People: Brewin Dolphin; Napthens; Acdoco; Lokulus; South Liverpool Homes; Exchange Chambers

Rod Walley, Brewin Dolphin, Manchester

Wealth manager Brewin Dolphin has appointed Rod Walley as the new head of its Manchester office.

He has taken up the role from predecessor William Thomson.

Rod joined Brewin Dolphin in 2000 as a graduate stockbroker trainee and has worked his way up over his 21-year tenure at the company.

He is an experienced senior investment manager helping individual clients and corporates to manage their investments, and successfully led the Manchester office’s intermediary team from 2014 until this year.

Jonathan Tweedie, regional managing director (central and the north) at Brewin Dolphin, said: “Rod is a proven leader, who will bring energy, empathy and vision as the head of a dynamic, agile and fast-growing team serving the North West.”

Rod Walley, head of Brewin Dolphin’s Manchester office, said: “As a team, we are dedicated to helping our clients to achieve their financial goals, and passionate about promoting the development of Manchester and the North West region.

“I am thankful to Brewin Dolphin for the encouragement, support and advice I have received over the years, and I’m excited for the challenges ahead.”

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Alexandra White and Mark Townsend

North West law firm Napthens has strengthened its core practice areas, with 36 new appointments in the second half of 2021.

In commercial property, this includes the appointment of senior associate solicitor Clare Player, a specialist in commercial property investment and asset management.

Bringing almost 30 years’ experience to the team, she regularly works on behalf of institutional landlords, local market clients and private sector developers. Joining her in the practice area are solicitors Mark Townsend and Alexandra White.

Further additions to the real estate team include solicitor David Harris and legal assistant Rebecca Mathieson who has joined the specialist plot sales unit, while June Higgins has been appointed associate solicitor to the firm’s growing rural team.

The firm has also made five additions to its residential conveyancing team, with Karen Cockburn, Hayley Mathews and Rachel Davidson appointed as conveyancing executives. Between them, they bring collective property knowledge spanning 25 years and are experienced in dealing with all aspects of residential conveyancing, including sales, purchases, rentals and shared ownership.

In other areas, the firm’s employment practice added senior associate solicitors Suzanne Mainwaring and Chris Hayes, while solicitor Jordan Withers has joined the commercial team. Neil Hughes-Hutchings has been appointed senior health and safety consultant at Napthens Health and Safety with Jessica Richards joining as consultant, and Natalie Olsen as service delivery manager.

Supporting wider growth of the firm, Napthens has also welcomed four new trainee solicitors and bolstered its business support services, with 12 new team members joining finance, client services, facilities, IT and onboarding.

Jamie Allison, head of real estate, said: “There has been a huge rate of change across the regional property market over the past two years, with increased levels of activity in both commercial and residential.

“In turn, our real estate and conveyancing teams have been hard at work servicing the demand that has come with this. I know our latest recruits will be instrumental in continued delivery of the highest quality service.”

Nicola Mason, HR and operations director at Napthens, said: “It has been a great year for the firm. We have seen growth across our service lines and locations across the North West and we are thrilled to have welcomed so many exceptional new people over the past six months.

“We’re excited for the new year and look forward to growing the team further, with some exciting announcements coming up in 2022.”

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Former Kellogg’s director, Alison O’Brien, has swapped cornflakes for cleaning brands and pledged a bright future for Acdoco.

The new UK managing director at Irlam-based Acdoco – which includes the UK’s No1 laundry brand, Dr Beckmann, among its stable of marques – joined in September and is excited by both the prospect of building on the success of its best selling brands as well as leading some of its challenger brands to a bright future.

Acdoco, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Delta Pronatura.

Alison said: “I am really excited to be here. Part of what attracted me to the role in the first place, other than this being my first UK managing director role, was the opportunity to build on the success of Acdoco’s market leading brands and, at the same time, lead some of the smaller brands in the portfolio to bigger things – it was an irresistible sweet spot.

Alison O’Brien

“The company has enjoyed great growth and momentum – doubling in growth for each of the last five-year blocks. My challenge is to make sure that continues and ensure that the company, our staff and myself are all fit for the future.”

While the company may be a four-generations-old family concern, it has real international ambitions and markets products in more than 80 countries. And while brands like Dr Beckmann have a firm UK base in the North West of England, the company’s outlook is far beyond the shores of the UK.

Alison said: “The international piece is hugely important to the future for us. While we are a family-owned company, the owners are very ambitious to take the brands in their portfolio to the next level. We are constantly looking for new brands to work with.”

And she added: “People are our biggest asset. It is crucial that the people who work here want to be here. I aim to give every single team member a clear role profile, a smart set of objectives and a really strong development plan. This ensures we create lots of time for the individual and a team development process for the whole business, not just the leaders.

“We are planning training programmes for every member of the team at every level – leadership and technical. Post-pandemic, it is about new ways to drive culture in a workplace which now operates on a flexible hybrid model. If your people are working from home two or three days per week, culture can take a bit of a hit. So, we are doing all we can to correct that.”

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Digital customer experience specialist Lokulus has announced the appointment of ex-Getac James Mann to the role enterprise development manager and ex-Capita, Michael Crotty to professional services manager.

