People: Alantra expands with KPMG hire; New director for Warwick Conferences; and more

Alantra has expanded its Birmingham team with the appointment of Rena Sandhu as a director.

Sandhu was previously at KPMG in Birmingham where she specialised in Private Capital and Deal Advisory (M&A and Valuations), advising a range of local businesses from FTSE 100 companies to privately owned family businesses.

She will focus on building Alantra’s presence with corporate clients and investors across the Midlands, ensuring they have access to the full suite of corporate advisory and capital raising solutions that Alantra provides as a mid-market advisory business, working alongside the partner group comprising Richard Sanders, Justin Crowther and Simon Peacock.

During the last12 months, Alantra’s advisory teams have completed over 150 deals for a total value of more than £14bn, acting on behalf of private company shareholders, global corporations, private equity funds and other financial institutions.

Richard Sanders, partner at Alantra and senior partner of the Midlands office, said: “It is great to welcome Rena to our strong Midlands team. Having worked within the Midlands business community for more than twenty years, she brings a wealth of experience and local relationships that will deepen our coverage in the region.  As a result of our merger with Alantra two years ago, we are able to provide international reach, deep resources, sector specialism and access to a global network of investors and acquirers, and we are committed to ensuring our Midlands-based clients are able to take full advantage of these.  Rena’s appointment reflects our commitment to the region and to investing behind our people in key markets.”
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Warwick Conferences – the University of Warwick’s conference, meeting and events organisation – has appointed a new director.

Paul Bartlett has stepped into the senior role after six years with the organisation, which last year hosted more than 17,000 events.

All the surplus generated by Warwick Conferences, which has more than 100 meeting spaces and 458 on-site bedrooms, is reinvested into teaching, learning and research at the University of Warwick.
Bartlett became head of sales for Warwick Conferences in June 2018.

He said: “These are very exciting times for Warwick Conferences and for Coventry, Warwickshire, the West Midlands and our wider region. Coventry being UK City of Culture in 2021 and the region playing host to the Commonwealth Games means the international focus will be on our part of the world like never before and it is vital that we maximise that spotlight.

“Our service has always been at the top of industry standards and recent investments in our facilities including in the creation of The Slate centre and refurbishment of our Radcliffe complex alongside work to remodel our public areas at Scarman, mean we are operating to the very highest standard in the sector.

“We have also added outdoor meeting spaces and other initiatives – such as links with our new Sports and Wellness Hub – which other venues just cannot offer and therefore give us unique selling points.

“Going forward we are looking to strengthen partnerships with other organisations so we can add something extra which will allow us to build our weekend custom as well as add to the range of attractions for mid-week business.

“I know the business very well across the board and that will be a great help in further strengthening relationships both across the region and nationally but also with the wider university community.

“I am confident we will be able to continue to grow the business and ultimately benefit the university.”

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The Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP) Growth Hub has strengthened its team with the appointment of account manager and urban planning specialist Chris Lawes.

Lawes joins from Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council where, as economic development manager, he wrote and delivered the economic development strategy for the borough.

As account manager specialising in planning, he will work closely with businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire to assist with their growth strategies.

He said: “I’m thrilled to have joined CWLEP Growth Hub and am looking forward to assisting expanding businesses in the region.

“During my time at Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council, I worked regularly with the Growth Hub and was impressed by the level of support the organisation was able to provide.

“The Growth Hub has played a leading role in helping businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire make key decisions about their strategies for growth.”