People: Trio of hires for software specialist; Raft of graduate hires at Deloitte; Trainee solicitors celebrate qualification; and more

BUSINESS software specialist Opal Wave has made three appointments to its Bradford team after recording a 50% turnover increase in the last financial year and predicting a similar rise in 2016-17.

The new recruits bring its staffing in Bradford plus its other sites in London and Beirut to 35. The newcomers are account manager John Gavin, new business sales executive Joshua Baterip and inside sales executive Mujahed Akhtar.

Mr Gavin has joined from the Renewable Energy Supermarket, a community project in North-East Lincolnshire, where he was sales director for 20 months. At Opal Wave, he will nurture relationships with existing customers, encouraging them to expand their use of the company’s consulting, hardware, software, hosting, support and maintenance services.

Finding and winning new clients for Opal Wave across this portfolio of offerings will be Mr Baterip’s main task. He will work closely with the company’s in-house marketing and telemarketing experts, its outside telemarketing agency and SAP UK. He was previously an account executive in Leeds with New York-based Schoology, providing intuitive learning management systems to schools and colleges across the UK.     

Mr Akhtar will carry out telemarketing activities across Opal Wave’s database of UK companies, which he will also help to develop and build. In addition, he will liaise with the firm’s telemarketing agency to identify prospective customers and support Mr Baterip in his efforts to win new clients. Mr Akhtar was previously a sales executive with Leeds-based broker SME Insurance Services for about two years.        

Opal Wave increased turnover from £2.04m in 2014-15 to £3.02m in 2015-16. It is predicting an even larger increase to £4.80m in the current financial year.

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DELOITTE has significantly invested in its regional talent development, recruiting more than 60 graduates and school leavers across its Yorkshire and North East offices.

The new recruits include 50 graduates, 10 school leavers who have joined the business as part of Deloitte’s BrightStart scheme, a five-year training and development plan for A-level students and two undergraduates, who will undertake an industrial placement year.

Of the new recruits, 49 will be based in Deloitte’s Leeds office, with 13 being based in Newcastle. Spread across a number of roles and positions, the majority will be starting in the audit team.

Martin Jenkins, practice senior partner at Deloitte in Yorkshire & the North East, said: “The recruitment of these young people is a clear sign of our commitment to developing the next generation of business talent, but also to opening up opportunities in, and access to, the financial and professional services industries.
“As always we are about identifying the very best people, wherever they come from, so that we can continue to grow in the region and provide the most complete range of services to our clients.”   

Deloitte employs over 700 people across Yorkshire and the North East and recently announced five director promotions and the promotion of Chris Wildsmiths to partner in the transaction services team.
 

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TWO trainee solicitors at Leeds law firm Clarion have been given permanent positions as associates with the firm following their qualification.

Sadie Brook and Zoe Roberts have both completed their two-year training contract with Clarion during which time they gained experience in at least four departments.

Ms Brook, now part of Clarion’s commercial team, graduated from University of Nottingham with BA (Hons) in History and then attended College of Law, York, to gain a Graduate Diploma in Law before completing a Legal Practice Course (LPC) with distinction at BPP Leeds Law School. 

Ms Roberts, who has joined the employment practice, read English and Communication Studies at Liverpool University, undertook a PG Diploma in Law at Leeds Met University and completed her LPC (Distinction) at BPP Leeds Law School. 

“Both Sadie and Zoe have been excellent trainees over the last two years and having invested in their development, we are pleased to be able to see them become permanent members of the Clarion team and continue to nurture their careers,” said joint managing partner Roger Hutton.  “As a firm, we are committed to bringing young talent into the legal profession and recognise the huge contribution they make to our continued success.” 

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SPECIALIST Leeds recruitment consultancy Thornhvac has appointed a senior recruiter to head up a new division following expansion.

Shelley Hamilton will specialise in sourcing candidates for service and maintenance roles in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning sectors.

Ms Hamilton has worked in the recruitment industry for almost 20 years and joins HVAC recruiter Thornhvac from Travail Employment Group.

Rob Bryan, team leader at Thornhvac, said: “We have seen a significant surge in demand for roles in the maintenance and servicing sector and this has prompted us to launch a new division of the business.

“Shelley’s extensive knowledge of the recruitment industry makes her a valuable addition to the team as we expand and she will work closely with manufacturers, facilities management firms and other maintenance providers to source the right skills for these roles.”