This week’s London appointments

Heidi Stephenson and Lucinda Walker, FirstPort

Property management firm FirstPort has made two senior appointments.

Heidi Stephenson joined the company as director of its luxury portfolio. She has 20 years’ experience in residential property management.

In her previous role, Heidi was associate director at Harrods Estates Asset Management/PL Management, where she looked after some of the group’s most luxurious developments.

Heidi said: “FirstPort is an extremely customer-focused business and I am keen to work with the team to provide our customers with an exemplary and market leading offer.”

Elsewhere, FirstPort has chosen Lucinda Walker as director of build-to-rent. She has more than 20 years’ experience in senior operations and project management, covering complex staff management, financial negotiations and strategic oversight.

Her career has included providing facilities and management services for some of the UK’s biggest sporting events, including the London Olympics 2012 and Commonwealth Games 2014.

Lucinda commented: “I look forward to using my experience of mobilising and delivering major events to ensure that our build-to-rent operation is slick, efficient and completely focused on the needs of customers as we strive for business excellence.”

Philip Wainwright, The Wates Group

Construction services business The Wates Group has appointed a new chief financial officer.

Philip Wainwright will join the company on December 3 following three years at building firm Willmott Dixon, where he is group finance director.

He will replace Rod Holdsworth, who joined as interim CFO in November last year. Philip will also serve as a member of the Wates Group board and executive committee.

Starting his career as a graduate engineer at Balfour Beatty, Philip later qualified as a chartered accountant with Ernst & Young. His background includes financial and general management roles with Byrne Group, Biwater Plc, Laing O’Rourke, ED&F Man and National Grid.

Wates Group chief exec David Allen said: “I am delighted to be welcoming someone of Philip’s calibre and experience to the team.

“He has enjoyed great success with a number of leading businesses and will, I’m sure, make a real difference to our push to make Wates an even more sustainable, modern and trusted organisation.”

He continued: “I would like to thank Rod Holdsworth for the substantial contribution he’s made over the last twelve months through his professional and diligent leadership of our finance and IT activities. He leaves with the thanks of the board and the executive committee and with our best wishes for the future.”

Philip commented: “I am absolutely delighted to be joining Wates as chief financial officer at such an exciting time.

“I know Wates as an industry leading business, with an amazing heritage, a fantastic family ethos, and really exciting plans for the future, which are supported by one of the strongest financial track records in our sector.”

Seema Desai, iwoca

Small business lender iwoca has named Seema Desai as its new chief operations officer.

Seema joined the London-headquartered firm as head of people in January 2017 and has since worked to develop iwoca’s talent and organisational capabilities.

Before iwoca, she led the development of the Innovative Finance ISA at peer-to-peer lender Zopa, where she was head of product.

Christoph Rieche, iwoca’s CEO and co-founder, said: “Seema has been an exceptional hire for iwoca, working tirelessly over the last 18 months to tackle the painful organisational challenges that beset hyper growth scale-ups like us.

“She has helped iwoca overcome these hurdles by fostering a mindful and motivated culture that enables the high performance essential for achieving our dream to fund a million small businesses. She’s smart, humble and passionate.”

He added: “As COO, I need her to continue to move mountains to unlock access to finance for small businesses across Europe.”

Seema Desai, COO and head of people, commented: “I’m proud to be part of iwoca’s mission to help small businesses thrive and I’m excited to play a greater role in what’s possible for our team going forward.

“Since I arrived at iwoca two years ago, I’ve seen what a tremendous difference the personal service provided by our expert Customer Success team makes for small business owners, empowering them to get the capital they need to achieve their full potential.”

She continued: “There’s still a lot more work to do and I’m thrilled to have my new role in that journey.”

Mark Smith, Ayming

Business performance consultancy Ayming has appointed Mark Smith as partner of its innovation incentives practice, which covers R&D tax incentives and grants.

Mark will lead the continued growth of the company’s innovation incentives team by developing business opportunities, overseeing client project delivery and looking after Ayming’s relationship with HMRC.

He was previously a director in the innovation reliefs and incentives team at professional services firm KPMG.

Mark said: “Ayming’s UK team is known for its scrupulous approach to the R&D incentives work it undertakes.

“After working for a big four firm for more than a decade, I’m looking forward bringing my extensive R&D experience to a dynamic challenger firm.”

He continued: “With many governments across the world setting ambitious R&D spending targets, there are going to be plenty of business opportunities.

“It’s exciting to have joined such a well-regarded specialist consultancy team, particularly so soon after the launch of the new benchmark tool.”

Ayming UK managing director Martin Hook commented: “Our Innovation Incentives Practice has been doing some outstanding work of late and things look set to continue on their current trajectory.

“Mark’s experience aligns perfectly with our goals to build on this growth and is exactly what is needed to support us for our big picture ambitions for the next few years. His dynamic leadership capabilities and extensive knowledge of the field will be crucial for us to build on our momentum.”

Alan Johnson, International Federation of Accountants

The International Federation of Accountants has appointed Alan Johnson as its new deputy president.

Alan is currently a non-exec director of the UK Department for International Development and chair of its audit and risk assurance committee.

He also chairs the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants’ (ACCA’s) Accountants for Business Global Forum, and is a former director of international food retailer Jerónimo Martins SGPS, S.A.

Alan said: “I am delighted and honoured to be nominated by ACCA to the position of deputy president of IFAC, and it is a privilege to be able to continue contributing to our global profession.

“ACCA is a very important member of IFAC and its role in helping develop the accounting profession around the world is critical in supporting strong and sustainable economies.”

Helen Brand, CEO of ACCA, commented: “The announcement of Alan Johnson as IFAC’s new deputy president is welcome and fantastic news.

“Alan has the stature and influence to represent the profession at a high level. His career spans over three decades, working across a number of continents and there is no better person suited for this global, distinguished appointment.”

She added: “On behalf of ACCA, I would like to congratulate him and we look forward to working even more closely with our colleagues at IFAC.”