QBE Group CEO John Neal has a shortlist of external candidates for the role of CFO.

“I have conducted some interviews in Australia and will be conducting some pre-Christmas in the northern hemisphere,” he told a briefing this morning.

Current CFO Neil Drabsch has had to delay his retirement because his intended successor, Steven Burns, has decided to leave full-time work.

Mr Drabsch planned to retire in February, but in October QBE announced he would stay until February 2015, as it began a search for his successor.

Meanwhile, head of global distribution Mike Scala has left the company, a spokesman told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

Mr Scala had been responsible for QBE’s relationships with major international brokers since July, the spokesman said.

Earlier roles with the company included responsibility for US distribution, while he has also been based in Hong Kong and Australia.

QBE Group CEO John Neal said this morning that the company’s North American operations have a new executive team.