Hellaby MD, John Williamson, will step down at the company’s annual meeting in October.

Hellaby chairman, Steve Smith, said that while the board will be sad to lose Williamson, the company is in good shape to transition through new leadership.

“The board is fully committed to Hellaby’s growth strategy, and we’ll be starting the search immediately to find a new leader to steer the company through its next growth phase. We also have an excellent management team and capable divisional leaders who will continue to drive the company while we move from one chief executive to another,” said Smith.

“John will be leaving the company in very good shape. It has a clear strategic framework with robust investment criteria and processes. Hellaby is now a different company to the one John inherited, and that good work will continue.”

Smith said that the company will continue to actively pursue growth opportunities and was confident of announcing some new initiatives in coming months.

Williamson said that after eight years at the helm, the time is right to seek new business challenges and opportunities.

“Since I started in 2007, the company has undergone a significant turnaround and we’ve put in place a strong growth strategy. In the past five years our profits have more than doubled, and in our two most recent profit announcements we posted record operating earnings. I have recently started to consider what the next challenge might be for me personally, and I believe now is a good time for a managed handover to a new leader,” Williamson said.