People: FinTech North appoint new chairman; call centre firm makes raft of new promotions; and more

FinTech North has appointed HM Treasury FinTech Envoy Chris Sier as its Chairman.

Sier spoke at FinTech North’s inaugural conference in 2016 and has been a regular speaker at subsequent events.

He also chaired the Leeds conference for the last two years, and delivered keynotes at the 2018 conferences in Manchester and Liverpool.

In addition to his Treasury role as FinTech Envoy for the Northern Powerhouse, Sier has advised stakeholders including the UK Government and Regulators on innovation and FinTech and also advises various trade bodies on pension fund Corporate Governance and Cost Transparency.

He has recently chaired the Financial Conduct Authority’s Board investigating the information asymmetries and costs of the asset management industry, which was one of the outputs of the Market Study on asset management released in 2017.

Chris is also currently Professor of Financial Technology at the University of Leeds and is Professor of Practice at Newcastle University Business School.

Julian Wells, director of FinTech North & Whitecap Consulting, said: “It is an honour and a pleasure to confirm Chris Sier as the first chairman of FinTech North. He is a long standing supporter of so many things FinTech North strives to achieve, not least the creation of a vibrant regional FinTech community in the north of England.

“Chris’ passion to champion innovation in the regional economy is well documented, and his unique blend of experience in financial services, the public sector, and academia makes him the perfect choice to chair FinTech North.”

Chris Sier, chairman of FinTech North, added:“I’m delighted to take on this role which I see as highly complimentary to my professional interests and my personal passion for the regional economy.

“The UK is fortunate to have a core strength in financial services and a forward-thinking regulator. London’s role in the global FinTech economy is a significant one, but I strongly feel the regional cities of the UK have much to offer on a national and international basis, with the Northern Powerhouse perhaps the region with the most potential.”

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Call centre business ResQ has strengthened its operational team as the company continues to expand.

ResQ’s Hull and Seaham sites have seen a number of promotions and role changes, all from within the business.

Both sites will now have a dedicated General Manager and this sees Matt Gray take up the role in Hull and Lee Candler in Seaham.

Matt, previously head of operations in Hull has been with ResQ for 11 years, whilst Lee who joined the business to head up Client Services in Seaham when it opened its doors three years ago, will take up the post in Seaham.

John-Paul Page, who has been with ResQ for nine years and most recently, has held the post of head of client services in Hull will pick up the newly created role of head of organic growth strategy to focus on growth from existing campaigns.

Dan Wardill who joined the company four years ago and was recently named one of Hull and Humber Regions 30 under 30 is also included and takes up the post of site lead for one of ResQ’s newest clients.

In total, there have been 20 internal promotions within the business, which takes place with immediate effect.

Roles created also include learning & development, coaching and account leaders, with a number of agents being seconded to team leader in their first step onto the management ladder.

Gill Marchbank, owner and COO for ResQ, said: “We’ve been in business for 12 years now and our success so far is testament to the remarkable people who work here, both in Hull and Seaham.  

“I’m delighted that we’ve been able to appoint all the new positions from within using home grown talent. Most of my team joined us on the phones so it is an absolute pleasure to see how they have developed and equally help us expand with them. In total the 20 staff promoted, have accumulated one hundred years of service with us, which in our industry is possibly unheard of.

“These changes put us in a strong position for now and the future and ensure that we continue to support existing and new clients as well as achieving our growth aspirations.”

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Smith Brothers, the Elland-headquartered high-voltage power contractor, has acquired a new Sheffield office and appointed a specialist design team.

Bringing over 90 years’ combined industry experience to the firm, the four designers are senior design manager and principal electrical engineer Richard Furniss, civil design manager Steve Sadler, primary electrical design engineer Lee Newheiser, and protection and control design engineer Cat Lucas.

Possessing expertise within CAD, primary electrical, network, civil and structural design, the team will be responsible for overseeing Smith Brothers’ power system design provision – covering feasibility studies along with the design of cable systems, connections to HV and EHV OHL systems, protection and control systems, and substations.

