People: RapidSpike; UNTHA UK; Chatter Communications; and more

Leeds-based website testing specialist RapidSpike is continuing its growth trajectory following an increase in headcount and new client wins.

The company has appointed Andy Court as its new head of marketing. Having spent most of his career managing expert teams in the tech sector, he has vast experience in driving strategic organisational growth.

Most notably he helped guide and grow Cascade – now IRIS Cascade – from a start-up to becoming a multi-million pound HR software leader.

Meanwhile, Tom Leeming will strengthen the firm’s client function in his new role as business development manager.

Previously he ran two successful companies which provided a range of services within the education sector, and has since moved to RapidSpike for a new challenge.

Both will play a vital part in expanding the organisation’s industry presence within the eCommerce and tech sectors.

Court said: “More than simply website uptime needs to be monitored for businesses to be successful online and create conversion-rich opportunities in today’s digital-first world.

“The web is open 24-hours-a-day, every day of the year and organisations need to maximise performance, reliability, accessibility, and security if they’re going to lead from the front, enhance the customer experience, and develop genuine brand loyalty.”

Leeming added: “Customers now expect websites to perform at a higher level than ever before. Even marginal gains of 0.1% faster speeds can represent millions of extra revenue for the UK’s largest brands for example, not to mention significant sustainability savings.”

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North Yorkshire-based industrial shredder business, UNTHA UK, has promoted three of its staff.

Long-serving engineer, Ben Styles, has taken on the more senior role of service manager.

With almost 20 years’ engineering experience, he will play a pivotal part in further developing customer service levels and the aftersales team’s evolving skill-sets.

Dave Knowles – who was appointed as a support engineer in 2021 – has progressed to applications engineer.

Drawing on over 10 years of waste shredding knowledge as both a supplier and operator, he is well equipped to answer customers’ technical queries.

He will therefore provide crucial resource during UNTHA UK’s shredder trials, through to the commissioning and ongoing maintenance phases of a machine’s lifecycle.

Finally, Tony Gillham has been promoted from the position of project co-ordinator to project manager.

His wealth of experience across defence, transport, systems infrastructure and more, means he is well-versed in the delivery of complex projects.

Over the past 30 years, he has adopted coordinator, engineering and management roles on such assignments, and will now act as the bridge between UNTHA UK’s sales and engineering departments, to plan and execute the commissioning of shredding solutions large and small.

Quality manager, Marie Dransfield, said: “As we plan for the future, growth doesn’t just come in the shape of new starters.

“We already have a lot of talent within the business – not least because many colleagues have been with us for a number of years – and core to our ongoing success will be the continued development and progression of these hard-working individuals too.

“We believe we’ve created something quite special, particularly in terms of our culture and industry reputation. This wouldn’t be possible without our existing team.”

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Employer brand agency, Chatter Communications, has welcomed four new starters to its team as it continues to grow.

Chatter works with businesses to improve how they attract, recruit and engage with their talent. Its head office is at Castleton Mill, in Leeds.

Nadia Pluck has joined the team as head of operations. She has been part of the creative agency scene in Leeds for nearly 20 years, including positions at CreativeRace, Hub and DS.Emotion.

During this time she worked with national brands in retail, property and B2B, across the whole spectrum of marketing, branding, strategy and creative delivery.

She will be tasked with looking at ways to boost the agency’s core expertise and strategic and creative thinking and improving ways of working.

Naomi Booth Wade has arrived as research & insight analyst, bringing with her several years of experience in the management consulting industry.

Her most recent role was as a research consultant for Cirrus, part of Accenture, in conjunction with Alliance Manchester Business School, and she also previously worked in a research position at Leeds University Business School.

Two new account directors have also taken up their roles at Chatter.

James Newbigin has a vast amount of experience in partnership management within professional sport, having worked at Harlequins, Bath Rugby and Southampton Football Club, managing partnerships with the likes of Adidas, Under Armour, Virgin Media and Etihad Airways.

The second new account director is Kirsty Northage, bringing with her a wealth of relationship management expertise. Prior to joining Chatter she was an account director for an event management agency, working on global employee engagement events and incentives.

Paul Ainley, managing director, said: “These four experienced and talented individuals have already fitted in perfectly and it’s great to be able to see how their knowledge can directly improve both the team’s working lives and the success of our clients’ campaigns.

“It’s a really exciting time in the people sector. More and more organisations are starting to recognise the value of employee experience and its link to brand performance – particularly as recruitment and retention are such key issues right now.”

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Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT) has strengthened its events offering across venues after appointing two new events officers.

Muhammad Aqeel and Olivia Maltby have joined to help deliver events across the trust’s range of facilities.

Aqeel, who has a degree in global business management from Coventry University London, previously founded his own events company, organising a concert for more than 10,000 people.

He said: “This role with DCLT caught my attention immediately as I think it aligns perfectly with my skills and working experience as an events promoter.

“I am confident I will be able to achieve my personal and professional goals at DCLT.”

Maltby, who has a degree in theatre from University of York, has significant experience as a production assistant and has worked as an arts festival producer, planning, running and overseeing a large event.

She said: “This role includes organising and supervising business, promotional and social events and working with management to enhance the event’s success.

“I will work with the people of Doncaster in mind and my priority is ensuring our events always meet the audience’s needs.”

Chris Hone, head of commercial development at DCLT, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Muhammad and Olivia to the team.

“We are dedicated to delivering exciting and engaging events, from world-class music and comedy acts at The Dome to community-focused social activities. We are always looking for talented people who can strengthen our team and our offering to the community.”