An Edinburgh-headquartered tech and analytics-enabled consulting firm is on course to double its headcount to more than 100 across its UK bases.
Optima Partners, who support a range of high-profile businesses to develop customer-centric transformation plans, has witnessed rapid 55% year-on-year growth since 2020 and is now "executing an aggressive recruitment strategy to bolster its team".
Having secured a £2.3 million investment from capital investor BGF, and appointed new non-executive directors, Karen Thomas-Bland and Richard Pugh in 2022, Optima Partners said it is looking to strengthen all parts of its operations and develop further in the next 12 months.
The rapid growth has seen the business post turnover in excess of £5.7m for its financial year 2022.
Optima Partners consulting division already supports a range of the UK’s top brands, including OVO and Lloyds Banking Group, and starts 2023 with several new senior leaders, including customer strategy and engagement director, Murray Allan, John Ramdenee as director of telecoms, energy and media and Ed Knight as director of banking and financial services.
Under the leadership of Chief Data Scientist Dr Chris Foley, Optima’s data practice grew four-fold in 2022, delivering advanced data science and engineering solutions internationally, to global organisations.
The practice welcomed two new leaders, Andrew Donald as head of engineering and Dr Zhana Kuncheva as head of health data sciences.
Alan Crawley, Optima chief executive, said: "We have received a tremendous response to our unique data and insight-led approach to customer understanding and behaviour.
"We are now striving to fill a number of vacancies within the company to meet growing demand, bringing new SMEs, consultants, technologists and data experts into the business to support our clients in navigating complex customer transformation agendas."
As well as key strategic hires and securing investment to fuel its growth in 2022, Optima Partners also opened its third office, in Bristol, adding to its Scottish HQ and its site in central London with expansion plans into Europe under way.
Airline launches new flights
Airline and package holiday operator Jet2 has launched additional flights to Majorca in April from both Glasgow and Edinburgh airports, declaring it is “always quick to react to demand”.
The extra flights from Glasgow and Edinburgh airports are part of a broader expansion by the airline and package holiday operator of its programmes to Tenerife and Majorca for this summer, by introducing additional flights and holidays to these destinations from seven of its UK bases.
Glasgow airport to become hub testing new technologies
New technologies aimed at making air travel greener and improving passengers’ experiences are to be explored through a project at Glasgow airport.
The airport has been named the UK’s first ‘Connected Airport Living Lab’, and will now play host to a trials and demonstrations of innovations designed to address challenges facing the aviation sector.
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