Three new partners have been appointed at South West accountancy and finance group Old Mill following a restructure to enable faster career progression and greater opportunities for staff.
The promotions of Chartered Financial Planners Jon Orchard and Julia Banwell, both part of the wealth management tea, and director of tax Stephen Martin take the total number of partners in the firm to 22.
In November last year Old Mill, which has offices in Chippenham, Wells, Yeovil and Exeter, announced an ambitious plan to expand annually by 15%, so doubling staff numbers by 2026.
It also moved from being an LLP to a Ltd structure, which has created a much simpler business model and made it easier to introduce new partners.
Jon, Julia and Stephen are the first to successfully apply under the new structure.
Jon, pictured, who is a Fellow of the Personal Finance Society as well as a Certified Financial Planner, has more than 20 years’ experience in financial planning.
Jon – at 39, Old Mill’s youngest partner – said: “I feel honoured to have the opportunity to join the partner group and wish to use this as a catalyst to further promote the financial planning profession and the opportunities available for those who work in it.”
Julia joined the firm in 1997 and specialises in the rural sector, an area in which she has professional and personal experience as she runs a beef farm with her husband.
She said: “I wanted to be a partner as I really want to help shape the business in the future.
“We have such a great team, and I’m really excited for the future.”
Stephen, a tax specialist with expertise in research and development, mergers and acquisitions and share schemes, joined Old Mill as a director of tax in March last year to raise the profile of its tax team and help the firm realise its ambitious growth plans.
Since then he has been instrumental in putting its ‘recruit, retain and promote’ strategy into practice – the tax team has grown from 20 to 30 – with five important promotions this year alone.
He said: “I am really proud to be joining the partner group at this incredibly exciting time and am looking forward to helping the firm to achieve its growth ambitions.”
To become a partner at the firm, candidates have to meet a number of key criteria, including embodying and acting as a champion for its values and behaviours, bringing ambition, energy and integrity to their own roles, helping create an environment where everyone feels part of a thriving business and demonstrating the motivation and desire to deliver the five-year growth plan with a clear focus on commerciality.
Old Mill CEO Kevin Whitmarsh said: “Jon, Julia and Stephen have all distinguished themselves through their ability to inspire those around them.
“Their hard work and commitment to quality are shown by the impact they have made on our clients, colleagues, and communities in which we operate.
“Furthermore, all three have demonstrated excellent commercial drive, and that is one of the key reasons for the restructure – so that people like Jon, Julia and Stephen, who help drive growth and work hard to embody the Old Mill values, are able to progress more quickly.
“By valuing and rewarding our staff as we do, we are able to not only attract top talent, but also retain it, which is why we are well on the way to achieving the ambitious growth plans we set out last year to double in size and become the fastest growing practice in the region.”
