Former Advisor Group CEO Erica McGinnis leaves the firm

Erica McGinnis, who stepped down in August as CEO of the Advisor Group, is leaving the firm. In a note sent to Advisor Group's registered reps on Wednesday, Advisor Group executive chairwoman Valerie Brown thanked Ms. McGinnis for her work. Serving as head of transitions over the past four months, Ms. McGinnis “has helped start up new business functions, worked with our real estate team to secure new office leases, and ensured a smooth transition to Advisor Group's new president and CEO,” Jamie Price, Ms. Brown wrote. “Thanks to her tireless efforts, we have successfully established ourselves as an independent, stand-alone company.” Ms. McGinnis is leaving the firm to “begin the next phase of her career,” Ms. Brown noted. Ms. McGinnis, who became CEO in 2013 after serving as chief compliance officer, did not comment on her plans for the future. “I’m thankful I’ve worked for two great organizations for the past 13 year, AIG and the Advisor Group,” Ms. McGinnis said. "Advisor Group is very grateful for the 13 years of dedicated service and leadership that Erica McGinnis provided to us," said Advisor Group spokesman Kevin Dinino. "We will miss her as a colleague and sincerely wish her all the best in the next phase of her career." Before joining the firm in 2004 as director of branch exams, Ms. McGinnis managed operations, training and compliance efforts at Charles Schwab Corp., Wells Fargo & Co. and Ameriprise Financial Inc. (More: 2015's Women to Watch interview with Erica McGinnis) It's been an eventful year for the nearly 5,000 advisers at Advisor Group. In January, AIG said it was selling Advisor Group to private-equity firm Lightyear Capital and Canadian pension investment manager PSP Investments. The sale was completed in May. Then in August, Ms. McGinnis stepped down as CEO and Mr. Price was hired three months later. The Advisor Group network consists of four broker-dealers: FSC Securities Corp., Royal Alliance Associates Inc., SagePoint Financial Inc. and Woodbury Financial Services Inc.