People: Promotion at translation services firm; Former Kelloggs exec joins supply chain and logistics consultancy; and more

Language services provider thebigword has promoted Clare Riches to director of its fast-growing defence and international security division.

Riches joined thebigword as an administrator in 2008, progressed through a series of business development roles and was instrumental in helping to win the company’s first interpreting contract with the UK Ministry of Defence in 2011.

The division has more than 200 linguists deployed globally in countries such as Ukraine, Iraq, Kurdistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, northern Africa and Jordan.

It provides face-to-face interpreting, written translation, cultural advice, English language and foreign language training to customers in the public and private sector.

These include the UK MOD, the US Department of Defense, FEMA, the Canadian Armed Forces and a number of global defence and aerospace prime contractors.

New wins including NATO at its Brussels headquarters and the US Navy across Europe are driving growth at the division.

Riches said: “I have seen at first hand how our interpreters and translators are helping to secure peace and prosperity and provide stability during uncertain times.

“We are recruiting to expand our business, including new hires in our Washington DC and Middle East operations.

“We are also developing our support for individuals and communities whose lives have been impacted by war, both in the UK and overseas, through increased awareness and charitable activities.

“For example, we are proud to be helping Afghan interpreters who gain UK residency with training and employment opportunities in the UK.”

Riches studied German and English Literature at Leeds University before joining thebigword.

Group turnover at thebigword is set to reach $100m this financial year.

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Supply chain and logistics consultancy SCALA, based in Huddersfield, has welcomed a new senior consultant to bolster its ambitious expansion plans.

Paul Bebbington has over 27 years’ of experience in supply chain and logistics management and will play a key role in helping SCALA to expand its services and drive the business forward.

Previously the head of European distribution for Kelloggs, Bebbington oversaw the company’s distribution strategy across the whole of Europe and was responsible for managing teams and programmes across various departments, including cost and service improvement, logistics sourcing, 3PL contract management and network optimisation.

During his time with Kelloggs, he also worked within the change management department and led the supply chain integration for Kellogg’s acquisition of Pringles.

Most recently, he spent around two years working with Sanofi, a bio-pharma manufacturing company, where he was responsible for developing and implementing a change management program across a portfolio of initiatives, including an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation, and lean and integrated business planning programmes.

He said: “Having spent a large proportion of my career within the supply chain and logistics sector, the move to SCALA seemed like the perfect fit. The company strives to be at the forefront of industry best practice, and offers expert insight and knowledge to help clients innovate and meet the evolving challenges of supply chain management.

“I’m looking forward to using my experience and skills to support our clients so that they can deliver tangible value and benefits in their supply chain and logistics operations.”

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The real estate team at the Leeds office of Mills & Reeve is welcoming four members to the team.

Cassandra Lumb has joined as an associate from Lupton Fawcett, while Tom Flounders is joining from Needle Partners in Leeds, also as an associate.

Meanwhile, principal associate Andrea Newman has relocated from Mills & Reeve’s office in Cambridge to lead the team’s expansion of its agribusiness offering in Yorkshire.

Newman advises on complex development projects and acts on promotions and collaboration agreements as well as land sales and purchases. She will be joined in the Leeds office by fellow principal associate, Nichola Ross, who is also relocating from Cambridge and specialises in agribusiness.

Simon Sherwood, partner and head of the Leeds real estate team, said the expansion follows a number of high profile client wins and the team is anticipating a very busy year ahead.

He said: “We are delighted to welcome Cassandra and Tom to Mills & Reeve both of whom will be a valuable addition to the team. It is also a pleasure to welcome Andrea and Nichola who will spearhead the expansion of our agribusiness services. There are many opportunities in the Yorkshire market and the team is now in an excellent position to capitalise on these and significantly grow our real estate offering.”