff," he said. Mr. Auld left Berthel Fisher and Co. Financial Services Inc. of Marion, Iowa, in May for personal reasons. In 2006, he resigned from Next Financial, also for personal reasons, and weeks later joined Berthel Fisher. Mr. Auld oversaw tremendous growth at Next, but that growth came with a price. This month, the Securities and Exchange Commission fined the firm $125,000 for violating rules that pertain to clients' private information when Next recruited registered reps. E-mail Bruce Kelly at [email protected].