These significant hires support the Macclesfield-based technology business’s expansion and innovation strategy.

James has more than 15 years of experience in business development and account management across IT spanning hardware, software and managed services and finance. His strong enterprise experience in the tech industry will enable Lokulus to expand its core business across its target sectors of retail and insurance.

In his most recent role at Getac, James expanded the business by introducing its rugged computer hardware to a wide range of sectors including industrial manufacturing, construction, field service, inspection, transport logistics across sea, rail and air, military and defense, law enforcement, public safety, utility and more.

His ability to understand complex technology and the intricate needs of individual sectors makes him a perfect appointment to the Lokulus team.

James Mann, left, and Michael Crotty

New addition Michael Crotty, who has spent the past 10 years in operational, transformational and large change roles, will head up the professional services department at Lokulus. As a strategic operations professional, Michael is fully focused on the impact of service delivery on commercial trading, customer loyalty and productivity.

He will apply his experience in B2B services gained at Capita and his innovative thinking to accelerate the professional services department and deliver an elevated service for clients.

Lokulus CEO, Alister Harris, said: “It is a pleasure to welcome two highly experienced commercial professionals to the team at Lokulus. We look forward to Michael and James bringing their collective experience to the business to help us reach our strategic goals.

“We have a number of products launching in 2022 and Michael and James will enable us to bring them successfully to market.”

James Mann said: “I’ve hit the ground running at Lokulus by attending a number of trade shows in my first month. I am looking forward to creating commercial opportunities across all sectors for Lokulus.

“Digital customer service has become central to businesses’ reputation, especially since the pandemic, so we want to bring strong solutions so organisations can operate with confidence.”

Michael Crotty said: “With a strong reputation for providing outstanding digital customer experience solutions to top organisations, Lokulus is an industry leader and I look forward to working with the team to take the business to the next level.”

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South Liverpool Homes (SLH) has appointed two new executive directors to its leadership team. Angela Perry joins as executive director of assets and development and Cathy Biggs joins as executive director of operations.

Angela has more than 30 years’ experience working in the housing sector and joins the housing association on January 4, 2022.

Angela Perry

She moves from Yorkshire-based Incommunities Housing Group where she was assistant chief executive for asset management and development and prior to that the North West-based Torus Group where she was managing director of operations.

Angela has extensive strategic experience and a strong track record in asset management, housing, repairs and maintenance and customer services, as well as a strong desire to make a difference to the communities and neighbourhoods where she works.

She said: “I am thrilled to be joining SLH and I am looking forward to working with the leadership team, colleagues and board to make a positive difference in South Liverpool.”

Cathy joins SLH in February 2022, from Plus Dane Housing where she is currently director of housing. She has 18 years’ experience in social housing, working at Your Housing group before joining Plus Dane. Her operational experience is vast, managing community safety, income, lettings and environmental teams to ensure neighbourhoods are managed effectively and customers are at the heart of everything they do.

Cathy Biggs

She said: “I am delighted to join SLH and welcome the opportunity to work with the board and leadership team at a time when they are about to launch their new five-year plan.

“I have always worked in customer-centred roles and I’m looking forward to working closely with colleagues and our partners to deliver excellent services for the South Liverpool community.”

Julie Fadden, South Liverpool Homes chief executive, said: “The board and myself are delighted to welcome two committed and extremely talented individuals to our senior team.

“They both have a genuine passion for the housing sector, bringing over 48 years’ experience between them across a range of organisations. They join us at a pivotal point in our journey as we launch our ambitious five-year corporate plan in spring 2022, which sets out to exploit new opportunities through a newly-developed vision and values that are the backbone of the plan.

“There are still some very challenging times ahead and their knowledge and expertise will be an asset to us as we continue to work through and build back from the pandemic.”

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Christopher Barnes, from Exchange Chambers in Liverpool, has been appointed Queen’s Counsel in the new Silk appointments announced by the Lord Chancellor.

In total, Her Majesty the Queen has approved the appointment of 101 barristers and solicitors as new Queen’s Counsel in England and Wales. The title of QC is awarded to those who have demonstrated particular skill and expertise in the conduct of advocacy.

Christopher Barnes practises exclusively in the areas of personal injury, clinical negligence and related litigation, with significant experience of all levels of multi-track claims up to and in excess of £10m.

Christopher Barnes

He has particular expertise in military claims and is consistently ranked as a leading junior by Chambers & Partners and Legal 500 in the field of personal injury. He recently secured one of the highest ever settlements in a clinical negligence case with Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust agreeing to pay £27.3m after a young boy suffered catastrophic, life changing injuries in its care.

Lisa Linklater, based at Exchange Chambers in Leeds, has also been appointed QC.

Jonathan I’Anson, chief executive at Exchange Chambers, said: “On behalf of everyone at Exchange I would like to congratulate Chris and Lisa. This recognition is very much deserved and is the culmination of many years of hard work and dedication. They should be very proud.”

Bill Braithwaite QC, head of Chambers at Exchange said: “Congratulations to Chris and Lisa. I am delighted for both of them. They are both fantastic barristers and we are very grateful to have them as members of Exchange”

Exchange Chambers, based in Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds, now has 23 silks and 196 members in total.

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