Appointments: Moves at Hurst, Scantec, B2B International and Armstrong Watson

ACCOUNTANCY firm HURST has boosted its partner team and appointed a new associate.

Simon Brownbill has become the first non-accountant to be promoted to partner at the North West accountancy firm.

He joined in 2007 as head of marketing before becoming director of practice development. Before joining HURST, Simon worked at Hempsons Solicitors. He has also worked in consultancy and spent seven years working for BT in the UK and Eastern Europe.

The firm has also promoted Tim Scott to associate partner in the corporate finance team. He previously worked as an investment manager at Alliance Fund Managers. He has also held roles at Baker Tilly and PricewaterhouseCoopers. 

HURST has three offices in Stockport, Manchester and London. It employs 79 people, with 13 partners. 

::

TECHNICAL and engineering recruitment specialist Scantec Personnel has appointed two new account managers and promoted a key staff member.

The Birkenhead-based firm has hired Shereese Doyle as an account manager within its technical engineering contract team. Doyle has three years of recruitment experience, two within the engineering sector.

Chris Stanley has been appointed as an account manager within the electrical and instrumentation team. Stanley previously worked as quality assurance specialist within the communications sector.

In addition, Leanne Stewart has been promoted to payroll supervisor. She has been at the firm for 10 years.

::

JULIA Cupman and Oliver Truman have been appointed as directors at the Stockport-based market research and business intelligence agency, B2B International.

Cupman is now responsible for B2B’s North American strategy and operations, and Oliver has responsibility for IT and the use of technology to improve the firm’s client offering and internal processes.

Chairman Nick Hague said: “This expansion to B2B International’s board reflects the recent growth of the company, and its ambitions as it works towards achieving its growth plans for the next few years.”

::

ACCOUNTANCY firm Armstrong Watson has taken on Andy Poole as legal sector director to build and lead a specialist legal sector team.

Poole is a member of the ICAEW Solicitors Group and a speaker at many national conferences.

He will be working closely with legal businesses across the UK to ensure that firms take advantage of all opportunities open to them.

Managing partner Paul Dickson said: “Andy’s specialist knowledge and understanding of the issues the legal sector is facing will give us a real advantage to a service area in which we have been establishing a good reputation.”

::

GVA has promoted three members of its planning, development and regeneration team in Manchester. Iain Jenkinson has been promoted to senior director, Chris Argent has been appointed from senior planner to principal planner and Jenny Hope has become a planner after achieving Royal Town Planning Institute accreditation.

GVA’s planning team has recently been working on a number of high-profile projects including the One City Plan for Chester, the regeneration of north Manchester, the Mersey Gateway and Ince’s Biomass Energy Plant. Iain Jenkinson also represents GVA on the Igloo Consortium, which runs the JESSICA fund on Merseyside.

Mr Jenkinson said: “I am obviously very pleased to have been made senior director at GVA and I am also thrilled that Chris has been appointed principal planner and Jenny has been accredited.

“We have an extensive and highly productive team based in the Manchester office, so it is great when you receive recognition like this from the company.”