Amvescap Plc is hoping the head of its Canadian money management division can bring his winning touch to the company's North American mutual fund operations.

The international investment management company has assigned Phil Taylor to oversee investments, sales and marketing for Amvescap's mutual fund operations in the U.S. and Canada, including the beleaguered AIM Investments, as of April 17. The promotion was disclosed by CEO Martin Flanagan in a letter sent to employees Monday, according to Bloomberg.

Taylor will be based in Houston, where AIM is headquartered. He will replace Mark Williamson, who announced his impending departure last May. Williamson will continue to serve as a consultant to the company through 2006, and will help close Amvescap's acquisition of PowerShares Capital Management LLC, a Wheaton, Illinois-based firm with over $3.5 billion in assets under management.

Aim's funds have suffered from lackluster performance, leading to 2005 net investor withdrawals second in size only to Putnam, according to data from the Financial Research Corp. Taylor has had strong results as the head of AIM Trimark Investments in Toronto, where he increased assets under management by about 30 percent in four years. Before joining Amvescap, he held positions at Investor Group Securities, Meridian Securities and Royal Trust.  

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