People: RWO; Rathbones Investment Management; Eaton Smith Solicitors; and more

Yorkshire civil and structural engineering business, RWO, has appointed a new executive director following strong growth for the firm’s ground engineering services.

The move sees Chris Rudd, who leads the Geotechnical Department, step up to the board level role after securing £500,000 growth in the last 12 months. He is now targeting £1m in revenues by 2026.

Currently employing 30 people and targeting revenues in excess of £2.8m in FY24, RWO is continuing to recruit for engineering and technician roles including geotechnical specialists to support new business and growth.

Rudd said: “We have built an experienced and dedicated geotechnical team which has been the backbone of strong growth in the last 12 months.

“We continue to see opportunities across the UK as construction and the new homes sector ramps-up investment, with some great projects coming online.”

Ross Oakley, managing director, added: “Congratulations to Chris, who has led and built our geotechnical services quickly and successfully.

“Clients are benefiting from his strong technical insight, leadership qualities and project management experience. I look forward to seeing his career continue to go from strength-to-strength at RWO.”

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Rathbones Investment Management, now incorporating Investec Wealth and Investment UK (IW&I UK), has strengthened its investment management team in Leeds with five new hires.

Investment directors Andrew Goodchild and David Shorrock and investment managers David Wainman, Nick Beanland and David Herdsman have joined from Brown Shipley, bringing over 100 years of wealth management experience to the team.

The new hires have joined the Rathbones Leeds office, headed by Rowena Houston, bolstering the existing team and bringing additional expertise to clients in the local area.

Rathbones is now present in Leeds thanks to its combination with IW&I UK, which completed in September of 2023.

Julian Rathbone, head of North at Rathbones, said: “I am pleased to welcome our new colleagues to the Rathbones Investment Management team in Leeds.

“Their expertise will help us meet the growing demand for our services and as we forge strong connections with local clients, businesses, and advisers.

“We are looking forward to working with them as we continue to deliver the high-quality service our clients expect.”

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Martha Khan at Eaton Smith Solicitors has officially qualifying as a solicitor after successfully completing her training contract at the firm.

She joined Eaton Smith in 2021 as a legal assistant in the Commercial Property team. She has now become a member of the Dispute Resolution team as solicitor.

Khan said: “I am so pleased that I have qualified after lots of hard work. I have loved my time being a trainee solicitor at Eaton Smith and am very excited to see where the next stage in my career takes me at the firm.

“A massive thanks to all my colleagues at Eaton Smith LLP for supporting me during this process.”

James Burgess, partner and training principal, added: “Martha has throughout her training shown great enthusiasm in developing her skills and her role within the legal profession. 

“I am incredibly proud to have worked with her as a mentor and, on behalf of the firm, I would like to congratulate Martha on her achievement and look forward to working with her as she embarks upon her career.”

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Dave Stonehouse

The IT Services business of Leeds-headquartered independent engineering and services company, NG Bailey, has made strategic changes to its leadership team as it prepares for further growth.

As part of the reorganisation, the division has consolidated its Mobile Services and National Operations units into the newly created ConnectOp Service.

The new business unit will handle all non-defence sector work and will be led by operations director Sam Young.

Alongside the unification of the operations teams, there have also been changes made to the business’s senior leadership team (SLT).

Dave Stonehouse has been promoted to the role of technical director. He will be focused on ensuring the business remains at the forefront of innovation and continues to transform what is possible in connectivity, data management and analysis.

Indi Sall

Indi Sall has also been promoted, becoming business development director, and will work with the support of fellow SLT members to further grow IT Services’ customer base as part of its new ambitious growth plan.

Kelly Tedesco, managing director of NG Bailey IT Services, said: “IT Services has been on a significant growth journey since we implemented our three-year growth plan in 2022.

“After two consecutive years of revenue growth and a strong performance by the team, this reorganisation is designed to build on our success and ensure we are even better placed to deliver transformational connectivity solutions to our customers.”