UK - Insight Investment has fired six UK analysts – three from equities and three from the UK research team – in a restructuring effort aimed at turning around its underperformance in UK equities.

The exodus comes as part of an operation-wide restructuring effort that will place greater emphasis on smaller, more accountable fund management teams and the generation of alpha.

Stuart Eaton, who joined Insight from Newton Investment Management last year, will lead a new UK alpha team.

The revamped UK team follows the similar restructuring of European and global equity teams in 2003 and 2004.

Under the new structure, analysts will work in five “super-sectors” – resources, financials, industrials, consumer and services – for the UK, Europe and global equities. According to Sandy Black, Insight head of equities, the new structure will enable the HBOS fund management subsidiary better “to harvest high conviction likes and dislikes from our analysts”.

He said: “The principal reason for putting in place the new structure has been a period of poor performance in UK equities. We’re looking to replicate our success in European and global equities.”

Insight will not replace those fired – John Bearman, Des Brennan and Rebecca Chesworth from the UK equities desk and Jonathan Jackson, Peter McLoughlin and Kate Pettem from the research team.

Head of research Nick Anderson will continue in his current role.

In other news, Investec has appointed Bradley George as an investment analyst on its commodities team. He joins from Goldman Sachs.

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