People: Board changes at listed project management firm; Structural engineering business welcomes new recruit; and more

WYG, the Leeds-based global project management and technical consultancy has announced that its chairman Mike McTighe is to retire at the next AGM in September.

Jeremy Beeton, currently the senior independent non-executive director, will succeed McTighe as chairman.

McTighe was appointed as non-executive chairman in 2009. WYG said that under his chairmanship the company has undergone a comprehensive financial restructuring and recovery.

“Today, the company is a robust, well-funded business with a clear strategic focus and is well placed to embark on the next stage of its development,” it said.

Beeton joined the board of WYG as a non-executive director in 2015. He has more than 40 years’ international business experience including in government, corporate, project management, construction and facilities management. He is currently a non-executive director of SSE and John Laing Group, a member of the advisory board of PwC and sits on the governing Court of Strathclyde University.

He previously spent five years as director general of the UK Government Olympic executive where he was responsible for supervising the delivery of the London Olympic Games before which he was principal vice-president and director of Bechtel with responsibility for the management and delivery of Bechtel’s worldwide civil engineering projects in its infrastructure and aviation business lines.

McTighe said: “I have enjoyed tremendously my time as chairman: it has been a personally challenging yet rewarding journey and my privilege to work with such a great team.  The business was facing some major challenges when we embarked on the turnaround strategy eight years ago, and it is to the huge credit of everyone involved in WYG that the business is now in such robust health.  In particular, Paul Hamer deserves exceptional recognition for the way in which he has led the executive team and been my close partner in this endeavour.    

“I am delighted that Jeremy has agreed to succeed me.  Since joining WYG in October 2015, he has been closely involved in our strategic planning as the business enters into a new phase of growth and development and is exactly what the company needs in a chairman going forward.”

Paul Hamer, chief executive, said: “On behalf of everyone at WYG I would like to thank Mike for his great service to the ccompany over the past eight years. His leadership and expertise have contributed significantly to the successful turnaround.  I am delighted that Jeremy, with his wealth of experience in our markets, is to take over from Mike, and I very much look forward to working with him.”

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Adept Civil and Structural Consulting Engineers has appointed structural engineer Tom Cliffe to further strengthen the Leeds-based practice.

Cliffe has six years industry experience and joins from a global design, engineering and project management firm where he worked for both the Middle East and UK offices.

He says: “I worked for Atkins where I spent three years working in the Middle East, gaining experience on everything from underground car parks to railway stations as part of the Doha Metro Project. More recently in the UK I have worked on seven new build schools as part of the Governments Priority Schools Building Programme and a project for Drax Power Station.”

Adept’s associate director Paul Gill says: “Tom is a skilled engineer with vast experience in cloud scanner surveys and using Robot structural analysis software. He is a welcome addition to my team and will hit the ground running, working firstly on a major extension at Reddish Vale High School as well as several housing schemes throughout the UK.”

Adept was founded in 2007 and employs a team of 30 in Leeds, Manchester and London, predominantly working across the commercial, warehousing, retail, educational, healthcare, and residential sectors.

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Little Valley Brewery has welcomed two staff to its team.

Skye Ashmore has taken on the role of office manager where she is responsible for all operational activity as well as supporting with business development.

Amelia Jarman has been appointed assistant brewer, where she is working with the head brewer, Wim van der Spek, in all aspects of the production process.

Sue Cooper, co-owner at the brewery, said: “It is brilliant to have such knowledgeable people on board who are passionate about the craft of brewing. Little Valley welcomes talented and passionate people and Skye and Amelia were the best fit for the job. Throughout history women have played an important part in brewing and we are proud to be advocating their role in the modern beer industry. We are looking forward to the next steps on our journey with Skye and Amelia on board – 2017 should be an exciting year for Little Valley.”