Member Article

This week’s North East appointments

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

Daniel Dixon, Viral Effect

Viral Effect, the Teesside-based digital marketing and customer engagement agency, has launched a move into digital learning by recruiting its ninth new member of staff in just 12 months.

Experienced social media trainer Daniel Dixon is leading Viral Effect’s new learning arm as the firm looks to fill a gap in the market for businesses that recognise the need for a strong social media presence but can’t yet afford full service support.

Dixon, who was previously with RAW Digital Training in Stockton, is Viral Effect’s 28th member of staff, meaning the business has more than doubled in size over the past two years.

But managing director Jamie Pennington insists the aim is make his company Teesside’s biggest social media agency, with more than 200 members of staff in the years ahead.

The firm provides expertise in social media management, digital advertising, customer engagement and data collection applications to major UK brands from its base in Boho Four Gibson House in Middlesbrough.

Pennington said: “Daniel is a real expert, with a strong agency background in the industry. I’m confident he’ll be an asset to the business.

“It’s not easy to find people with great social media calibre, especially in the learning environment, but Daniel has real experience of being a teacher of social media, of delivering the ‘how to’.

“First and foremost he’ll be targeting new clients but he’s also in charge of learning for our own new recruits and will help to upskill our own staff.

Helen Lee, NELEP

The North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has appointed Helen Lee to the new position of Mentoring Co-ordinator, to help lead a new mentoring programme for businesses with high growth potential.

The ‘Growth through Mentoring’ programme is being launched as part of the North East LEP’s drive to support companies to scale, helping to create more and better jobs and drive economic growth in the region.

Colin Bell, Business Growth Director at the North East LEP, said: “The North East LEP recognises the importance of supporting businesses to scale - growing businesses are central to the health of the region’s economy.

“One of the key barriers which business leaders face when it comes to growing their business is the ability to develop leadership skills and access to mentors who have experience of successfully scaling a business themselves.

“Growth through Mentoring will bring business leaders from high growth potential companies together with these experienced mentors.”

Helen will typically work with companies that have been operational for at least two years, have 10 or more employees and have the aspiration to significantly scale their business.

Helen Lee said: “Mentoring has a key role to play in achieving the North East LEP’s aim of creating more and better jobs for the area. It’s been proven to help companies grow and prosper, and yet only a small proportion of business leaders currently work with a mentor.”

Rachel Swinburne and Katy Rushworth, Clarke Mairs LLP

Rachel Swinburne and Katy Rushworth, of Newcastle-based Clarke Mairs LLP, are being named as partners in recognition of their dedication to the firm and the successful development of their departments.

Partner of Clarke Mairs, Tim Clarke, said: “We’re delighted to announce Rachel and Katy as our newest partners at Clarke Mairs, in recognition of their hard work, loyalty, initiative, and the immense success they have both had in developing their respective departments.

“Both Katy and Rachel have also continually demonstrated their ability to build long term client relationships, and are excellent ambassadors for the firm.

“I look forward to seeing how they continue to evolve their departments in the coming months.”

Bradley Hall

North East property business Bradley Hall has made a raft of key appointments to kick-start its growth plans for 2017.

Catherine Affleck has re-joined the chartered surveyor and estate agent as associate director after working as a senior surveyor at Lambert Smith Hampton and Durham County Council.

Previously she spent nine years at Bradley Hall, first as a chartered surveyor before being promoted to associate director. Catherine, 31, of Consett, will be based in Bradley Hall’s Newcastle head office.

The company has also hired two property executives to beef up its Gosforth and Morpeth teams. Simra Kaleem (pictured above) will oversee residential sales from the firm’s Morpeth base while Liam Henderson, a former professional footballer at Watford FC, will play his new trade from the Gosforth office.

Meanwhile Cheryl More has been appointed as PA to Bradley Hall’s managing director Neil Hart. The 32-year-old from South Shields will handle a range of duties including booking appointments, filing, invoicing and liaising with clients.

The appointments are part of a strategic drive by Bradley Hall to strengthen its position as the leading independent general practice chartered surveying firm in the region.

Neil Hart said: “We’re thrilled to have hired these talented staff as we look to pursue an aggressive growth strategy in 2017.

“We’ve already moved into larger headquarters and opened new offices around the region; now we’re looking to increase headcount to service a significantly increased workload.

“Over the last 12-18 months we’ve been handling bigger instructions on commercial and residential projects. That trend looks set to continue as investors’ confidence in the property market increases.”

Professor Catherine Exley, Northumbria University

Professor Catherine Exley has joined Northumbria as Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation in Health and Life Sciences.

Catherine, a medical sociologist and applied qualitative health researcher, was previously Acting Director of the Institute of Health and Society in the Faculty of Medical Sciences at Newcastle University.

Originally from Yorkshire, Professor Exley studied her first degree in Salford before completing a Masters degree at Leeds University, and going on to gain her PhD from Coventry University.

Catherine spent 10 years teaching and carrying out research at universities in the Midlands before moving to the North East where she has lived for 13 years.

Her personal research focuses on experiences of living with chronic disease and ageing, including end of life care, and how health care technologies can be used to support and manage these.

Catherine said: “I am excited to be joining Northumbria University. It has a reputation for academic excellence, pioneering teaching and international research, and has been recognised as one of the fastest risers amongst UK universities in research power.

“Throughout my career I have placed a strong emphasis on both teaching and research, and I believe strongly that research enhances teaching as well as having a significant impact on society. I am looking forward to building on the excellent work already undertaken at the University as part of its senior team.

“Having lived and studied in different parts of the country, I am very happy to have settled in the North East. I love the region and everything it has to offer and I believe the University has a key role to play within our wider community; I am delighted to be able to contribute to this.”

Join us next week for more appointments news.

Looking to promote your product/service to SME businesses in your region? Find out how Bdaily can help →