Category Archives: Appointments

Appointments, Marketing, PR and SEO, News

Digital Natives Announces Pete Sanna as Creative Director

Social-first creative agency Digital Natives have appointed Pete Sanna as creative director following a year of sustained growth.

Pete joins from Iris, where he spent the last six and a half years as Associate Creative Director, leading social as part of a number of integrated campaigns for global brands including Shell, Samsung, Sane and Philips lighting.

“We’re really excited to have Pete join our team at this critical stage in our journey” says managing director Alistair Fitch. “He has a wealth of experience from large integrated accounts and blue chip clients which will be invaluable as we grow.”

On his new role, Pete says: “I was attracted to Digital Natives’ ethos and approach to work and their impressive client roster. They have a super talented and multi-disciplined team, who are all hungry, humble and above all, lovely people. I’m looking forward to continuing to create bold and effective work that demands attention.”

Accounts and Accountancy, Appointments, News

Dual Promotion For South Wales as Sarah Case and James Dobson are promoted to Office Managing Partner of Azets, South Wales

Sarah Case and James Dobson are promoted to Office Managing Partner of South Wales offices at Azets

Azets, the UK’s largest regional accountancy and business advisors to SMEs, has promoted two experienced business advisors to the roles of Office Managing Partner. Sarah Case, will lead the Cardiff and Monmouth offices, whilst James Dobson will head up the Swansea office. Both promotions are notable for the firm, supporting continued profitable growth for clients, and a commitment to delivering the best possible services to the regional area.

Ian Thomas, Regional Managing Partner at Azets, said: “The promotions for both Sarah and James are well deserved. They both bring energy to their roles, and ensure that the dedicated support to our clients and staff continues to be of the upmost importance.

These appointments highlight what an exciting time it is for Azets in South Wales, with Sarah leading the team in the East and James in the West. Our continued growth across the region provides more opportunities for our team, and we look forward to supporting clients old and new in the near future.”

Sarah is a practising Chartered Accountant and  one of the first Chartered Accountants in Wales to hold the ICAEW Diploma in Charity Accounting (DChA). Sarah was awarded for the highest level of expertise in charity finance and governance. Her commitment, and the work with her team is reflected by exceptional results in an annual charity audit survey for the service and expertise they provide. Sarah also focuses on business advice for a range of SME’s.

James Dobson is located at the Swansea office and holds an extensive portfolio, including entrepreneurial private clients and listed entities. Before joining Azets in 2014, James worked for PwC in a number of senior management positions over his 12 years of service.  He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2003 and became a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales in 2013. With extensive experience across numerous sectors, his work with owner-managed businesses, and senior management experience is significant for Azets, to develop and deliver at a maintained high quality.

In their roles, both Sarah and James will lead the teams in the South Wales region to promote the growth of Azets, and to support clients and colleagues in the process.

Appointments, Marketing, PR and SEO

Birmingham PR Consultancy CEO Elected President of National Body for Public Relations Professionals

Founder and CEO of Birmingham based PR, social media, content and digital agency spottydog communications, Rachel Roberts, has been elected as President of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR), the leading industry body for public relations professionals in the UK.  Rachel was appointed after gaining 56% share of the vote from CIPR members and will initially serve as President-Elect in 2021, prior to President in 2022.

Rachel’s role serving the CIPR and the PR industry at a national level builds on the volunteering undertaken over the last seven years to champion the PR industry within the Midlands business and professional community. This has included serving as CIPR Midlands Chair and Vice-Chair, as well as establishing the Midlands PR Conference in collaboration with PRCA Midlands Chair Bron Eames.

Commenting on stepping into the role now as President-Elect Rachel said: “At a time when organisations and employees are facing an uncertain future, our professional bodies have never been more important. For organisations, I’m committed to supporting the work the CIPR does to showcase the role of PR as a strategic discipline to harness the power of effective communications. For PR professionals, recognition that the value professionally qualified consultants contribute to an organisation, as well as providing support to boost employability and job prospects is essential.”

Rachel will serve a three-year term of office on the CIPR Board of Directors until December 2023. In her first year she will serve first as President-Elect, supporting the 2021 President, Amanda Pearse Chart, before assuming the Presidency for a year in 2022. In her final year Rachel will act a Past President, once again taking a supporting role. Despite this commitment to the CIPR, Rachel will also continue at the helm heading up Birmingham-based consultancy spottydog communications as CEO.

