UBS has appointed John Bradley, the former global head of human resources at JP Morgan Chase and 26-year veteran of the Wall Street bank, as group head of human resources.

Mr Bradley replaces UBS’s current group head of HR, Gery Brüderlin, who will remain at the Swiss banking giant in an as yet undetermined role. Messrs Bradley and Brüderlin will work with each other through a transition period, UBS said in a statement.

"The wealth of business and HR leadership experience that John brings to our firm and adds to our HR function ensures that our HR leadership team is best equipped to deliver the highest impact, most business-oriented HR products and services to the entire firm," said Ulrich Körner, group chief operating officer and corporate centre chief executive. 

Mr Bradley, who left JP Morgan Chase early this year, became global head of HR and a member of the firm's operating committee in 2006, prior to which he had been international HR executive for EMEA/APAC and head of EMEA investment banking HR since 2003. Before the firm’s merger with Chase in 2000 he had been co-head of global HR at JP Morgan.

Heightened M&A activity and increased staff movement between firms can be expected to be running themes as an altered wealth management landscape emerges from the financial crisis. Human resources capabilities are therefore paramount to wealth managers wishing not only to attract the best talent, but also to stem staff defections, and it might be expected that other big-hitting HR appointments will be seen in the months ahead.