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Former Allied Farmers general manager Paul Macfie has returned after five years to the listed rural services and finance company as group chief executive.
Chairman John Loughlin said he was delighted Macfie had rejoined the company.
"He is an experienced and talented manager with a great track record in our sector," Loughlin said.
Macfie had more than 30 years' experience in the industry, including senior roles at Williams & Kettle, SouthFert, and Wrightson NMA.
"I think he's much more than a safe choice.
"He's a very, very talented individual who's capable of doing very positive things very quickly," Loughlin said.
For the past 18 months, Macfie has worked for NZX sharebroker McDouall Stuart, focusing on investment banking transactions with a rural emphasis.
"I've certainly learned a lot in the last 18 months," Macfie said.
"My knowledge in terms of the process of capital raising, whether it be to private equity or public listing, has obviously grown."
The global financial turmoil and slide to recession would affect the rural sector and was already having an impact on real estate, with a lot of deals falling over that would normally be funded, Macfie said.
"All I know is that we're in for a difficult time, has to, you don't get the amount of worth written off the world sharemarket and property values to the extent that they are without having some impact on spending and therefore the activity," he said.
"I think we're in for a quite a tough time in the next 12 to 18 months."
There might be a bit more pressure in terms of farmer spending, particularly in the dairy scene, which would affect the rural servicing industry, he said.
However, agriculture would be more resilient than other areas and there would be other opportunities for growth.
Macfie takes up his role today, and said his first task was to re-establish himself with the rural team.
The dairy boom helped Allied Farmers to post a $2.4 million net profit in the year ending June 30, compared with a $2.8 million loss the previous year.
Exiting group chief executive David Bale resigned last month after two years of what the company said was always envisaged as a two-to-three-year appointment.
Allied Farmers shares yesterday remained steady at $1.10.
