BRISBANE Lions senior assistant Mark Harvey has left the club as a new coaching structure takes shape around recently appointed coach Justin Leppitsch.

Harvey, who has spent two seasons at the Lions, is believed to be seeking a move to Melbourne and has recently interviewed for the Essendon position made vacant by James Hird.

The 48-year-old spent eight years as an assistant at Windy Hill under Kevin Sheedy and was also senior coach at Fremantle between 2008 and 2011.

Assistant coach Adrian Fletcher is also moving on, with the Lions' new look panel to include former Hawthorn coach Peter Schwab in a newly created head of coaching and development position.

The Lions have also appointed former Western Bulldogs defender Mitch Hahn to a development coach role.

Schwab, who is currently the AFL’s director of coaching, will start his new role in November, overseeing the management of coaching staff while providing support to Leppitsch.

Lions football manager Dean Warren said Schwab’s experience and proven ability in managing high performance teams would be an enormous asset.

"Peter has a proven track record in elite sport and his past experiences as a senior coach and most recently as the AFL Director of Coaching will prove invaluable," Warren said.

"I was extremely impressed by Peter during the senior coach selection process and clearly the club made an impact on him.

"It’s a great result for the Brisbane Lions."

Schwab coached Hawthorn between 2000 and 2004 and won three premierships as a player with the Hawks during a career that spanned 12 seasons.

After stints as chairman of the AFL Match Review Panel and chief executive of AFL Victoria, he joined the AFL as director of coaching in 2010.

"It’s an absolute thrill to be back in the AFL system, in particular with the Brisbane Lions," Schwab said. ??

"I’ve always had a desire at some point to get back in the AFL system and felt this was a great opportunity with a new coach and good young team."

Hahn played 181 games for the Bulldogs between 2000 and 2011 and will return to his home state after a two-year stint as a development coach at Collingwood.

Twitter: @AFL_Nathan