Taking over as chief executive is never an easy task. It is even harder when the business is as large as Deutsche Bank’s UK operations.

However, James Whittaker had time to prepare. When he began interviewing at Deutsche Bank for his original role – head of UK coverage – Michael Morley, the then chief executive, “made it very clear he was hiring his successor”.

As a result, he had a longer period to prepare and fully understand all the workings of the business than m...