Irish Nationwide Building Society chief executive Mr Michael Fingleton has no plans to step down in the near term despite the appointment of Mr Maurice Harte as chief general manager and a director of the building society.

A spokesman for Irish Nationwide said the appointment of Mr Harte, chief executive of property group Treasury Holdings, represented a strengthening of the society's management team.

Mr Harte will become the third executive director of Irish Nationwide, joining Mr Fingleton and finance director Mr Stan Purcell on the board. The society has three non-executive directors: chairman Mr Peter O'Connor, Mr Thomas O'Donnell and Mr Michael Walsh.

Irish Nationwide is one of only two remaining mutual building societies, and Mr Fingleton has been a long-time advocate of changes in building society legislation. The society reviewed its mutual status last year, but this review - which could have backed a stock market flotation - was abandoned after the downturn in financial shares. Mr Fingleton has also advocated changes which would allow Irish Nationwide link with a European bank with no Irish involvement. Mr Harte joins Irish Nationwide after 18 months as chief executive of Treasury Holdings, the property company run by Mr Johnny Ronan and Mr Richard Barrett.

As chief executive, he was instrumental in several Treasury projects, including the abortive bid to buy the Millennium Dome in London, the launch of the Real Estate Opportunities split capital investment fund and the Spencer Dock project in Dublin's docklands. A Treasury spokesman said construction of the Spencer Dock project was expected to get under way next year under a "fast-track" planning application that will be submitted by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority.

He added that Dublin architects Scott Tallon Walker were well advanced on plans for the project, for which accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers are the expected tenants for the first block.

These new plans do not involve the National Conference Centre, designed by Irish-American architect Mr Kevin Roche. Whether this aspect of the Spencer Dock project goes ahead will depend on "who pays for it", according to the Treasury spokesman.

Commenting on his departure, Mr Harte said: "My brief was to build a strong management team at Treasury Holdings and to position the group to take advantage of new and exciting opportunities in the future. I am leaving the company with a top-class team of professionals in place and with a sound financial structure."