HESTA CEO Steps Down Following Superannuation Outage

Debby Blakey, CEO of HESTA, Australia’s 10th-largest superannuation fund, has announced her resignation later this year. This decision follows a significant superannuation fund outage that affected many members.

Details of the Superannuation Outage

HESTA recently experienced a disruption during its transition from MUFG to Grow Inc. as its administration provider. Initially expected to last for seven weeks, the outage extended for weeks and, in some instances, months. Members faced substantial difficulties, including:

• Inability to access funds for essential needs like surgery and home deposits.
• Extended wait times on phone calls for assistance.

Due to the complications from this outage, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) decided to intervene in December. The authority expressed concerns about HESTA’s risk management and governance during the transition.

Comments from APRA

Margaret Cole, deputy chair of APRA, stated, “While some disruption is unavoidable when changing service providers, APRA expects transitions to be well managed.” This sentiment highlights the importance of protecting members’ access to their accounts.

Leadership Transition

Debby Blakey has served as CEO for over a decade and has been with HESTA for 17 years. She noted that it is the right moment for her to transition into a board position. Blakey expressed gratitude for the support from the board and her colleagues during what she termed a transformative period for the organization.

Looking Ahead

The HESTA board is currently in the process of finding a successor for Blakey. They aim to announce the new CEO by July. Blakey emphasized her commitment to ensuring a smooth leadership transition.

HESTA serves more than 1 million members, predominantly in the health sector, and manages assets exceeding $100 billion. This extensive membership base underscores the importance of effective leadership in navigating challenges such as the recent outage.

The call for transparency regarding the approval of the outage has been echoed by consumer advocacy groups. The situation remains a focal point for ongoing discussions in the superannuation industry.