ResMed

He's been at ResMed for 12 years, after a career in management consultancy and in biotechnology, and oversaw sales growth in the Americas of 30% over almost two years in charge of that region. So there's no reason to suppose any nepotism in the appointment of Mick Farrell to replace his father, Peter Farrell, as chief exective of the company.

So much so, that it only got a brief mention in the press release, and that's fair enough. The company should put Mick forward as his own man. We just give the relationship higher billing as it's a natural question to ask. As well as his previous roles at ResMed and in consulting, Mick Farrell has a first-class engineering degree from the University of New South Wales.

More than anything, we're delighted to see an internal appointment – of an engineer – to the role. The same can be said of 11-year ResMed veteran Rob Douglas, who will become president and chief operating officer. Douglas joined ResMed in marketing, but has since been chief of global supply operations and chief operating officer of the Asia-Pacific region. He also has a first-class degree from the University of New South Wales, except that it was in electrical engineering rather than plain engineering.

The changes will take effect from 1 March and Peter Farrell will stay on until the end of the year as executive chairman, to help with the transition, at which point he will become non-executive chairman.

The stock is up slightly since 31 Jan 13 (Long Term Buy – $4.15). LONG TERM BUY.

Note: Our Growth and Income portfolios own shares in ResMed.