People on the move: Hilary Meredith Solicitors; Grafene; Together; Bermans; ResponseTap; KRPR

People on the move: Hilary Meredith Solicitors; Grafene; Together; Bermans; ResponseTap; KRPR

Hilary Meredith Solicitors in Wilmslow, Cheshire has appointed Zoe Holland as the firm’s first non-executive director.

Nationally recognised for entrepreneurship, innovation, and strategic leadership, Holland is managing director of ZebraLC, the technical due diligence, audit and consulting business focused on the legal sector.

As the firm’s first appointed NED, the role will include input into overall strategy, financial and operational performance, quality, risk and governance.

The role will add additional oversight at a time when the firm’s profile and success is growing to new heights and is at the forefront of ground-breaking legal change.

The company says Holland’s knowledge and insight into the personal injury sector is unique at a time of fundamental change and will bring invaluable contribution to the board.
 
Chief executive Hilary Meredith said: “This is a significant appointment for the firm.

“The delivery of quality legal service and adherence to sound corporate governance is central to Zoe’s ethos.  Her credibility within the industry is second to none and she has an important role to play in our long term development plans.”

Holland said: “Hilary Meredith Solicitors is a progressive, award-winning law firm nationally recognised for its work and campaigning on behalf of our armed forces.

“Over the last 12 months, the firm has influenced the top levels of government, policy and law-making through its campaigning and evidence at Parliamentary inquiries.  

“Hilary and her team are entirely committed in their continuing support to injured servicemen and women. Their passion to protect access to justice is inspirational.”

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Grafene, the relaxed fine dining establishment at 55 King Street in Manchester, has unveiled new head chef, Stephen Moore.

Moore makes the move across King Street from the nearby Gotham Hotel, with experience including working for three AA-rosette restaurants at Church Green in Lymm under Aiden Byrne, and at Thornton Hall Hotel on the Wirral under Matt Worswick.

Also joining the Grafene team this winter are David Bowman-Powell, restaurant manager, who joins from Nutters; bar manager Asa Cann, formerly of Quill; assistant general manager Aldona Jablonska formerly of Amba; and business development manager Rebecca Walker, formerly of Australasia and The Alchemist.

Paul Roden, the owner of Losehill House Hotel and restaurant in the Peak District, has brought his passion for fine food into the heart of the big city.
 
He said: “Stephen is working with the current menu but will be varying and adding new dishes as he proceeds. He has really impressed since day one, and Grafene has definitely moved up a notch.

“You can taste it in the quality of food, and I witness it every day in Stephen’s drive and determination.”

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Ritchie Watson, previously head of development funding at specialist lender Together, has been promoted to lending director and will focus on larger lending transactions between £500,000 and £10m.

Watson will cover all sectors of commercial and residential property, land and development throughout the UK.

Cheadle, Greater Manchester-based Together provides short-term finance, auction finance, residential, commercial and buy-to-let mortgages and secured loans. The business announced record results in 2016 with annual lending at just under £1.1bn and a current loan book of £2bn.

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North West commercial law firm Bermans has strengthened its offering with newly appointed partner Anton Stirrett joining the firm’s corporate team.

Experienced lawyer Stirrett, who joined the firm’s Liverpool office from Knights Professional Services, brings more than 15 years of industry knowledge to Bermans which also has offices in Manchester.

Stirrett specialises in all forms of corporate transactions including business acquisitions, MBOs, MBIs and corporate re-organisations.

He will use his experience and knowledge to act for a range of SME’s and owner managed businesses but also has expertise in the healthcare sector.

Fergal O’Cleirigh partner and head of property said: “We are very happy to welcome Anton to Bermans and I believe he will be a great addition to our Liverpool office. His recruitment reflects our continued dedication to ensuring our clients receive the best service possible.”
 
Stirrett said: “I am absolutely delighted to have joined Bermans.  Having been away from Liverpool for the past eight years, it is great to be back in the city and to be part of such a vibrant and well respected firm. Bermans already has a strong reputation in the Liverpool corporate market and it is my intention to grow this even further in the coming years.”

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Manchester-based ResponseTap – the call intelligence specialist – is preparing for its next phase of growth with two senior hires.

David Hutton has been appointed as chief revenue officer. A specialist in the strategic expansion of tech companies throughout the UK, he joins from neighbouring Manchester firm ANS Group.

He helped progress the cloud infrastructure business from a £5m turnover company to one posting £50m revenue five years later.

Before that he achieved equally significant business development success in sales director roles at Logicalis and Notability Solutions.

Heading up a 20-strong sales team that looks set to double in size over the next 12 months, Hutton will now be responsible for enterprise sales to blue-chip companies.

During this period of accelerated growth, he will also take charge of the continued engagement of existing clients and the nurturing of strategic relationships with partner agencies.

Hutton’s appointment coincides with the recruitment of head of marketing Nick Ashmore. Having kick-started his career with advertising agencies in London, Hutton now has 20 years’ industry experience.

This includes more than eight years as vice president of marketing at Monitise, where, responsible for lead generation and brand strategy, he helped grow the business from a tech start-up to a global leader in the mobile payments sector.

Chief technical officer Richard Hamnett said: “We have a clearly defined product roadmap that will see our call intelligence software further evolve over the coming year. The recruitment of David and Nick is therefore perfectly timed.”

We’re embarking on the next phase of our journey when I project our customer base will rise significantly, with a focus on the acquisition of larger key accounts too. It’s crucial that we have the right people in place to support this advancement.”

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Chorley based public relations agency KRPR has strengthened its team with a new appointment to the senior team.

Paul Owen joins KRPR as a PR account director following 17 years’ experience working in PR and communications.

Owen brings with him a host of skills and expertise across all sectors and an extensive network of key media contacts.

The appointment is a welcome addition to the KRPR team who successfully expanded in 2016 as well as scooping a Silver Award for Best Consumer Campaign at the industry renowned, CIPR PRide Awards.

Kara Rose, managing director at KRPR, said; “Paul is a fantastic addition to the team and with his unrivalled set of industry skills and experience, we have every confidence he will prove a great asset to the agency. Since his first steps into the office, Paul has hit the ground running by leading the accounts for a number of high profile clients and is set to further his career successfully here at KRPR.”

Owen said: “It’s a really exciting time be joining KRPR which has seen some major clients wins and expansion in the last year.  I’m looking forward to being part of that success, leading some of the businesses national campaigns and helping grow the business further through 2017.”

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