Member Article

Optionis appoints First Freelance founder to Executive Team and backs FCSA

Optionis Group, the market leading professional services provider for contractors, has appointed First Freelance founder Mark Beal-Preston as Chief Commercial Officer

This comes as Optionis, the specialist in accountancy, tax and umbrella employment solutions to contractors and small businesses, confirmed their FCSA accreditation on Tuesday, November 6, 2018.

Headquartered in Warrington, Cheshire, the group has 11 offices across the UK with over 650 employees and encompasses seven brands, including SJD Accountancy and Parasol, the largest accountancy and umbrella organisations in the industry respectively.

This accreditation is the gold standard for the industry and reinforces Optionis’ full compliance and commitment to industry standards in supporting contractors, recruiters and end clients in offering a high level of service, in what can be a complex market.

Mark’s new role as Chief Commercial Officer sees him bring over 10 years’ experience of the contractor market, including his previous position on the Board of the FCSA. He is responsible for all sales, marketing and commercial partnerships across the group, with the aim to drive high growth initiatives for all brands.

His previous role was Managing Director and Founder of First Freelance, the London-based contractor accountancy firm, which was acquired by Optionis in February 2018 following on from the group’s merger with the Arkarius Group in 2017.

Mark’s appointment coincides with the appointment of Amy Davies as Director of Sales.

Amy has been with the group since 2015 as Head of Service Delivery for Parasol and Group Onboarding, following a career in corporate services and business transformation. She will now oversee a team of 60 across Optionis’ Parasol and ClearSky brands ensuring that potential clients receive the best, expert advice.

CEO Derek Kelly said: “I’m delighted to have Mark on board in his new role and I know that, with his strong experience and heavy focus on contractor supply chain compliance, he’ll be a real asset to the team and our agency partners.

“Our recent FCSA accreditation, including passing the detailed compliance audit to gain this, just shows that Optionis is a strong, reliable and compliant business and we’re going from strength to strength.

“With the continued growth of the group it’s crucial that we have a strong leadership in place to steer us to a successful future, and we have invested in our Executive Team by appointing several new members in recent months.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emily Craig .