Michael Page has announced a shake-up in the senior management of its British business following Stephen Burke’s decision to quit as UK managing director.

The professional services recruiter announced that Stephen Ingham, who is currently executive director of UK operations, will replace him.

Recruiter understands that Burke, who had been working for the firm for more than 20 years, left for personal reasons and was looking to take some time out of the industry.

The company told analysts he is not leaving to work for a competitor for the time being.

Burke would surely be an asset to many UK-based agencies. He previously had overall responsibility for all of Page’s UK operations – but operational management was split, with Burke in charge of the finance business and Ingham responsible for all other areas, such as marketing and sales.

Now Michael Page plans for the two roles to be consolidated under Ingham and said it will not appoint a new executive director for operations.

In the last financial year, Page’s UK operations made operating profits of £23.6m from a turnover of £234.8m.

Nearly two thirds of the company’s UK revenue came from its finance, city and accountancy recruitment divisions. Finance was the largest of the three businesses.

Matthew Smith, analyst at DB business services said: “This appears to be a relatively minor issue given the strength in depth at Michael Page, although given the success of the UK business over the last decade Burke’s contribution should probably not be underestimated.”