The new COO takes over as her predecessor retires in February.

Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, part of Bank of America, has appointed Kirstin Hill as chief operating officer, adding to her existing responsibility for leading strategic performance for the business.

Hill is taking the reins from Mike Adornetto, who is retiring in February after 33 years of service at the firm. During his career, Adornetto held positions across the company with leadership roles in wealth management, consumer banking and global banking.

“Expanding her [Hill’s] leadership role across a newly combined strategic performance and operations organization will help us build on our momentum, accelerate growth and further enhance the client experience,” Andy Sieg, president of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, said. He concluded by thanking Adornetto for his “many contributions over his great career”.

Prior to her existing role, Hill led the personal retirement solutions business for Bank of America Merrill Lynch and held leadership posts in the GWIM markets business. Early in her career, she worked in the bank’s global markets division in the equity derivatives business in New York, London, Hong Kong and Australia. Hill holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and is a First Mover Fellow with the Aspen Institute.