Appointments: FMG; Irwin Mitchell; JWPCreers; IoD

FLEET incident management company FMG has appointed Mark Chessman as its new chief operating officer.

The qualified management accountant has joined the Huddersfield-based company after 12 years at Lex Autolease latterly as corporate sales director.

Chessman – who has now taken responsibility for the daily operation of the business – said: “FMG has always been very highly regarded in the outsourced incident management arena, and it has been both a respected competitor and supplier in my past.

“It is great to now be part of the FMG team and my aim is to ensure we maintain our market-leading position.”

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The Sheffield office of national law firm Irwin Mitchell has boosted its specialist financial crime expertise with the appointment of Sarah Smith as an associate solicitor.

Smith – who has joined form Howells in Sheffield – will now lead its leading regulatory and criminal investigations team.

She has extensive experience of all types of investigations and prosecutions brought by a multitude of authorities and agencies, ranging from the Serious Fraud Office, Financial Services Authority, HMRC, Crown Prosecution Service, the Health and Safety Executive and the Environment Agency.

Smith said: “It’s already clear from my short time here that the firm is forward thinking and keen to push forward to further success – I have no doubt that working at an ambitious firm will not only broaden my skills but also help me to learn new disciplines.”

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Taxation specialist Alastair Byrne  has been appointed a partner at Yorkshire accountants and business advisers JWPCreers.

Byrne – also the firm’s head of tax planning – qualified as a chartered accountant in London in 1987 and the following year moved to Leeds where he worked with national practices.

He joined JWPCreers as a senior manager in 2008.

He subsequently set up the firm’s owner-managed businesses and corporate tax advisory service, working closely with the corporate finance team, led by partner, Tony Farmer, and was promoted to associate in 2010. 

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Natalie Sykes has been appointed regional director of the North East branch of the Institute of Directors (IoD).
Sykes is also regional director in Yorkshire and the Humber – a role which she took up in May 2014.
The Harrogate-based entrepreneur has a range of business interests including property, supercars as well as health and wellbeing.
She said: “I am passionate about growing businesses and entrepreneurship in the North – through my role with the IoD I want to encourage professionals young and not so young to take advantage of our membership benefits, director development and excellent events.”