Property Jobs Today - the movers, shakers and people in the news

It has been another busy month for job moves in the estate agency sector.

Here are some of the latest moves that took place during November.

If you want your jobs or appointments news to feature here, email press@estateagenttoday.co.uk.

Chestertons: Watson Briggs, former head of sales at respected London developer St George PLC, has joined Chestertons as its new director for West London residential developments. 

The appointment comes after Chestertons hired Foxtons’ former area director, Mark Goodeve-Docker, to take over its new homes division in July.

Watson started his career as a sales negotiator at Foxtons and progressed to managing the agency’s new homes and investments team in South London, which he developed into one of the highest-performing departments in the company. 

After six years at Foxtons, he joined St George PLC as head of sales and worked on some of the developer’s landmark projects including London Dock, One Blackfriars and Chelsea Creek.

Watson said: “Chestertons’ outstanding reputation, in-house training scheme and forward-thinking approach to doing business make it an incredibly exciting agency to work for and I can’t wait to help drive the new homes strategy forward.”

Mark Goodeve-Docker, added: “The new homes sector is of utmost importance for the London property market and Chestertons has an extensive growth strategy in place to meet the ongoing demand.

“With his knowledge of the new homes sector and South London’s property market, Watson is a valuable addition to our team and will help us to continue to provide our clients with an outstanding service.”
 
SmartSearch: Anti-money laundering platform SmartSearch has promoted Tom Dockerty to the position of vice president of professional services sales.

Tom is a key part of the SmartSearch sales team, having joined as one of the company’s first sales executives almost 11 years ago. Since then, Tom has successfully climbed the ranks, becoming sales manager and then head of professional services sales in June 2021.

The new role will see Tom taking strategic ownership of the department, as well as leading in-depth reviews and coaching to support and progress his team. Tom leads a group of five direct salespeople, all of whom have tenures spanning three to eight years with the company.

In addition to supporting the compliance needs of SmartSearch’s core markets, Tom will be working closely with Zowie Lees-Howell, the new VP of enterprise sales to continue SmartSearch’s expansion into banking, crypto, gaming, utilities and wider financial services.

Dockerty said: “For almost 11 years, I’ve been proud to play my part in the growth of the business, helping to establish SmartSearch as a market leader for digital compliance. I’m thrilled to be continuing my journey with SmartSearch, taking on a more strategic role to help drive this talented department and fantastic company forward.

“While the company has grown and advanced massively over the past decade, the ambition, ethos and vision remains absolutely the same; to deliver a quality digital solution that helps firms stay compliant and mitigate the risk of money laundering and financial crime. Whether it’s a ‘one-man-band’ or a company with thousands of employees, that risk is very real – especially in the current climate.

“With the capabilities of our platform and the wealth of knowledge and experience within our team, SmartSearch is best placed to meet the needs of organisations of all sizes. I look forward to working with firms across all sectors on their digital compliance journey.”

Martin Cheek, managing director of SmartSearch, added: “Tom is a tremendous example of the talent and expertise available at SmartSearch, as well as the longevity found across our team. We are firm believers in providing opportunities for our team to develop and reach their full potential, creating opportunities to advance from entry-level positions to senior roles just like this one.

“This is great news for our customers, ensuring their compliance needs are safeguarded by our award-winning platform and the experience of our team. We wish Tom well in this exciting new role.”

OpenBrix: Proptech firm OpenBrix has appointed Adrienne Clarke as chief finance officer. 

Adrienne was most recently group finance director at Countrywide, having held senior finance roles in the group for 24 years. 

Adrienne will lead all financial matters at OpenBrix, reporting to chief executive Adam Pigott.

Talking about the new hire, Pigott said: “We are thrilled to welcome Adrienne to the team, it’s fantastic news to have another big hitter join the OpenBrix family, helping to guide the business, our partnerships, and overall performance as we continue to gro.”

Clarke added: “I am delighted to join OpenBrix and the established team. 

“We have some incredibly exciting months ahead with some key product launches, it’s great to be part of the journey and working with a forward-thinking organisation and a fantastic team of individuals.”

Connells: Estate agency Connells has appointed Jason Willetts as its Land & New Homes Managing Director.

Jason’s experience in property spans 36 years, 25 of which has been in land and new homes specifically. 

He joins from Arun Estates, where he spent 17 years, most recently as the managing director of Land & New Homes, Shared Ownership and Corporate Sales.

Working alongside Connells extensive Land & New Homes network, Jason’s objectives are to build on the already strong foundations of the business’ offering, strengthen its affordable housing services, grow its land team and provide a hardened focus on its end-to-end new homes marketing packages.

He said: “I am delighted to be joining the power force that is Connells.

“Everyone knows that Connells has a fantastic reputation, and in particular its Land & New Homes business which is incredibly forward thinking and innovative. I am looking forward to getting to know the people who make this business a success and working together to build on our already strong team. Working in Land & New Homes, every day is different. 

“However, the one thing that remains the same is deepening relationships with clients and enhancing the customer journey, and everything we do will be focused on those two fundamental things.”

Roger Barrett, managing director of Connells Group Land & New Homes, added: “Jason’s wealth of expertise in the property industry, and specifically in land and new homes, is unrivalled and thus is a fantastic appointment for us. 

“We have enjoyed welcoming him into our business and we look forward to seeing his goals and ideas being implemented over the next few months and into the New Year.”