Robert P. Rittereiser took another step in consolidating his control at the E. F. Hutton Group, of which he is president, with the announcement yesterday that the company had named Edward J. Lill, a prominent accountant, as chief financial officer.
Mr. Lill, partner in charge of the financial services industry group at Deloitte Haskins & Sells, follows Thomas Lynch, a former Hutton vice chairman. Mr. Lynch resigned the chief financial officer's post last September in the wake of Hutton's guilty plea to having run an illegal check overdrafting scheme.
An internal investigation of the cash management problems recommended that Mr. Lynch be replaced because he had failed to properly supervise its system. Hutton also decided to replace its general counsel, an appointment that is expected to be made soon.
Mr. Lill's appointment will strengthen the hand of Mr. Rittereiser, who joined Hutton from Merrill Lynch & Company after the check overdrafting scandal erupted last May. Mr. Rittereiser already initiated a major reorganization of the brokerage earlier this month. Mr. Lill and the new general counsel are expected to become two of his closest advisers as he further puts his personal stamp on Hutton.
Mr. Lill - and the general counsel, when named - will join the eight-member management committee that will set Hutton's policies and strategy. Mr. Lill will have responsibility for such areas as cash management, audits, financial operations, budgeting, taxes and treasury.
Mr. Lill, who is 53 years old, comes highly qualified for his post. He not only ran the financial services group at Deloitte, but he had pushed to expand the group over the last five years.
In addition, he is no stranger to working out problems with Mr. Rittereiser. As a young executive at Merrill Lynch about 15 years ago, Mr. Rittereiser was given the unenviable task of handling the severe financial problems at Goodbody & Company, an ailing brokerage that Merrill had just acquired. Deloitte was Merrill's outside auditor, and Mr. Lill was the partner asked to work on Goodbody with Mr. Rittereiser.
Mr. Lill, who is a graduate of Seton Hall University, lives in Madison, N.J. He is married, and in his spare time, races competitively with his sons in his 28-foot sloop.