Appointments: JMW; KPMG; Mills & Reeve & more
EXPANDING law firm JMW Solicitors has bolstered its business crime & regulation team with the appointment of Derek Millard-Smith as partner.
Milllard-Smith joins the Manchester firm as a partner from Hill Dickinson and specialises in all areas of regulation but particularly in consumer law, regulatory compliance, Trading Standards investigations, driving defence and motorsports management.
He regularly supports businesses and individuals with regulatory compliance and investigation management in relation to online and consumer-facing due diligence, product safety and public protection. His clients include Capita, UP Global Sourcing and SLM Connect.
Peter Grogan, head of JMW’s business crime & regulation team, said: “Derek brings with him extensive knowledge across all areas of consumer law and regulatory compliance and significant experience in the driving defence and motorsports arenas, his appointment will only strengthen further our offering and help us to develop further.”
Millard-Smith added: “I am pleased to be joining an entrepreneurial and growing law firm such as JMW and I am looking forward to developing my unique specialisms in trading standards and consumer law to support all areas of the firm. It is an excellent opportunity to work alongside the established business crime team in all areas of regulation as well as enhancing JMW’s sports offering.”
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KPMG’s Enterprise practice in the North has launched a dedicated consulting team to help privately-owned mid-tier businesses improve their performance and drive growth.
Led by advisory partner David Costley-Wood, the Enterprise Consulting team, which has drawn individuals from across KPMG’s restructuring, transaction services and management consulting practices across the North, will deliver advice and support around issues such as cash and working capital management, cost optimisation, supply chain management and IT strategy.
Costley-Wood said: “At heart, our Enterprise Consulting team is about tackling those knotty business issues that can often slow down a company’s growth ambitions. How can I improve my working capital? How can I sell more, or penetrate new markets? How can I improve my IT systems or pricing strategies?
“We’ve already undertaken assignments for clients across the North which have seen the team deliver real value to companies’ bottom lines.”
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THE Manchester office of national law firm Mills & Reeve has promoted Ben Hardiman to partner.
Hardiman, who joined Mills & Reeve in 2010, is a member of the firm’s insurance disputes team, specialising in claims against insurance brokers and construction professionals.
Niall Innes, head of the Manchester office at Mills & Reeve, said: “Ben has been described as a rising star by legal directories and his promotion is thoroughly well-deserved.
“His promotion furthers cements our market leading position in the North West for advising on complex and sensitive cases involving solicitors, barristers, insurance brokers, construction professionals, financial advisers and IT professionals.”
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PwC has boosted its North West deals team with the appointment of David Byrne as a director. He joins from renewable energy developer and consultancy, ASC Renewables, which he co-founded in 2010. He has over 10 years’ corporate finance experience, previously working at Altium, and has completed a broad range of mid-market deals in practice and industry.
In his new role, Byrne will work closely with Stuart Warriner, PwC’s North M&A leader, providing a full range of corporate finance services across the North West, including; mergers, acquisitions, disposals and fund raising. He will also work with the firm’s national renewable energy and cleantech team across the UK regions.
Warriner said: “David’s appointment reflects our strategy of building the right team of specialists so that we can continue to help our clients be successful. The renewables sector has reached an exciting stage in its development, with around £50bn of operating assets deployed in the UK. David’s specialist industry knowledge of this sector, and his established profile in the intermediary and investor market in Manchester, will therefore benefit our clients and investors within these innovative markets.”
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MANCHESTER innovation agency FutureEverything has apppointed Vikas Shah as its new chairman.
Shah, founder of consultancy Thought Strategy, and chief executive of family-owned textiles and trading business Swiscot Group, replaces outgoing chair Lou Cordwell, chief executive of digital agency magneticNorth.
He said: “This is a profoundly important time in the relationship of people with technology; not just in terms of how we (as individuals) use technology, but rather how the digital culture emerging from science and technology interfaces with society, economies, art, governance and more.
“It is through festivals and organisations like FutureEverything that we will begin to develop the thinking tools to solve the crises impacting our futures, and take full advantage of the opportunities on our horizon.”
