Amy Webber, president of Cambridge Investment Research, has taken over as chief executive officer of the Fairfield, Iowa-based independent broker-dealer, the company said Tuesday.
Eric Schwartz, founder and the immediate past CEO, will become executive chairman of the board and will maintain an active role in the privately held firm.
Webber will continue to report to Schwartz and retain her title of president, Cambridge said. She has run day-to-day operations as president for the past decade.
The changes are part of a “purposeful transformation” at Cambridge, Schwartz said in a statement that detailed several other promotions that were effective Jan. 1.
The firm, which serves about 3,000 advisors, is No. 8 on Financial Advisor magazine’s 2016 ranking of independent broker-dealers by number of reps and revenue.
Cambridge, with a niche serving fee-based advisors, has pitched itself to recruits as a privately owned firm unbeholden to shareholders or private equity investors.
Last summer, Schwartz told Financial Advisor that the firm’s succession plan, which envisions staying private, was the top concern for a lot of the firm’s advisors.
Cambridge also said Tuesday that it had recruited a record $80 million in new production last year. The firm has averaged $58 million per year in recruited revenue since 2008.
As part of the management promotions, Kyle Selberg, head of recruiting, was given the additional title of chief business development officer.
Ryan Reineke, chief technology architect, was named chief operations and technology officer, and general counsel Seth Miller was given an expanded advocacy and supervisory role in a new position as Cambridge’s chief risk officer.