Appointments: BLM; Carfinance247; Allied London & more

UK and Ireland risk and insurance law specialist BLM has appointed partner and head of the Manchester office Helen Devery as its head of brokers.

She will take on responsibility for the strategic development of the firm’s relationships with insurance brokers.

As a legal provider BLM works closely with insurance brokers and underwriters to ensure the best possible service for the policyholder.

The company says the appointment underlines BLM’s commitment to the broker community.

The firm works with brokers across the UK and Ireland, from large multi-nationals to a number of smaller niche players, delivering an aligned claims and risk strategy to ensure greater financial confidence and to support client retention.

Devery said: “Close interaction and engagement with brokers has been at the heart of BLM’s services over many years. We are connected to the broker industry in everything we do, and it’s my job to ensure we have a real positive impact on each broker that we work with.”

Mike Brown, senior partner at BLM said: “Our goal is to be recognised as one of the leading global risk and insurance law businesses by 2020.

“We know that our relationship with the wider insurance industry, including our broker relationships, will play a critical role in enabling us to achieve this goal. It’s a community we are completely embedded within, and I’ve no doubt that with Helen’s leadership we’ll be able to add even more value to the brokers we engage with.”

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Carfinance247, the Manchester-based online motor finance specialist, has announced the appointment of Matt Heaney as head of sales strategy.

Heaney, previously operations director at CarLoan4U (now Zuto), has worked in the automotive financial sector for over 15 years. 

He will oversee the organisation’s sales strategy and is tasked with improving efficiencies, as well as managing the implementation of a brand new, cutting-edge CRM system.
 
Carfinance247 saw rapid growth in the past financial year, reporting a 280% increase in turnover compared to 2014.

With sales nearing £10m, it has increased its staff from 55 to 165 and acquired a second 5,500sq ft office to accommodate further predicted expansion.
 
Managing director Reg Rix said: “Matt is a key appointment for us. We wanted an industry expert to drive forward our sales strategy and build upon the remarkable success we’ve seen.”

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ALLIED London has appointed Fran Burgess, formerly of Capital Properties, as a consultant with a brief to create a community and brand strategy for its new St John’s Neighbourhood in Manchester.

Michael Ingall of Allied London said: “Fran has been employed by Allied London to put together a framework for community engagement and corporate responsibility ‎strategy for St John’s.

“It is intended this framework could provide a foundation for a number of community and commercial activities as the development proceeds.”

The community strategy will see Allied London engage with future St John’s residents and allow them to help mould the community in which they live.

Fran Burgess said: “Having worked on Allied London schemes for the past seven years as part of a wider company, I am delighted to be commissioned on this landmark scheme, as I launch my new business.  St John’s is going to be unlike any other offer in the city and I am very much looking forward to being a part of that.”

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CONVERSION optimisation agency PRWD has appointed four new hires to strengthen its full service optimisation offering, from consumer research and design to A/B testing.

The new recruits will support Manchester-based PRWD’s growing client base, which includes Trend Micro, Moneysupermarket, Love Holidays, British Cycling and Harveys.

Chris McCormick joins as optimisation strategist from a senior management role at Shop Direct where he helped to implement its customer centric approach.

Chris Todd joins as optimisation executive bringing further client-side ecommerce experience to the team. He has arrived joins from Kitbag, where he managed conversion optimisation for several online stores including Chelsea FC, England Rugby, Wimbledon, and The Ryder Cup.

Phil Williams fills the UX designer post and comes with 10 years design experience from Bauer Media and Phones4U.
 
Lisa Patel, front end developer, joins from Amaze to support testing implementation. She will be responsible for driving testing tool capabilities to deliver complex tests for clients.
 
Paul Rouke, founder of PRWD said: “We’ve taken the time to find a truly talented group of individuals to strengthen our team.”

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NEIL Brailsford has been appointed general manager of Liverpool’s Pullman hotel.

Recruited by Branded Hotel Management, Brailsford will be responsible for the daily running of the hotel, which forms part of ACC Liverpool’s new development Exhibition Centre Liverpool.

One of his key responsibilities will be the recruitment of the rest of the Pullman team.

Brailsford joins from the Mercure Southampton Hotel where he was general manager.

He said: “I am delighted to be involved in such an exciting project and look forward to both working and living in Liverpool. The completed hotel will be superb and my focus is to ensure the service we offer our guests is also of the highest quality.”

The 216-bedroom Pullman hotel, taking bookings from January next year, will be integrated into Exhibition Centre Liverpool which will open next month. 

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MANCHESTER commercial law firm Kuits is celebrating the promotion of 11 members of its team following a successful year that saw its fee income increase by 16%.

The round saw the introduction of two new partners, seven senior associates and two associates across the firm, demonstrating that growth was not restricted to just one area of expertise.

David Moroney from the commercial property team and Katie McCann of the family department have been promoted to partner-level, bringing the total number of partners in the firm up to 26.

Among those promoted to Senior Associate were Paul Bricknell and Lauren Clyne, both members of the firm’s tax department, Felicity Tulloch from the licensing team, Alison Kellett of the banking department, David Jones from the litigation team, and Claire Meyers of the IP department. David Chambers of the tax department was promoted to Associate.

The growing size, reputation and client roster of the firm’s corporate and commercial team was demonstrated by the promotion of James Wall to Senior Associate and Elizabeth Slater to Associate-level.

Steve Eccleston, managing partner for Kuits, said: “The firm has performed well across the board, taking on higher value and more complex work, and we are delighted to be able to promote those that played an active role as a result.

“As a firm, we are focused on providing exceptional service combining the collective knowledge, skill and experience of our 90 fee earners. Our clear commitment to service has been well-received by clients, who see us as their trusted advisers.”

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MANCHESTER-based digital design and web build agency, Degree 53, has appointed Lauren Luke as Business Development Manager to help drive its growth strategy.

Luke, 29, is focusing on expanding the company’s client base and moving into new industries. With 11 years’ experience in digital marketing, predominantly in user experience (UX), she will lead on securing new contracts, working alongside managing director Andrew Daniels and fellow business development manager Adam Smethurst.