Member Article

This week's North East appointments

The latest appointment news from across the region.

Mark Jackson, Arnia

Mark Jackson has been appointed to drive international growth plans at beehive monitoring systems and bee data collection business Arnia.

The new CEO is familiar industry figure in the North East, having previously been a Director at Knowledge House for 15 years and most recently, Chairman of the NE Region Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Prior to this his background is in Automotive supply for Nissan Tier 1 supplier Bundy and Business Analysis in the UK and Canada for, amongst others, Xerox and Nabisco.

He said “Arnia, as a business is a fascinating proposition. It has a truly unique product portfolio from an ‘off the shelf’ model for hobby beekeepers to large scale bespoke technology for some of the world’s biggest farmers.”

Arnia hardware remotely collects previously unobtainable data from bee hives of all shapes and sizes from all over the world.

Mark continued: “We can’t ignore the potential this data generates, and we also can’t ignore the value of ensuring future generations understand the importance of bee health and what it means to our World.

“This is why one of my main goals for the Company in the coming months is to develop a Curriculum ready, STEM module, based on bee science for roll-out nationally across Primary Schools.

“For this we will not only need the support of the education system, which is already in progress, we will also need key companies to get involved and involve organisations such as The Reece Foundation and Newcastle University who have already given their support to the programme.”

Rebecca Maddison, Knight Frank

The Newcastle office of property consultancy Knight Frank has promoted Rebecca Maddison to Associate in its Office Agency and Tenant Representation department.

Rebecca, who graduated in 2013 at CBRE, has worked in both the company’s Bristol and Leeds offices.

A member of Knight Frank’s Agency team for over two years, Rebecca has worked closely with Partner Patrick Matheson on key mixed-use developments and major instructions in the North East.

Mr. Matheson said: “We are a busy department working on projects from Teesside northwards and Rebecca is a great asset. We are delighted with her well-deserved promotion.”

Dakota Brown, Haines Watts

Accountancy firm Haines Watts North East, which has offices in Newcastle and Darlington ,has appointed Dakota Brown as an R&D Tax Executive.

With a first class honours in Accountancy and Finance, Dakota also boasts experience in client-facing roles including a previous role as a mortgage advisor.

As an R&D Tax Executive, she is responsible for working closely with clients to research and compile reports and analysis which can be used to claim R&D tax relief.

R&D tax relief is a corporation tax incentive which can reduce the tax bill of a company. These tax deductions are not automatically given to businesses and have to be accessed through a claim to HMRC.

Dakota said: “I’m excited to be part of the Haines Watts team. I was attracted to the company because of its excellent reputation for client relationships and delivery. The company invests in the development and training of its people which is great to be part of - I’m sure my skills will develop as my career progresses here at Haines Watts.”

Donna Bulmer, Managing Partner at Haines Watts North East, added: “We’re thrilled to welcome Dakota to the team here at Haines Watts. Her knowledge, passion and drive will help us continue to offer expert R&D tax advice to our wide portfolio of clients.

“She is already working towards her ATT qualification and has expressed an interest in furthering her career. We look forward to supporting Dakota as she progresses with her career.”

Andrew Lawrence, Barclays

Barclays today welcomes Andrew Lawrence to the North East team as the new Head of Small and Medium Business with responsibility for businesses across the North East.

Lawrence, who has worked at Barclays for ten years, has a wealth of experience having worked across the Retail Bank, Business and Corporate Bank and has also had substantial time in the payments industry through a variety of roles at Barclaycard.

Previous roles include Head of Relationship Management at Barclaycard with responsibility for Commercial Card and Payment Acceptance across the UK branch network. Most recently Lawrence took responsibility for developing the strategy and shaping the future of Small Business UK as Head of Business Management.

Commenting on his appointment Lawrence said: “I am incredibly proud of the opportunity to help North East small and medium businesses grow and thrive across the region I am so passionate about.

“I have recently relocated back ‘home’ to the North East where I have spent most of my life and it is incredibly exciting. I look forward to getting to know existing and new customers and the regional business community over the coming weeks and months.”

Anna Woods, Trend Bible

ONE of the country’s leading home and lifestyle trend forecasting agencies has appointed

Anna Woods has joined home and lifestyle trend forecasting agency Trend Bible as a Senior Trend Strategist.

Anna will manage a team of researchers and analysts at the Newcastle company, which is predicting future trends for major brands and manufacturers in the UK, USA and the Nordics.

Anna has 15 years’ experience in the industry and was previously Studio Manager at creative agency Tigerprint and Design Manager at greetings card firm Hallmark.

The agency sells its trend reports to major retailers and brands such as Marks & Spencer, Moonpig, Ronseal and Lego, giving them future insight to inform their strategic, product and marketing decisions.

Joanna Feeley, founder and CEO of Trend Bible, said: “Anna brings a wealth of experience to our senior management team both from a creative and a cultural perspective.

“Anna’s background will help strengthen our trend services to clients in the gift and greetings sector, where we work with companies who manufacture everything from birthday cakes and greetings cards to hampers and potted plants.”

Sally Forsyth, MESMA

Gateshead tech firm MESMA, which provides specialist quality assurance software for the education sector, has appointed Sally Forsyth as a business development executive.

Joining from employability and skills provider Working Links, Sally brings more than 10 years’ experience working with employers and partners within the education and skills sector.

MESMA software enables education leaders and administrators to better manage quality issues around apprenticeship delivery while also enabling schools, FE Colleges, training and employer providers to be prepared for Ofsted inspections, which can often take place at short notice.

Working alongside the directors, Sally will be responsible for developing new business, particularly in the FE, skills sector and employer providers, while overseeing the management of existing accounts, with specific responsibility to drive revenue and additional sales.

Director Carole Loader said: “We will benefit from Sally’s expertise to meet the demand from customers investing in new online solutions to help them meet the changing education landscape and growing focus on quality assurance.

“Armed with a robust expansion plan, strong customer base, and the on-going investment will ensure further success over the next 12 months and beyond.”

Join us next monday for more North East appointment news.