Professor George Feiger, the executive dean of Aston Business School, is to join the advisory board of Staffordshire-based wealth management firm Sorbus Partners.

Mr Feiger has considerable experience within the financial services sector having held senior positions at both UBS and SBC Warburg in the US.

Before joining Aston Business School in June 2013 he was chief executive of a $3.4 billion wealth management company in the US.

Private sector roles have also included head of strategic planning at the Bank of America’s world banking division and senior partner at McKinsey and Co.

His academic roles include associate professor of finance at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business and lecturer in economics at Harvard. He has also served on the advisory board of the Berkeley Centre for Law, Business and Economics.

Steve Hollis, chairman of Sorbus Partners’ advisory board said: “To attract someone of George’s calibre is indicative of the interest Sorbus Partners is creating.

“Their model genuinely puts the interests of the client and not the firm first, stripping out unnecessary cost and providing impartial stewardship of wealth.

“Sorbus Partners has already started working with some of the UK’s wealthiest families clearly highlighting that their approach is resonating with clients and industry talent alike.”

Mr Feiger said: “The financial service industry has lost its focus and has moved away from placing the client first. As a challenger within the industry Sorbus Partners has developed a model that reverses this.

“Since its formation just two years ago they have made a considerable impact by challenging the industry’s business model, resulting in high levels of interest among some of the UK’s wealthiest.

“I’m looking forward to becoming part of the advisory board to help develop this model further.”

Sorbus Partners was founded in 2012 and was awarded the title of Best Multi-Family Office in Europe by Wealth Briefing in only its second year.

Founding partner Max Thowless-Reeves said: “Professor Feiger has a perfect combination of high level academic and commercial acumen and will further add to the high calibre of expertise of our advisory board.

“The economic environment is hard to judge and making the correct investment decisions requires experience, insight and intellectual rigour. George’s contribution will reinforce and extend our intellectual capital and will help us continue to successfully steward our clients’ wealth in what will be challenging times.”