Nottingham-headquartered national auction house John Pye & Sons Ltd has made three senior internal promotions; Alan Avery, commercial manager; Matt Ganner, head of IT; and Bruce Burton, financial controller, have all been promoted to the position of associate director with immediate effect.

The announcement comes as John Pye looks to capitalise on a solid period of growth, including its recent expansion into Europe, winning five new Government and local authority tenders this year and developing existing services to meet client requirements.

These appointments will bolster the senior management team, ensuring it is poised to manage and deliver on director and shareholders’ expectations.

Adam Pye, Managing Director at John Pye, said: “I am delighted to announce, on behalf of the John & Sons Ltd board the promotion of three senior members of our current management team to associate director.

“Matt Ganner Head of IT, Bruce Burton, Financial Controller, and Alan Avery, Commercial Manager, will join the other associate directors of Paul Hird, Head of Government & Luxury, Mike Vitale, Nottingham Site Manager, and Charles Loake, Joint Head of Business Assets.”

The appointments are recognition of Alan, Matt and Bruce’s added value to the business across commerce, IT and finance, and their proven desire to maximise returns to the company and deliver on customer expectations.

Adam Pye continues: “The business is moving rapidly and expanding almost monthly – we have just hit the £100m in sales in a year milestone. We know the business needs an effective forward-thinking senior management structure to oversee this growth and all three will be pivotal in helping us reach our goals.”

Alan Avery joined the firm in 2017 as commercial manager and is responsible for regular client, supplier and site visits to ensure a high level of quality and compliance across the company.

With key skills in data analysis and continuous business improvement, Alan supports implementation of new initiatives, boosting profitability, green credentials and creating an all-round better working environment. Working with procurement, Alan has aligned suppliers to match the business’s own sustainability goals.

Alan says: “To see and be part of a growing thriving company is an absolute privilege. The Board and company have provided me with a huge amount of support since joining the business and I’m extremely grateful for all the development I’ve received. I hope to continue making a positive contribution as John Pye goes from strength to strength.”

Bruce Burton is a chartered accountant and an active member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). As financial controller, he works under the finance director with a team of ten direct reports and oversees the daily running of the finance department.

Through his experience, Bruce has been key in implementing continuous improvement within the finance team, driving efficiencies, embracing software and automation, plus building a team with the right skill set with the ability to continually develop.

Bruce said of his new post: “It is a great privilege to be appointed associate director alongside Alan and Matt. Myself and the finance team have worked tirelessly and made significant progress since my arrival, and this is huge recognition for all our efforts.”

Head of IT, Matt Ganner, began his career at John Pye in the marketing department, helping launch new departments, such as Property and Luxury Assets. Early on Matt demonstrated a strong interest in the statistical side of marketing and the auctions themselves.

Having moved over to the IT department, Matt oversaw many key IT transformations within the business, resulting in his appointment as head of IT.

Matt’s skills lie in bridging the gap between the departments and the auction process using technology, whether that’s extracting and analysing key data to improve user experience, to bringing in new devices and processes which allow for more efficient working at all levels of the business.

Speaking of his appointment, Matt says: “Having worked for the company for 10 years and being part of its incredible growth, I’m delighted that I’ll now be playing a more integral strategy-based role. I’m looking forward to taking the business forward and pushing the IT team and innovations to a new level.”