People: Cushman & Wakefield welcomes 2019 graduates and apprentices; New head of IT at Al Rayan Bank; and more
Forty-four graduates and seven apprentices have taken the first steps of their real estate careers with Cushman & Wakefield, including three in the firm’s Birmingham office.
The graduates will spend the next two years working towards a professional qualification through the RICS, CIBSE and RTPI. The apprentices have a structured five-year programme, including studying part-time for a BSc undergraduate degree, and will also work towards their APC in their final two years.
Graduates Harry Abell, Isabella Garrett and Ben Robinson have joined Cushman & Wakefield’s Birmingham office, based at No.1 Colmore Square.
David Tonks, head of Cushman & Wakefield’s Birmingham office, said: “I’m pleased to welcome another talented and enthusiastic intake of graduates to the Birmingham office this year. All our graduates and apprentices are given fantastic opportunities to develop their skillset which is a key factor in our APC success rate. Harry, Isabella and Ben will follow in the footsteps of last year’s new starts who have quickly established themselves as valued members of the Birmingham team.”
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Al Rayan Bank has announced the appointment of Peter Wren as its new head of IT.
The position will be based at the UK’s largest Islamic bank’s headquarters in Birmingham.
Wren brings with him over 20 years’ experience working in IT roles for companies in the financial services and pharmaceutical sectors. He was most recently programme director at Birmingham-based financial mutual society, Wesleyan, where he was responsible for implementing new tools and technology into the business to improve services.
As head of IT, he will play a pivotal role in shaping the strategy for technology for the next five years. This will include ensuring that Al Rayan Bank’s 85,000 customers are able interact with the Bank in the style most suited to them – online, by phone, in branch or by the new mobile banking app, scheduled to be delivered later this year.
He said: “It’s a very exciting time to join Al Rayan Bank, with innovation and development of the customer experience front and centre of our priorities. In a world where consumers want convenience, it’s important that the team and I continue to find ways to ensure the technology allows people to access their accounts where they want and when they want.
“As Al Rayan Bank celebrates its fifteenth birthday this year, I am looking forward to working alongside an already very talented team of people to ensure it continues to offer best in class ethical and Sharia compliant products and services for the future.”
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Midlands PR and media firm Advent Communications has continued its growth by appointing a new account manager.
Rhys Berry has joined the Coventry-based company from an industry trade publication, where he had worked as a reporter before becoming news editor.
The appointment comes on the back of a series of new client wins for Advent, which has been in business for 21 years.
Berry will work across a range of clients in the firm’s portfolio including in the education and professional services sectors.
Director Lee Corden said: “It’s great to have someone with Rhys’s experience in journalism on board.
“Working for a trade title means being able to take quite technical information and turning into copy that’s engaging and interesting for the reader.
“We work across a range of sectors and help our clients to achieve coverage locally, regionally and nationally on broadcast media, in print and on the web and that skillset is a perfect fit for us.”
