This week's London appointments

Markus Malik, Areaworks

Areaworks, a flexible office provider, has announced the appointment of Markus Malik, as acting chief financial officer.

Markus worked for more than two decades at some of the world’s largest finance and professional service companies, including as a vice president of MetLife Insurance Company and CFO and treasurer of MetLife Bank. He has also held senior roles at Capita Plc, Capgemini UK, and Pearson.

Markus commented: “I am delighted to be joining Areaworks at such an important time in their growth.

“Across the world, working from home has broken the habit of commuting to congested, urban centres.

“People are calling out for a solution to go to work without unnecessary journeys and our workspace buildings offer that solution.

“Areaworks delivers an attractive proposition to both investors and clients, and with the world of work and property evolving fast, it is sure to be a fulfilling role.”

Panny Lawrence, founder of Areaworks, added: “It is great to welcome someone of Markus’ calibre to the business – his skill set is truly complementary to the rest of our team and his experience in large transactions will be a vital part of our strategy to grow our portfolio.

“He joins us at a time when he can really help us make a difference to the logistics of work and the constantly developing ‘new normal’.

“We have seen an increase in enquiries for our spaces as the country starts to get back to work.

“Our offices are designed with the greatest consideration to COVID-19 and we look forward to facilitating this shift.

“Where people are cautious of getting on public transport to travel to large city-centre offices but want to escape the kitchen table, our offices offer a mix of the two.

“Far enough from home, close enough for a safe journey, familiar enough to feel comfortable and professional enough to unleash your potential through higher productivity.”

James Ahearne, Retirement Villages Group

Retirement Villages Group has appointed James Ahearne to its expanding planning and development team.

Chartered planning and development surveyor James takes up the role of development director, having started his career working for supermarket Lidl, where he spent 10 years - latterly heading up its North London property office.

One of James’ initial major projects is overseeing the redevelopment of Sheer House in the centre of West Byfleet, Surrey.

James said: “I am delighted to be working with Retirement Villages and aim to build on what I have achieved so far within the sector to help the team to deliver best-in-class buildings, place-making and community experiences.”

David Bolton, Draper & Dash

London based predictive healthcare data analytics company Draper & Dash (D&D) today announced that it has appointed David Bolton as chief revenue officer.

In his new role, David will direct D&D’s global go-to-market strategy and execution, guiding worldwide sales, services, and other go-to-market operations organisations to meet and exceed growth objectives.

David brings to Draper & Dash an extensive background in data, analytics, healthcare and the public sector, as well as a demonstrated ability in converting organisations to subscription-based business models.

Orlando Agrippa, CEO of Draper and Dash, commented: “We are very pleased to welcome David as a member of our executive team.

“With his impressive track record in global sales, customer success, and technology such as cloud-based solutions, I am confident that he will help to guide our go-to-market organisation and continue our successful health transformation.

“David’s wealth of experience in creating customer success and maintaining lasting relationships in the US, UK, Australia, Middle East and other key territories aligns perfectly with D&D, as we bring predictive, healthcare data and analytics to healthcare providers and systems across the globe. We truly look forward to his contributions.”

David said: “I am thrilled to join Draper & Dash at this exciting time. D&D has a clear strategy, solid momentum, and is challenging the industry to think differently about how data leads to answers.

“I look forward to working with our teams and customers to advance D&D’s mission of transforming healthcare and industry through the power of advanced predictive data and insights.

“We will enhance our customers’ experience as we take our performance to the next level and drive greater value for our shareholders.”

Jeremy Daniels, Wilkin Lee, Tom Harwood and Charles Burrows, Gekko

London-based Gekko, a field and retail marketing agency, has made four key appointments as it invests in new initiatives to drive growth for the business and clients.

Jeremy Daniels has joined as senior account director and is responsible for directing and expanding the agency’s strategic partnerships with key clients.

Wilkin Lee joins as client services director to oversee all strategic client relationships.

Tom Harwood joins as data and insight manager from within the retail industry to provide campaign, category and marketing information and analysis to Gekko’s portfolio of clients and the retailers they partner.

To expand Gekko’s ecommerce marketing capabilities, extending and complimenting the services provided to clients from traditional retail to the online retail space, Charles Burrows joins in the newly created role of e-commerce manager.

Daniel Todaro, MD of Gekko, commented: “During this pandemic, we’ve seen the increasing trend of the contraction of brick and mortar retail expedite.

“As a company that specialises in helping brands be more successful in retail, we’ve spent this time working closely with our clients to establish how best we can continue to help them to thrive across both bricks and mortar and e-commerce.

“These additions to the team will help us to strengthen our business and deliver on our promise to clients and demonstrates Gekko’s resilience and adaptability during the lockdown by deciding to invest in leading industry talent.”

Andy Gregory, BGF

BGF has announced the appointment of Andy Gregory, Head of Investments – UK and Ireland, to the board of the company.

Andy has been with BGF since 2011, joining as regional director for the North of England, and is now responsible for the management and strategic direction of all regional investment teams across the UK & Ireland.

Stephen Welton, executive chair commented: “The board is delighted to announce Andy’s appointment as BGF continues on its own journey to scale up its operations to meet demand from firms that are ready to refuel and relaunch their growth plans, and as we work within the industry to help to address the twin challenges of mounting debt and insufficient capital.”

Andy added: “BGF has become the most active equity investor in the UK thanks to the hard work of our regional investment teams and the ambitions of those we have backed over the past nine years.

“By focusing on our core market of growth businesses, we have built solid foundations for the continued expansion of BGF.

“I am pleased to be joining the board at such a critical junction in the funding industry, where now, more than ever, companies and entrepreneurs will require the support of established and trusted financial backers, not just for the recovery but beyond.”