People: Foresight Group; KPMG; RSM & more

FORESIGHT Group an independent infrastructure and private equity investment manager has appointed Claire Alvarez as senior investment manager.

She joins from Deloitte’s Manchester practice where she spent six years, latterly advising banks and company directors and returning value from distressed SMEs and where she also completed an 18-month secondment to Barclays Bank.  

Alvarez has worked extensively in the North West, initially for KPMG and subsequently at Altium Capital.  

Based in Foresight’s new Manchester King Street office, she will work closely with Foresight partner James Livingston managing Foresight’s regional investment fund, which targets equity investments of between £1 and £5m into profitable growth companies in the North West, North Wales and South Yorkshire.

Foresight’s regional investment fund, which recently announced its first close at £38m, is Foresight’s second dedicated regional fund, following the launch in 2013 of the £40m Foresight Nottingham Fund.  

James Livingston, Partner at Foresight, said: “Claire’s extensive knowledge and contacts within the Region’s business community will be a great asset as we grow relationships and identify opportunities for investment across a wide range of sectors.”

Alvarez added: “I am pleased to be joining Foresight’s dynamic private equity team. Foresight’s particular focus on smaller scale profitable businesses is extremely compelling and much in demand, and I look forward to developing our proven regional investment model within my home territory.”

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PROFESSIONAL services firm KPMG has recruited Michael Allen and Nicole Brock to strengthen its public sector practice in the North of England.
 
Allen joins the firm as a Partner, heading up the firm’s management consulting healthcare practice across the North and Brock, who has been with KPMG since 2008, will lead the development and growth of the firm’s northern public sector practice.

Allen, whose previous role at EY saw him lead a national team responsible for the delivery of hospital-based performance improvement and cost reduction programmes, has more than 20 years’ experience in the sector.

He has also held a number of roles within the NHS, including three years as assistant director of operations at Leeds Teaching Hospitals, where he was responsible for a combined budget of £120m and more than 900 employees.

At KPMG, Allen will maintain his focus on healthcare and work closely with clients to improve the quality, access and performance of their operations.
 
With more than 15 years’ experience, Brock has led complex public sector management consulting projects with a particular focus on performance improvement and cost reduction.
 
In her new role, areas of focus will include working with local government and healthcare organisations to address fiscal challenges, as well as supporting integration and reform across health and social care. Devolution will also form an integral aspect of Brock’s role; she will support local government, Combined Authorities, LEPs and partner organisations to develop and implement their plans for reform, governance and growth.
 
Chris Hearld, North region chairman at KPMG, added: “The public sector, specifically healthcare organisations, face a number of sizeable challenges in relation to cost reduction and performance improvement. This is a growing market for our firm and with a deep understanding of our clients’ needs both Nicole and Michael are well-placed to lead the expansion of their respective areas in the north.”

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AUDIT, tax and consulting firm RSM has appointed nuclear industry specialist Richard Arnott as a director in its new Cumbria office.
 
Arnott joins RSM’s consulting arm, formerly known as Outperform, which provides services to public and private sector organisations wanting to improve their bid, project, programme and portfolio management performance.

He will be based at the firm’s new permanent premises on the Westlakes Science & Technology park near Whitehaven which opened for business recently following RSM’s acquisition of Outperform in July last year.

Arnott joins from WYG Group where he was a director responsible for the Cumbria region’s business activities and managing the company’s nuclear frameworks and projects.

He has more than 20 years’ experience in the nuclear industry, during which time he has held posts in the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, Sellafield and the supply chain.
 
In addition to being a member of the Association for Project Management and a Practitioner of Managing Successful Programmes, Arnott is also a chartered civil engineer.

His career expertise includes business management, project and programme management, delivery assurance, strategy development, design and project engineering, and management consultancy in a business advisory capacity.

Paul Brown, RSM consulting partner said: “Richard brings with him significant experience of portfolio, programme and project management and his experience in the nuclear sector and his skill set will be invaluable to our client base.”

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FK Group, a nationwide full building envelope contractor with a head office in Manchester has strengthened its maintenance and small projects divisions with the appointment of Gavin Harriman as director.
 
Harriman joins the group from Lindum Group division KGM Roofing, where he was business development manager for five years. He assisted in growing the business from a £6m regional contractor to a nationally recognised company turning over £12m.

He will be responsible for FK Projects, delivering specialist smaller contracts along with managing the Group’s building envelope maintenance division, Envocare.

Envocare has clients including ASDA, Pets at Home and Royal Mail, providing maintenance services for a number of their distribution centres and stores.
 
Prior to KGM, Harriman founded his own business Arrico Roofing. He developed it into a £10m business working in the retail and distribution market, where he worked with clients including Volker Fitzpatrick, McLaren and Readie.
 
Harriman said: “I have been in the roofing sector for a significant time and have watched FK Group grow as a business to where they are today; offering a full service building envelope solution with clients nationwide and now internationally.

“I was attracted by the company’s ambition and growth targets. It is a real challenge to help grow the maintenance and small projects divisions within the overall FK Group. As the group continues to grow to the next level, these divisions remain key in the delivery of the complete building envelope solution.”
 
FK Group’s annual turnover reached over £46 m for the year to March 31 2015. For 2016 turnover is on course to for the £70m mark, an increase of 51%. 2015 saw the company establish two further offices in the UK; Birmingham and London plus an overseas office in Dubai.