This week’s Yorkshire appointments

Parry Rathod - Avantis Hotels

Avantis Hotels has appointed Parry Rathod as Area Manager to oversee both Hampton by Hilton properties in the city centre of York.

Parry was previously director of operations at the DoubleTree by Hilton Harrogate Majestic Hotel and Spa, where he played a key role in the refurbishment and rebranding of the hotel into a DoubleTree by Hilton brand.

He has worked with Hilton since 2005, racking up operational management experience at its hotels in York, Newport, Blackpool and Northampton.

Parry said: “I’m delighted to join Avantis Hotels at this very exciting period, with the newly-opened Hampton by Hilton Piccadilly adding to Hilton’s footprint in this dynamic city of York. I am looking forward to taking a successful journey together with the owners and team members.”

He said he also plans to draw on his coaching and mentoring experience to help increase colleagues’ job satisfaction and career progression: “I believe it is important to pass the knowledge and experiences to the next group of hoteliers,” he added.

“Hospitality is going through a skills shortage and I see it as a key part of my role to help develop and nurture team members who can go on to lead hotel teams in the future.”

Ravi Majithia, director of Hilton parent company Avantis, said: “We are thrilled that someone with Parry’s calibre, knowledge and experience is heading up our York team. Lockdown and the pent-up demand has led to price increases across the leisure sector and that means greater expectations from customers.

Nick Gillott - Gregory Properties

Yorkshire based development company; Gregory Properties has appointed Nick Gillott as development director.

Nick was previously Executive Director at J F Finnegan Ltd, a £50m+ turnover construction company based in Sheffield, where he spent nearly 20 years.

At Gregory Properties Nick will take a crucial role in sourcing land and delivering large commercial developments across Leeds City Region and beyond.

With an extensive career in commercial property construction and development, he will help to drive new opportunities within the business and manage relationships with partners for funding, construction and forward sales.

Barry Gregory, Chairman of Gregory Property Group, said: “We are pleased to welcome Nick to the team from the start of December. He brings a wealth of experience and is hugely respected in the region, particularly in South Yorkshire where we see great opportunities to expand our portfolio of developments.

“We have a number of ongoing developments, including a 145,000 sq ft logistics scheme in Rockingham, Barnsley, a residential development in Bradford and a student accommodation project in York.

Nick Gillott said: “I am delighted to join Gregory Properties at a particularly exciting time for the business and the industry. I look forward to applying my experience across the full spectrum of site acquisition and delivery through to marketing and sales to really make a difference and help steer the future within a family-led, hands-on team.”

Olivier Mussat - ATOME

Olivier Mussat has joined ATOME straight from his role as chief investment officer for Global Energy at the International Finance Corporation.

This role was part of the World Bank Group, where he had been for nine years involved in both early stage and mature businesses.

Prior to joining IFC, Olivier was Head of Oil and Gas Project Finance at Standard Chartered Bank after roles in Schlumberger and General Electric. He graduated from Virginia Wesleyan University before completing a Master of Science degree in Technology and Management from École Centrale Supelec in Paris.

Peter Levine, chairman of ATOME, commented: “I am delighted to welcome Olivier to our main Board as CEO of ATOME. He brings with him just the right skill set for this important role, namely a wealth of experience in the key areas of management, structuring, finance and development of international energy projects.

“All of us at ATOME look forward to working with and supporting Olivier’s leadership to deliver the significant value creation potential of ATOME.”

Olivier Mussat, CEO of ATOME, commented: “The exciting potential of ATOME in green hydrogen and ammonia production together with its projects gave me no hesitation when I was invited by Peter to become CEO of ATOME.

“Having worked with both electrons and hydrocarbon molecules as energy carriers, I believe that green hydrogen and ammonia is the best chance to deliver the energy transition.

Lucy Nickson - South Yorkshire LEP

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority and Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) have announced that Lucy Nickson will be Interim LEP Chair from January 2022. Lucy will be in post from January until the Mayoral election in May next year.

South Yorkshire Mayor Dan Jarvis said: “Lucy is a hugely valued member of the LEP and has been an excellent vice chair during an extremely challenging period for business. She played an integral role in the development of the Strategic Economic Plan, and I know she will continue to be a great champion of South Yorkshire and do excellent work as Interim Chair.”

Lucy has been vice-chair of South Yorkshire LEP since September 2018. She currently heads up a charity which supports NHS major trauma patients in the UK. She has CEO experience within the healthcare charity sector but has also worked across public and private sector organisations in a senior capacity throughout her career.

In 2017, Lucy was awarded an Honorary degree of Doctor of Medicine, MD (Hon) by the University of Sheffield, in recognition of her influence and work in Palliative and End of Life Care services across the region.

Lucy said: “I’m proud to be taking on the role of Interim Chair of South Yorkshire LEP. I’m looking forward to working together with the LEP Board and its many partners as we continue to make a positive difference to South Yorkshire’s communities and their prosperity.

“Throughout the pandemic, I’ve been so impressed at how the LEP Board, the Mayor, Local Authority Leaders, the wider business community and the Executive Team have pulled together to support our businesses and people.

“I’m totally committed to South Yorkshire’s strong partnership approach, and I will do my best to build on our work as we pull together to transform the economy and society, drive our recovery from COVID, and start to deliver the region’s Strategic Economic Plan.”

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