The new recruits will be operating from the dedicated premises at Parkway Avenue in Sheffield, which has further space to accommodate four additional engineers.

Craig Collinson, operations director, said: “Clients are increasingly enlisting us for complex connection projects that require extensive studies and specialist design skills – including civil and structural alongside core electrical. We’ve had a marked upsurge in such enquires, with the number of quotes for large-scale projects over the 2017-18 period up 122% on the previous year.

“We’ve therefore been on the lookout for the right design team to bolster our in-house capabilities for some time, so we’re delighted to be welcoming Richard, Cat, Lee and Steve on board.

“Between them they have an unparalleled level of technical know-how and expertise, which we’re sure will greatly enhance our design offering and overall service to clients.”

Richard Furniss added: “It’s certainly an exciting time to be joining Smith Brothers. The company’s reputation within the industry has undoubtedly been building over the past few years, and along with the rest of the new division, I’m looking forward to playing a significant role in expanding its design remit.”

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The Institute of Directors (IoD) has boosted its Yorkshire and North East team with two new appointments.

Kazi Sajeed joins the business leaders’ organisation as communications and marketing assistant while Shak Hakim has been appointed membership relationship manager.

Sajeed is a University of Bradford graduate in Business and Management Studies who has experience in retail, sales, CRM and customer service.

Hakim previously worked in delegate sales for a global event company and has experience in telecoms and health and fitness.

Sajeed said: “In an unpredictable and challenging business environment there has never been a better time to connect and learn with fellow directors. I’m excited about the excellent events we have coming up and meeting our members from across the industrial spectrum.”

Hakim added: “My focus will be working with new, existing and lapsed members to build our community of business leaders. I have always been a problem solver and love a challenge, finding new ways to do things and solutions that help my colleagues around me.”

Natalie Sykes, regional director of the IoD in Yorkshire and the North East, added: “This is evidence of the IoD putting investment in place to support the Northern Powerhouse regions.

“Kazi will be instrumental in driving our membership by engaging people with our fantastic events. Shak is key to our aim of recruiting new members from all backgrounds and industries.”

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BCS Electrics, the Leeds-based commercial electrical contractor, is pushing forward with growth plans by expanding its estimator team to cater for increased enquiries.

Andrew Rogers started his electrical career as an apprentice before joining the family firm and eventually taking it over in partnership with his brother.

As an estimator, Rogers will be responsible for project management, processing new enquiries, quoting on new contracts and supporting owners Dean Towers and Tony Barnett in developing the business.

Rogers said: “The vision of BCS was very clear to me, both Dean and Tony know where they want to take BCS Electrics, they understand their value and potential and I wanted to be part of that success and contribute my wealth of skills and experience to making that happen.

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Leeds-based Creative Marketing Services has further strengthened its digital team with the appointment of Davis Tarvans as digital marketing consultant.

Tarvans will support a range of online services within the agency’s expanding client base following a series of recent contract wins.

He was previously digital marketing manager at a major catering group and holds an honours degree in Business and Marketing, a Level 4 accreditation from the Chartered Institute of Marketing and a Diploma in Digital Marketing.

Andrew Batty, managing director, said: “This is the 37th year of Creative Marketing Services and the agency continues to go from strength to strength in independent ownership. Many clients don’t want a purely digital agency or an agency which concentrates on offline services.

“They are seeking an agency that is integrated, strategic, has a record of building market share and has the skillsets in all areas, from design and planning to web, social media and search engine optimisation.

“There is a serious skills shortage in exceptional digital people and we’ve spent eighteen months building a truly outstanding team which is delivering brilliant results for our clients and attracting the interest of many other clients who want to see their marketing budgets turned from an overhead into a sound investment.”

Based at Hollinthorpe Hall, on the North East fringes the city, Creative Marketing Services provides services for organisations across public, private and third sectors.

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OptiBiotix Health, a life sciences business developing compounds to tackle obesity, high cholesterol and diabetes, has announced a new senior appointment.

On 6 August, the York-based listed company appointed Sean Christie as Non-Executive Director.

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