“In the current climate running a business is challenging, so I understand the pressures that those working in our sector are facing. When organisations are facing change, effective communications is critical to explain to all audiences – the public, customers, employees, supply chain and wider stakeholders – what the future looks like. It’s critical both in my role on behalf of the CIPR and as part of the communications consultancy we provide to clients at spottydog communications that we can explain how strategic communications can fuel the future for organisations grappling with the impact of COVID-19.” Rachel comments.

Supporting the next generation of talent also featured within the manifesto Rachel presented to CIPR voting members as part of the election process. “At spottydog one of our key values is offering best of breed communications, delivered by great people, and I firmly believe in that,” said Rachel. “We’ve always invested in the great talent the region has to offer and we’re proud to support particularly young people taking their first career steps, helping grow and develop that talent into confident practitioners.

“We’ve had great success in running our virtual Spotlight and Open House Events. These give students and those looking to break into the industry a great insight to what goes on at an award-winning agency and gives them a great opportunity to build useful connections.”

Appointments, Healthcare Tech, News

C2-Ai appoints top healthcare and pharma experts Bewick, Porkess and Bonnette

Mike Bewick, England’s former deputy medical director, international healthcare advisor Dr Jim Bonnette, and Dr Sheuli Porkess, the former director of research, medical and innovation at ABPI, join the advisory board at clinical data analytics provider C2-Ai.

Three high profile individuals in healthcare and pharmaceuticals have joined the advisory board of health technology provider C2-Ai.

Professor Mike Bewick, England’s former national deputy medical director, Dr Jim Bonnette, an international healthcare advisor, and Dr Sheuli Porkess, former director of research, medical and innovation at the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, have each joined the company to provide strategic advice and to help expand the applicability and reach of C2-Ai’s technologies.

The Cambridge-based company currently works with healthcare providers in 11 countries – including 12 NHS trusts in the UK – where its AI-backed care quality improvement tools have helped hospitals make significant advances in efficiency and patient safety.

Healthcare organisations apply these AI tools to help clinicians make important decisions about patients in their care, and to uncover and address urgent organisational priorities.

Professor Bewick held a wide range of senior regional and national roles in the NHS, including leading work in the 2013 Keogh Review into patient safety, before moving into posts in academia and industry. He said: “Even now, there are healthcare organisations that simply do not look at data effectively and are not equipped to look at the declining status of patients under their care.

“There is a job to be done to get everybody up to the highest standard in acute care that is already in place. That would result in a big change in mortality variation and help to see very few outliers. C2-Ai provides mature systems that could help many hospitals address issues around mortality and patient safety. Its models are exceptionally well received.”

Dr Bonnette joins C2-Ai following an extensive career across the spectrum of the US healthcare system. He now advises governments throughout the world and holds posts with US healthcare ecosystem, Optum, venture capital firm, Health Catalyst Capital Management, and other healthcare data science organisations. Commenting on his new appointment at C2-Ai, he said: “A transparent overview of how a hospital works is what physicians want, so that you can improve. This is the right thing to do, but as a provider, there still aren’t enough systems to help you to know what the right thing to do is.

“C2-Ai can make this transparent so you can see where the issues are and act on the first indicators. These issues are the same throughout the world – with many hidden issues in areas ranging from Covid through to maternity. I’ve seen C2-Ai in practice over many years, and if more hospitals used this technology then these issues wouldn’t be hidden. What you can see, you can fix, meaning fewer people will suffer.”

Dr Porkess will work with C2-Ai to expand its relevance to the pharmaceutical sector. She began her career in the NHS, and held numerous national and international medical leadership roles in companies, including at the ABPI. Dr Porkess is a director of Actaros, a medical affairs consultancy, and chair of policy and communications at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine in the UK. She said: “There is a big opportunity to apply data to help to make better medicines for the future.

“I look forward to working with C2-Ai to using data in ways that could enhance medicines development and help to safely speed up processes by allowing pharmaceutical companies to ‘fail fast’ and focus their resources by working out at an early stage if new medicines are likely to be effective or otherwise. Some of the big questions revolve around making sure that medicines being developed will be meaningful to patients and will make a positive difference to their lives. And we need to understand how medicines can be more effective for groups where insights may currently be lacking. Effective use of data can play an important role in finding answers.”

