Financial Services Institute of Australia chief executive Russell Thomas has left the troubled organisation, which has been struggling to build membership and turn around a string of losses in recent years.On January 22 Finsia president David Gall wrote to members advising them that Thomas "by mutual agreement has resigned to pursue a long-held interest in further study and working overseas."Thomas had spent 13 years at Finsia, five as CEO.Jane Endacott, who joined Finsia last year in the role of executive general manager, commercial and capability, is the acting CEO. Endacott came to Finsia from the Australian Institute of Management, where she held an executive position.Finsia's 2014 annual report (its most recent) shows that its revenue was A$4.5 million and its expenses from operating activities were $8.3 million. It lost $2.6 million - not the biggest loss it has suffered in recent years.The organisation's biggest source of revenue is membership fees, which fell by around nine per cent in 2014 and by about the same amount in 2013. Membership fee revenue dropped from $4.6 million in 2012 to $3.8 million in 2014.Last year Thomas conceded that Finsia had an ageing membership and needed to attract younger members.To that end it launched a new member "portal" in May last year, designed to deliver its services in a social media environment that would appeal to a younger demographic. In concept, the portal is a bit like a private LinkedIn, where Finsia members load their career details, track their professional development, arrange mentoring, collaborate with their peers, keep up to date with industry events, network and gain access to a whole lot of information about career development and industry trends.At the time of the launch, Thomas said the portal would give members the benefits of a social media environment, as well as the benefits that a professional association could provide, such as career validation. It was also designed to encourage greater participation.Part of the plan was to commercialise the portal - opening it to advertisers and recruiters.According to a source, the portal has not met its goals, either in terms of member engagement or commercial outcomes.A Finsia spokesperson would not comment on the progress of the portal.Ever since it sold its training business to Kaplan in 2007, Finsia's critics have said it was an organisation looking for a purpose. Now it will be up to someone else to try and define that purpose.