Perpetual is conducting a review of the roles in its distribution team, after the asset manager combined its Australian and global equities groups into one division.

As a result of the move, Perpetual will create a new role of group executive distribution and is currently recruiting to fill the position.

"We wanted to elevate the distribution role to group executive level and bring all our distribution capability marketing underneath that one leadership area," Perpetual  group executive equities Cathy Doyle said.

But the institutional sales team will not become part of the new executive's responsibilities, Doyle said.

"We actually left institutional sales close to the product. Because of the way you engage with clients you are very much linked to the asset managers. So that will still sit in the asset class businesses," she said.

Before the two equity groups were combined, the distribution role was part of Doyle's responsibilities as group executive Perpetual Investments business services and chief operating officer.

Until the new role is filled, Doyle continues to lead the distribution team.

"I'm still running distributions, but combined equities is going to be my permanent role," she said.

Perpetual is also considering splitting out the various distribution roles and aligning them closer with the different business segments within the company.

"In distribution, we actually want to formulate segment-based approaches," Doyle said.

"A high net worth practice group does require different things from us from a servicing point of view than one of the banking, large dealer group areas. It is about getting a bit more sophisticated around our engagement with our clients.

"We are doing that along the high net worth, large dealer group and institutional spaces. We are very well known in the larger dealer group space, we have a smaller presence in the institutional and in high net worth we've had great short-term results."

The changes in the distribution team will not lead to any significant reduction in staff numbers, Doyle said.

"There are no plans to do any headcount cut - it is about making sure we have the right capability," Doyle said.