Healthcare organisations have reported significant gains after using C2-Ai’s technology, including early detection, prevention and reductions in avoidable harm and unwarranted variation, reduced length of stay and re-admissions, and alleviated demand on critical care.

Commenting on the appointments, Richard Jones, president at C2-Ai, said: “We have been working with healthcare organisations for years to help them measure the things that are often difficult to understand, so they can identify how to improve care. Professor Bewick, Dr Bonnette and Dr Porkess will play vital roles in helping us to apply our technology to new and emerging challenges faced in healthcare, life sciences and pharmaceuticals, and to help many more people through an intelligent use of data.”

Appointments, Marketing, PR and SEO, News

Momentum appoints key executives to drive global strategy

Momentum, the growth consultancy and leader in account-based marketing, has announced two major executive appointments as the business pursues growth in North America and EMEA.

Robert Bell (above) joins the company as Group Chief Financial Officer, while Will Nicholls becomes UK Managing Director.

Bell, whose appointment follows his sale of private equity-backed company Cawood Scientific, has a track record of leading organisations through periods of high growth and international expansion and will guide the group’s M&A strategy – with a particular focus on North America.

He said: “I am excited to be joining the team at Momentum during such a significant time in the company’s development and growth and look forward to leveraging my experience as we drive the business forward.”

Will Nicholls

Nicholls becomes MD after a year with the company – having previously held positions as MD at Alpha Century and Managing Partner at both BBH and Saatchi & Saatchi – and will drive business strategy and operations, with a focus on developing Momentum’s consulting capabilities and client base in EMEA.

He said: “It’s an honour to take on the role of MD and I’m excited to lead the continued success of the business here in the European market.

“During my time in the business I’ve seen huge demand from clients to solve their biggest challenge – how to bring teams together to drive growth.

“Our clients are looking for partners with real depth of expertise to drive business outcomes and flawless delivery. We have phenomenal track record in delivering both and enter 2021 in a strong position.”

Above (L-R) Lenore Scanlon, James Mollard, Diane Borska

To further support the strategy, Momentum’s founder and CEO Alisha Lyndon has also bolstered regional management teams – including the appointments of James Mollard to Business Development Director and Jacqueline Gummer to Consulting Director.

The group has also recently appointed competitive intelligence experts Diane Borska and Lenore Scanlon to the roles of SVP Consulting and Principal, Financial Services, US, respectively.

Lyndon said: “It’s a real privilege to have Robert and Will take on key positions for the group and following on from our recent private equity backing, I’m thrilled to have fantastic talent joining our business.

“An important part of Momentum is our collective strength – our programs have never been bolder and our collaboration has never been better.

“We’ve continued to leverage our ten-year heritage in account-based marketing to drive growth for our clients. Today that’s more important than ever before.”

Appointments, News

Ministry of Furniture creates eight new jobs despite challenges of COVID

Ministry of Furniture, the company which emerged from Wales’ Remploy Furniture in 2014, has made a significant investment in its workforce creating eight new positions at the firm despite the ongoing challenges and economic disruption caused by COVID-19.

The new appointments, which span sales, marketing, business development and production, represent a welcome boost for the area of Neath-Port Talbot at a time when unemployment is increasing in many other areas of the economy.

In contrast to many other companies in its sector, Ministry successfully realigned its business in 2020 moving to produce personal protective equipment and protective screens to help its clients manage the challenges of COVID-19. This shift helped it protect its workforce last year.

Now, it is eyeing growth and diversification in line with its values and aims as a company in 2021 – and is investing in the people, systems and skills to allow it to leverage that. This also includes anticipated growth in the construction and education sectors over the next 12 months.

The five individuals that have joined the firm are: Lucy Davies, Group Strategic Marketing Manager; Eden Morgan, Trainee Recruitment Consultant; Britanni Jones, Trainee Supply Chain Coordinator; and James Jones and Tom Williams, both Trainee Production Operators.

There have been three internal promotions.

Caroline Locke has been promoted to Group Sales Director. Locke has more than 25 years’ experience in the recruitment industry and 20 years within construction recruitment, having previously worked at Hays for 10 years. She is a co-founder of the Ministry People business and now been appointed to Sales Director for Ministry Group representing Furniture, People and Graphics.

