People: The latest West Midlands hires

Absolute Collagen has appointed Frances Russell as CEO to lead the company into its next phase of growth.

Russell has held senior positions at Amazon, M&S and Arcadia Group.

The company, which produces a liquid marine collagen supplement which fights the visible signs of ageing, was founded in May 2017 by Wolverhampton-based Maxine Laceby.

Since then, the business has expanded rapidly, now turning over £10m by the end of its third year and employing a team of 15.

Russell said: “I am very excited to be joining Absolute Collagen as the CEO. As soon as I met Maxine and Darcy I was very impressed by what had been achieved in such a short space of time and the amazing future potential.

“I am looking forward to working with the team to help grow the business.”

Laceby said: “Frances’ appointment will allow me to concentrate further on the needs of our growing community of Absoluters as well as focusing on creative development of the brand.”

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Telecommunications and security systems integrator Optilan has appointed a new member onto its leadership team following an internal promotion.

Craig Atkin has been promoted to engineering and technology director from his previous position as engineering manager.

In his new role, he will continue to oversee Optilan’s global engineering function but will now also focus on the development of our technology portfolio, which has been identified as a key strategic area of growth for the company.

Bill Bayliss, chief executive at Optilan, said: “Craig made an immediate impact in our team. He has quickly grasped the Optilan engineering and technology portfolio and has been instrumental in providing this expertise across the business.

“Technology is a core part of our growth plans to deliver the ambitions of our 2024 Business Strategy. With Craig on board, we can accelerate technology-enabled products to become the benchmark in the security and telecommunications industry for agility, quality and change. Craig is a great fit for this new role, which will strengthen our expertise and responsiveness to new challenges and opportunities.”

Atkin said: “I am incredibly passionate about how our engineering and technology teams can support the aspirations of our clients. I am really excited about the new opportunities and challenges that my role affords me. I also look forward to working together with DarkPulse to enhance synergies between our companies and bring new technologies to market.”

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Property and planning consultancy Rapleys has witnessed a healthy growth to its West Midlands team and, since opening in 2016, its Birmingham office has expanded by 60%.

Rapleys Building Consultancy, Land Development Project Management and Town Planning teams have all made key hires over the last year.

Stuart Adkins, senior surveyor, joined the Building Consultancy team, while Gurpreet Narle, senior project manager, joined the Land Development Project Management and Zarina Ali, planner, joined the Town Planning team.

Following the appointment of Richard Crow, partner and most recently Stuart Adkins, senior surveyor, who joined the Birmingham team in November, Rapleys has cemented a strong regional presence across the West Midlands.