People on the move: North East appointments and promotions

Companies and organisations featuring in this week’s round-up include: Stephenson Mohl, Port of Sunderland, Muckle LLP, hedgehog lab and Barratt and David Wilson Homes North East

North East law firm Muckle LLP has strengthened its banking and restructuring team with the appointment of a specialist insolvency solicitor.

Ryan Butler has joined the firm, bringing experience from a range of commercial law and in-house firms. He also holds a professional qualification insolvency from the Insolvency Practitioners Association.

Mr Butler will work with insolvency expert and partner Kelly Jordon and associate Sarah Farish, advising insolvency practitioners.

He said: “My previous in-house role gave me valuable hands-on experience and I’m keen to use this to contribute and support clients of the firm. Muckle has a brilliant reputation, with real experts, and its B Corp initiatives and commitment to giving back to the community are something I wanted to be a part of. I’ve already picked up a broad range of work and I’m looking forward to working closely with Kelly, who has an amazing reputation in the North East.”

Public affairs consultancy Stephenson Mohl has appointed Neil Whittaker as its new director of business development.

Mr Whittaker will operate between the company’s North East headquarters in Newcastle and its Westminster offices, working with colleagues to connect regional organisations with national policymakers and decision-makers, as well as securing soft landings for businesses looking to invest in northern England.

He was previously director of marketing and communications at Learning Curve Group for almost nine years, covering a period of significant growth. He also held senior marketing roles at Hargreaves Services plc.

Mr Whittaker said: “Stephenson-Mohl Group is a genuine regional success story, helping the North East attract investors while working with clients to influence decisions made in Westminster, and when the opportunity to join the business arose, I didn’t have a moment’s hesitation. For almost a decade the company has worked with some of the north of England’s most recognisable businesses to help deliver vital development and renewables projects, worked with firms to enhance the region’s clean energy credentials, created opportunity for talented individuals and, more recently, managed renewable energy projects that will go a long way to helping the UK become energy self-sufficient in the future..”

Digital product consultancy hedgehog lab has promoted Malcolm Seagrave to CEO, succeeding co-founder Sarat Pediredla.

After an initial 18 months as managing director for hedgehog lab’s UK operations, Mr Seagrave steps into the role following Mr Pediredla’s announcement at the end of 2025 that he would step down to pursue other projects. The leadership change comes as the consultancy plans to reach £50m turnover and create jobs in the North of England and Scotland.

Mr Seagrave, who has previously worked for Vodafone and Morrisons, said: “I’m hugely excited to be taking on the CEO role at hedgehog lab. I’ve scaled digital consultancies before, but this is genuinely unique – the company has built an impeccable culture, a great team, and the integrated offering is a real differentiator. We have all the foundations in place to take this business to another level and now it’s about executing our strategy as a tech company that puts people first.

“AI is a huge strength for us – it’s built into everything we work on, but pure-play AI technologies represent around 40% of our business, and that is growing. Embedding it in sales, products, and design research is allowing us to make rapid prototypes and dialling up our ability to innovate. We invested heavily in the technology a few years ago, and that decision is beginning to pay off.”

Housebuilder Barratt and David Wilson Homes North East has appointed Jo Ainsley as managing director.

Ms Ainsley, who was born in Middlesbrough, brings more than 18 years of experience in the construction industry, including work at Taylor Wimpey and Vistry.

She said: “I’m thrilled to have started my role as managing director at Barratt and David Wilson Homes North East, the biggest housebuilder in the country. I hope I can help the division continue to grow, retain its five-star reputation and create communities that people are proud to call home.

“No two days are the same in this role. I can be out on site one day, supporting the land buying team another, or opening new show homes. Whatever department I might be supporting, I most enjoy building teams and giving people an opportunity to thrive.”

Port of Sunderland has appointed Anth Phinn as new business development manager to build on recent growth and rising demand across its key markets.

He will work alongside port director Matthew Hunt and commercial manager Sven Richards to identify new opportunities and support clients. That work will include diversification of the port’s activity, including a focus on commodities, the circular economy and offshore oil, gas and renewable energy supply chains.

Mr Phinn joins from Royal Dutch LV Logistics, where he was UK agency manager overseeing operations and key client accounts. Prior to that, he worked at Clarksons Port Services, gaining experience in the maritime and logistics sectors.

He said: “As someone who is from the North East and lives locally, I’m proud to be joining Port of Sunderland at such an exciting point in its journey. The port has built a fantastic reputation for being agile, commercially focused and customer driven and that really appealed to me.”