Genella Cosslett has been with Ministry since 2017 running the Customer Service & Supplier Relations team. She is now Business Development Manager. Leanne Hirst, a founder member of the Ministry of Furniture Business in 2014, has over 25 years’ experience in the FF&E and contract interiors sector. She is appointed to the position of Customer Relations Manager at Ministry Group.

Lucy Davies joined Ministry as Group Strategic Marketing Manager in November 2020 following almost 15 years at contract furniture specialist BOF in Bridgend. She is now responsible for marketing strategy and communications for Ministry of Furniture, Ministry People and Ministry Graphics.

Jones and Williams boost the team in the company’s Swansea Valley factory ahead of an anticipated uplift in demand.

Having realigned the company’s working practices and offering in the past 12 months, it now offers clients a seamless journey the timeline of a big project – from concept to completion. Its offering moves from recruitment to external signage to fitted furniture to loose furniture to wall art and signage. In Wales, as a framework supplier for The National Procurement Service (NPS) for Wales, it can offer its suite of services to all public sector bodies.

Graham Hirst, Group CEO Ministry Group, said: “We successfully adjusted and repurposed our offering and products to navigate the challenges presented by COVID-19, and we now embark on a new chapter in our history. Especially through such challenging times, we are delighted to be able to create jobs and support the Welsh economy in this way.”

Appointments, News

Create Health kicks off 2021 with new hire

Strategic and creative healthcare agency, Create Health, whose creative work includes global and national campaigns for big healthcare brands such as Thermo Fisher Scientific, ConvaTec, BD and HOYA, has welcomed new marketing manager, Carrie Fick, to the team this January.

Carrie brings with her 12 years of experience, both agency and client-side, working for brand leaders Nokia and Samsung. There she worked in European Partnerships and branded events on the likes of the Olympics, Nokia Snowboard and Nokia Trends Lab, and then subsequently worked for branding and advertising agencies in Bristol on the likes of OralB (P&G, Geneva).

Fick comments, “I worked for Create Health five years ago launching a major brand campaign for one of their flagship clients. The campaign culminated at a European Expo where we had a contortionist and 2 silk artists hanging from the rafters cirque de soleil style to communicate the product experience. Not an everyday occurrence at a Healthcare Expo I can grant you that and it got them noticed. And that’s what I love about it. The opportunity to reimagine and experience healthcare in a way that grabs your attention so you can see it in a unique and meaningful way and make an impact on people’s health and wellbeing. It’s exciting and I’m thrilled to be back working with them, joining at a time when Healthcare has never been more important, topical or relevant”.

The addition of marketing manager, Fick, follows five new hires in the year 2020 and marks the expansion of the growing team at Create Health.

“I’m really looking forward to shining a light on what the agency does, creating quality conversations around creativity and the benefits of emotional engagement,” adds Fick. “I’ve quietly watched Create Health evolve from a boutique agency moving to the city and now working with European and Global clients. The quality of their work and creativity is inspiring from Vagisil’s ProHydrate to The Anna Freud Centre – empowering adolescents to take control of their mental health . I’m excited to strengthen partnerships within our network and internationally with thenetworkone, as well as find partners to do brave new work with.”

Ed Hudson, managing director, commented: “We are so glad to be kicking off 2021 by welcoming Carrie. She is an extremely talented individual with an analytical mind and a deep understanding of business. We are very much looking forward to working with her again, especially as we head into an exciting year for the agency.”

Appointments, News

JDO names strategic lead

JDO has today announced Ed Silk to the role of Global Head of Strategy – a move that will further strengthen the agency’s strategic offer.

Ed joins JDO at a time of sustained growth for the award-winning agency – that has built an enviable reputation for delivering world class strategic creativity to a roster of global brands including: Shell, Pepsi and Dove.

“Our strategic offer sits at the heart of what we do” says Fiona Florence, MD, JDO “It provides a stimulus and framework that drives the creative execution, be it brand, design, packaging or 3D and it helps us deliver solutions that ultimately create belief. Ed joins an exceptional team and we are thrilled to welcome him to the JDO family.”

