Shawn Blackmore, AustralianSuper executive and its first chief retirement officer, is departing from the fund after 17 years.
According to AustralianSuper, Blackmore will leave the fund this month to establish a new venture.
He joined AustralianSuper in 2007, initially taking on various operations roles before becoming group executive of member experience and advice in 2013. Blackmore later transitioned to the inaugural role of chief retirement officer in late 2022.
Chief executive Paul Schroder thanked him for his 17 years of service.
“Shawn has been a driving force for a wide range of innovations across the fund and has always maintained a members-first approach in his various roles,” Schroder said.
“As group executive, member experience, Shawn saw a radical overhaul of the fund’s approach to engaging with members and was instrumental in delivering key digital tools such as the fund’s app, which was accessed by a million members alone last financial year.”
The CEO added that Blackmore’s dedication came to the fore during the COVID-19 pandemic when members sought to access early release of the funds.
“During that time Shawn worked tirelessly to ensure we fulfilled our obligations to members in a very stressful time for them and the fund, when thousands of transactions were completed in line with the government requirements.”
Most recently serving as chief retirement officer, Schroder’s added that Blackmore “transformed the way the fund and the broader superannuation sector viewed its role in relation to retirement”.
“Through his role at AustralianSuper and via various industry events and engagements Shawn has changed the way people view the retirement landscape in Australia.”
“Because of his deep experience and knowledge of the sector and its members, he has set a path for the fund where we have a much greater understanding of how retirement is different and deeply personal for each member.
“Shawn’s contributions to AustralianSuper will be long-lasting and I want to thank him on behalf
of members and the board for all the work he has done over the past 17 years,” Schroder concluded.
Earlier this year, Yellow Folder Research’s Executive Index found that Blackmore was among the top 25 highest-paid industry superannuation executives dated to the year 30 June 2023.
In fact, the executives to appear among the top 25 who did not hold a CEO or CIO role were primarily from AustralianSuper. This included chief operating officer Peter Curtis ($1.04 million); chief member officer Rose Kerlin ($840,000); chief risk officer Andrew Mantello ($820,000); and Blackmore ($780,000).
The fund’s chief investment officer (CIO) and deputy CEO, Mark Delaney, topped the list, and was the only executive to cross the $2 million mark.
