This week's North East appointments

Andrew Dipper, streamGo

The virtual events platform streamGo has hired Mr Andrew Dipper as they look to further capitalise on demand for their streaming solutions.

Andrew joins streamGo from Evolved Search, where he helped the performance marketing agency win two Search Agency Of The Year awards in 2021. Prior to that he was Global Head of Digital Marketing at cloud talent organisation Tenth Revolution Group.

Andrew said: “I’m unbelievably excited to be joining streamGo as their new Head of Marketing, streamGo are genuine experts in live streaming and have a great suite of video products and solutions that I can’t wait to tell the world about.

“On a personal level, this is an amazing opportunity for me - I’m excited to help streamGo achieve its business goals.”

Richard Lee, founder and Production Director at streamGo, said:“Andrew’s joined us at a really great time, with the upcoming launch of VideoScout and the huge opportunities we see around event networking technology in chatGo, the strength of our marketing has never been more important.

“I’m delighted Andrew has decided to join us as we look to further grow our business and offering.”

Headquartered in Sunderland, streamGo is part of the North East’s tech sector. It has grown revenue by 600 per cent and doubled headcount in the last 18 months as demand for its virtual events platform has increased.

James Bray, Robson Laidler

Robson Laidler Accountants in Newcastle and Durham has expanded its marketing team with the appointment of James Bray as digital marketing executive.

James Bray, from Gosforth, has joined the firm after graduating from Northumbria University with a first-class B.A. (Hons) degree in Entrepreneurial Business Management. James will support the firm with its business development targets, underpinned by an aggressive marketing strategy.

Whilst studying, James set up his own small business, where he taught himself digital marketing skills.

James said: “I am excited to be joining the Robson Laidler team, I feel I can make an impact by bringing some fresh digital marketing ideas to the table.After hearing about Robson Laidler’s goals for expansion, and more importantly, its strong value-based culture, I knew this was a rare opportunity I wanted to be part of.”

James will focus on boosting brand awareness and increasing audience touch points and engagement, through podcasts, video and an organic and paid marketing content strategy.

Robson Laidler head of marketing Gemma Graham said: “We have grown our team by more than 70 per cent in recent years and recruiting James into the marketing function of the business will only help us to further develop and achieve our business goals.

“For us marketing isn’t just about driving sales, it’s about showcasing everything that is great about our business from the excellent service that we deliver, to the work we do in the community, our health and wellbeing initiatives and our values-based culture.

“Digital marketing is fast paced and ever-changing and James has the passion to ensure that Robson Laidler is ahead of the curve with the latest trends as we continue to focus on high growth areas of our business including business advisory, healthcare and tax consultancy.”

Alex Walker, React Electrical Solutions

React Electrical Solutions, formerly KLY Electrical, has appointed Alex Walker as the new director.

Alex takes up the role at the same time as a rebrand for the north-east electrical services specialist. It also aims to expand its presence in the commercial, industrial and residential sectors, whilst identifying emerging markets.

Alex – who previously completed his apprenticeship with the company, between 2016 and 2020, before accepting a role in the offshore oil and gas industry – will support founder and director Scott Kelly with the delivery of a long-term growth strategy.

This has already seen React lease new office premises at the Westhill Business Centre in Arnhall Business Park.

Scott Kelly commented: “I’m delighted to welcome Alex back to the team and look forward to working together again. The business has continued to trade steadily over the past couple of years while Alex has been away, but his return provides fresh impetus.

“As we celebrate our 10th anniversary, it’s time to turn attention to what the future holds. The name change and rebrand will bring increased focus and allow us to build on our achievements to date.

“I’m excited to see what the next few years have in store for React Electrical Solutions. While we have ambitious plans in place, the immediate priority is to concentrate on providing existing customers with the same excellent level of service they have come to expect.”

Alex Walker added: “I’m extremely pleased to have returned to the business in this exciting new role and look forward to supporting Scott to achieve our collective goals.

“There are definitely opportunities in the current market for forward-thinking companies that can demonstrate the right approach to work and deliver good quality workmanship.

“Over recent weeks, we have received positive feedback from clients which has resulted in additional projects and gives both Scott and me the confidence to push the company forward.”

Jonathan Neale, Filtronic

Filtronic, the designer and manufacturer of RF-to-mmWave components and subsystems, has announced the appointment of Jonathan Neale as Non-Executive Chairman.

Jonathan Neale has been chief operating officer of McLaren Group for the past five years, prior to which he held a number of executive roles including chief executive officer of McLaren Racing F1, between 2001 and 2016.

He has occupied several roles, leading strategic operational and infrastructure planning for the business and has been involved in the integration of the McLaren Racing, McLaren Applied and McLaren Automotive businesses.

Prior to McLaren, Jonathan had been at BAE Systems, UK, as Managing Director - Hawk Military Aircraft.

Having started by working as a Project Design Engineer where he led major systems projects for commercial aircraft, he was then promoted to Director of Operations and Support Operations at BAE’s Manchester and Prestwick sites and was responsible for aircraft production, customer support and pilot training.

Richard Gibbs, CEO of Filtronic, said:“I am delighted to welcome Jonathan to Filtronic, with his extensive aerospace experience and leadership across fast moving technology businesses. I look forward to working with him as we seek to execute engineering programs and scale the organisation.”

Jonathan said: “I have been impressed with the capabilities of the Filtronic organisation, I look forward to working with the Board to expand and grow the Filtronic capability from its very solid engineering base into new markets and partnerships, and to reach new customers.”

Robert Thompson, Geneva Group International

Robert Thompson, who heads Ward Hadaway’s corporate law team, has been appointed as the global chair for The Geneva Group International (GGI) Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) Practice Group by fellow members.

GGI is a multi-disciplinary worldwide alliance of professional services firms. This enables members to provide access for their clients to expertise across the globe. The alliance has moore than 620 member firms across more than 125 different countries.

The M&A group provides best practice specialist advice for all corporate M&A activity and related law and dealmaking methodology. A key objective of the group is to encourage cross-border activity and joint projects between lawyers, accountants and dealmakers by tapping into an international support network of specialised expertise.

Michael Reiss von Filski, Global Chief Executive Officer of GGI, said: “We are delighted to welcome Robert Thompson as new Chairman of the GGI M&A Practice Group. Rob is an internationally renowned transactional Corporate Lawyer.”

“The GGI M&A Practice Group serves as an important resource for M&A professionals throughout GGI, as well as throughout GCG, the affiliated network of M&A firms in GGI.

“The combined transaction volume of GCG member firms represents 58 billion USD with more than 4,300 M&A transactions successfully concluded. For such an important role, GGI and GCG are delighted to count on the broad expertise and leadership of Rob Thompson.”

Robert Thompson has over 35 years’ experience as a legal dealmaker. He is recognised in the hall of fame in Legal 500 and is the editor of the English Law “legal dealmaking bible” Sinclair on Warranties and Indemnities on Share and Asset Sales.

Robert commented: “I am honoured to become the Global Chair of the GGI M&A Practice Group. Through the practice group, members can tap into international expertise and resources that they otherwise wouldn’t have easy access to.

“The global network enables legal, accounting and dealmaking professionals to think beyond their boundaries and go that extra mile for clients to close the best deal they can.

“For clients of Ward Hadaway it creates a unique opportunity to access financial markets and expertise that most local advisers simply do not have a seamless way of considering.”

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