Member Article

This week's North East appointments

A penultimate 2017 roundup of the latest appointments from across the North East.

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Brian Archer, Business Durham

Economic development organisation Business Durham has appointed Brian Archer as its new managing director, replacing Dr Simon Goon who left earlier this year to take up a new role at artificial intelligence company Dr Simon Goon.

A former business development director for a FTSE 250 company, Mr Archer has been chief executive of two Business Links and was recently commercial director of Leeds City College Group. He has also run his own business which gives him the insight to understand the needs of start-ups and SMEs.

He commented: “I believe there’s a wider role for business to not only generate prosperity but to change lives by creating new opportunities and raising aspirations.

“Business Durham is already making that happen and I look forward to supporting and leading the team as they continue to find innovative ways to help businesses in County Durham thrive and grow. I see this role as an exciting opportunity to make a difference.”

Cllr Carl Marshall, Durham County Council’s Cabinet member for economic regeneration, said: “Brian is an outstanding candidate with a wealth of experience in different roles across the country, spanning various sectors at director level.

“His experience of running his own business will also be particularly beneficial when working to promote the interests of SMEs in the county. We are very much looking forward to working with him.”

Angela Anderson, Claire Clough and Paul Lee, Cellular Solutions

Sunderland-headquartered Cellular Solutions, a firm which works with businesses to improve communications, operations and processes, has recruited three new staff members in the form of Angela Anderson, Claire Clough and Paul Lee.

The trio will work as part of the company’s Direct Marketing Unit (DMU), playing key roles in helping to build the organisation’s presence in target sectors including professional services, engineering, manufacturing and construction.

Angela Anderson, from Gateshead, has more than 29 years of sales experience gained from working in telesales and customer focused roles.

Prior to joining Cellular Solutions, Angela was area sales manager at stationery supplier, OfficeTeam Limited, for 20 years. She also worked in a sales role at John Heath & Company for nine years.

Claire Clough, from Preston, has over 20 years’ insurance sales experience and previously worked at Swinton Insurance where she held various positions including customer service representative, customer service manager and branch manager.

Paul Lee, from County Durham, has previously held customer service positions at housing association, Livin, and undertaken a claims handler role at insurance specialist Auxillis.

Mike Bowers, managing director of Cellular Solutions, said: “I am delighted to welcome Angela, Claire and Paul to the team. They are all vibrant and enthusiastic team members who share the friendly and customer-focused mindset that Cellular Solutions is renowned for.

“We are continuing to build our presence across a range of sectors and the arrival of the new team members represents our continued commitment and investment in business development activities to drive growth. I am looking forward to the impact that Angela, Claire and Paul will have on our future success.”

Ian Scott Bell, Digital Allies

Ian Scott Bell has joined the senior management team at Houghton-le-Spring headquartered Digital Allies.

The business provides a broad spectrum of digital marketing services including data analytics, digital marketing consultancy and training, social media management, Google Adwords management, web design and development and SEO.

As both a new director and investor, Ian believes the company has huge untapped potential due to its “unique, collaborative approach” with clients.

Ian has spent spent the best part of two decades in senior business development roles at Procter and Gamble, recruitment business Nigel Wright, and Sedbergh School in Cumbria.

He said: “Clearly the digital landscape is constantly evolving but the need for businesses to incorporate digital marketing into their day-to-day activities will become increasingly important and for certain businesses essential for their long-term survival.

“Digital Allies stands out because not only has it developed a deep understanding of the technology, it has also developed work processes to help clients get the most out of digital channels.

“The company’s collaborative approach is rare in today’s marketplace as it takes the time to listen to the client and only sell the client what they need.

“I was on the buying side at Sedbergh School and Digital Allies equipped my team to take on all of our digital marketing in-house, by optimising our analytics account and helping set up our display, remarketing and adwords campaigns for us to manage.”

Steven Parker, managing director at Digital Allies, added: “Ian brings a wealth of experience gathered over a long service within the marketing discipline, and has a great understanding of traditional marketing strategies and tactics that some digital agencies often overlook as they either don’t understand them fully, or believe they have no place in a modern business strategy.

“He has a great deal of experience that both our clients and Digital Allies will benefit greatly from. His career to date has been client side so he really understands the challenges that in-house teams face on a daily basis – something that many agencies struggle to achieve.”

Anthony Bate, Parkdean Resorts

Family holiday operator Parkdean Resorts has made Anthony Bate the company’s youngest general manager after the 24 year old graduated from the firm’s Inspiring Our Next (ION) Hospitality Graduate Management Programme.

After completing a degree in business management Anthony joined the ION Programme in 2015, and during the 18 month course gained experience of working across some of Parkdean Resorts’ UK holiday parks as an aspiring deputy general manager, before permanently taking the role at the end of the programme.

Soon after, Anthony was successful in his application for the position of general manager at Cresswell Towers, seeing him become the youngest of over 70 GMs within the business.

Anthony said: “I developed a passion for the industry whilst on a placement with Parkdean Resorts during my university studies.

“It was then that I realised that my future was in holiday parks, so I applied for the ION Programme and haven’t looked back. To be the company’s youngest general manager is a proud achievement, and I’m fortunate to have a job that I love close to home.”

Parkdean Resorts HR director Maggie Pavlou added: “We launched ION in 2014 with the aim of developing future leaders to bolster our management division, whilst offering desirable career opportunities in the hospitality industry for graduates, recognising the qualifications they’ve worked so hard to achieve.

“All too often North East graduates seek jobs outside of the region, and the introduction of ION has allowed us to attract and retain talent for professional roles in our central support office as well as positions out on our parks – an exciting prospect for those wishing to return home or relocate.”

Kathryn Kent, Bradley Hall

North East estate agents Bradley Hall has appointed a new office manager and a property apprentice to support operations at its Alnwick branch

Kathryn Kent continues in her successful property career as manager of the Narrowgate office after over a decade in the industry. Devon Wilce has also been appointed to support Kathryn, area valuer Liz Humphreys and director of estate agency Matt Hoy.

Matt said: “We are delighted to welcome Kathryn and Devon to the team. Kathryn showed a fantastic understanding and a wealth of experience within the local property market.

“She was the ideal candidate to take the Alnwick office to the next level amid this important time for business growth for Bradley Hall.

“Kathryn has already implemented some great offers for our clients, brought some fantastic traditional and new homes to the market and made a positive impact in her short time with us so far.

“As a company Bradley Hall is dedicated to preparing the next generation of property experts. Devon has already shown her enthusiasm and we are looking forward to seeing her grow within this role.”

Join us next monday for our final North East appointment roundup of 2017.