Prior to joining JDO, Ed was Head of Strategy at Bulletproof London where his clients, amongst others, included: Bayer, P&G, Heineken and Mondelez. He also helped create the hard seltzer brand, White Claw, that has been a huge success with a 60% category share by the end of 2019. Before Bulletproof, Ed was Planning Partner at Coley Porter Bell.

Commenting on joining the agency, Ed says: “JDO is an independent agency with global reach working across an amazing array of clients from Pernod Ricard to Unilever and I’m excited to help drive the strategic offer. There is a tangible energy and passion for creativity within the agency and I’m very happy to be a part of the JDO team.”

Appointments, Finance and Banking, News

Hodge appoints Katie Johnson as Managing Director of Savings

Hodge appoints Katie Johnson as Managing Director of Savings

Katie Johnson has been named as Hodge’s new Managing Director of Savings.

Katie, a qualified Actuary who has been with Hodge for almost eight years, has previously held a number of different roles. Her most recent roles in Pricing and Underwriting, involved managing product performance, assessing new product opportunities, strategic business planning, and delivering change within the company.

In this new role, Katie will bring a wealth of skills and experience to lead the savings function at Hodge. She’ll be responsible for customer experience, product management and performance and distribution.

Speaking on Katie’s appointment, Group Retail Director Matt Burton said: “Katie stood out from a very strong field of candidates and it’s great to see a key leadership role is being recruited from within the Hodge team. Katie joined us in 2013, so her knowledge of Hodge and the expertise she can bring to this area are second to none. We look forward to developing our Savings business and this role clearly demonstrates our ambition to continue to grow and provide exceptional service to our customers.”

Katie Johnson said of her appointment: “I am really pleased to step into this role and to spearhead further growth in our savings business and its products.

“The savings market has changed significantly over the last few years – becoming an ever busier and more competitive market. The customer is at the heart of everything we do here at Hodge, and so we’ll continue to answer the call of the customer and create innovative, market-leading savings products to further expand the business.”

For more information on Hodge and its savings products, please visit: https://hodgebank.co.uk/savings-accounts/

Acquisitions & Partnerships, Appointments, News

Born Social announce buyout – leadership team become majority shareholders

Born Social, the London-based social media agency, has today announced a management buyout with the six-strong leadership team taking a 75% share of the business.

Founded by Rob O’Donovan and Ben Gateley in 2012 as part of start-up studio, The Eleven, Born Social has grown into one of the UK’s foremost social media agencies managing campaigns for a roster of big-name brands including: Kopparberg; Nando’s; Wagamama; Tinder and Snickers.

The leadership team (from left to right) is made up of Dan Jarrett, Executive Finance Director and Partner; Abbey Mills, Executive Client Services Director and Partner; Ben Tyson, CEO and Partner; Charlotte Hamill, COO and Partner; Callum McCahon, Executive Strategy Director and Partner and Paddy Smith, ECD and Partner. The founders, Rob and Ben, will retain a 25% stake but will no longer sit on the board.

Commenting on the decision to move to a management-owned business, Ben Tyson says: “We’ve always prided ourselves on driving industry change with the belief that social will become the lead channel for the next generation of brilliant brands. And with an ambitious vision for continued growth, we knew we needed to have the right leadership and business structure in place and to invest in the very best senior talent.”

‘Heads-of’ announced

Alongside the shift in ownership, Born Social can also announce two new senior hires: Harry Fishwick as Head of Creative and Hannah Wolff as Head of Social Media Management.

Harry joins from TUI, the world’s number-one tourism business, where he held the role of Video Marketing Manager and Hannah joins from Three UK where she was lead creative in the social and PR team. They join a team that includes Essi Nurminen and Kate Higham who have been promoted to Head of Strategy and Head of Operations respectively and Ed Knights who is Head of New Business and Marketing.

“Since day one we’ve been a people-focused business and the creation of our Heads of team and internal leadership development programme allows us to continue along that path in a time where wellbeing and work satisfaction are being challenged by the ongoing pandemic” says Ben Tyson, CEO and Partner, Born Social “And this investment in building the next generation of leaders at Born Social is testament to the strength of our clients and teams. We now have an exceptional team in place to help drive the next phase of the business.”

Whilst 2020 was a challenge for every business, Born Social has continued to grow with employee numbers swelling to 56, year-on-year growth of 40%, a turnover of £4.5m and continued growth predicted for 2021.

The management buyout was completed for an undisclosed sum.