THE new chief executive of Brambles, Tom Gorman, has wasted little time in shaking up the management ranks after hiring a new chief financial officer.

Yesterday the warehouse pallet maker announced the appointment of Greg Hayes to replace Liz Doherty. Speculation about Ms Doherty's tenure at Brambles had grown in recent months but yesterday the company insisted she was returning to Britain for family reasons.

Mr Hayes, a 51-year-old former chief executive of the contractor Tenix, will take over on November 16. Before working for Tenix, he was chief financial officer at AGL and has had roles at Wesfarmers and Southcorp.

Mr Gorman, formerly the European boss of Brambles, officially succeeded Mike Ihlein as chief executive on November 1 after a tumultuous two years.

In October Brambles began a review aimed at turning around the performance of its US pallet business.

Further upheaval within the company's management ranks is likely over the coming months as Mr Gorman corrals his leadership team.

Although the company appointed Jim Infinger as chief information officer last month, it still has to find a replacement for Mr Gorman as head of its European business. The role has been temporarily filled by Peter Mackie, president of CHEP Europe.

Analysts have said that while Mr Gorman is likely to make further management changes, he will be aware of the high turnover in senior ranks in recent years and will want to retain some experienced hands.

Mr Hayes will join the Brambles board as an executive director on December 1.

Shares in Brambles fell 24c to a two-month low of $6.93 yesterday