Smith starts the shuffle at ANZ

ANZ may be making plans to transfer a greater proportion of its back office work from Australia to its own service centres in India.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the bank's new chief executive, Mike Smith, plans to explain the bank's plans in a speech to business leaders in Sydney this week.

At a media briefing at the end of September Smith highlighted the capacity for banks in Australia to achieve savings and to make additional investment in technology.

Smith, now eight weeks into the job at ANZ, announced his first management shuffle on Friday.

Shane Freeman, head of what the bank used to term people capital and a member of the bank's management board will shift to India as head of ANZ's technology and operations facility in Bangalore. Freeman will report to David Cartwright, group managing director for operations technology and shared services, another recent recruit to the bank (from Barclays in Britain).

ANZ also said it hired Susie Babani from HSBC Insurance in London to replace Freeman. The bank will use a more conventional job title for Babani of group general manager human resources.

Fred Bertram, the current managing director of operations technology and shared services in India will take over as chief operating officer of ING Australia, ANZ's wealth management joint venture with ING Group.

The bank said the three management changes will be effective from early 2008.