Infocus appoints Creswell to lead standards

Binaya Dahal

Editorial Intern, Financial Newswire

11 March 2026

Integrated financial advice and wealth platform, Infocus, has appointed Phil Creswell as its Head of Professional Standards, tasking the industry veteran with strengthening adviser oversight, governance, and practice support across the network.

Creswell joins the firm from Count Limited, where he held a similar portfolio, and was responsible for governance, risk and compliance oversight across multiple Australian Financial Services Licences.

Prior to Count Limited, he spent 16 years at IOOF Limited, (Insignia Financial), leading the national compliance and adviser oversight functions. In that role, Creswell monitored more than 700 financial planners and oversaw audit, risk and remediation programs across the advice network.

Founder and Managing Director of Infocus, Darren Steinhardt, said Creswell’s perspective and leadership will be valuable to support advisers across the firm’s community.

“Infocus exists to support advisers in running high-quality businesses so they can focus on delivering the best outcomes for their clients,” Steinhardt said.

“Strong governance and oversight are fundamental to that. Phil’s deep experience across compliance, risk and adviser supervision will further strengthen the guidance and support we provide across the Infocus community.”

Creswell officially commenced the role on March 2, and will work alongside Head of Risk and Compliance, Annika Coutts.

Commenting on his new role, Creswell, said he was looking forward to working with the team and getting to know advisers across the expanded network.

“The advice sector has been through significant change over the past decade, and advisers are operating in a far more complex regulatory environment than they once were. Getting the balance right between clear governance expectations and practical support for advisers is really important,” he said.

“What appealed to me about Infocus is the focus on helping advisers run strong, well-governed businesses while maintaining high standards of advice. That combination of oversight and genuine adviser support is critical for the long-term health of the profession.”