A new shareholder has come on board at a Yorkshire learning and development company.
Former York Science Park chief executive Tracey Flannery has joined Pro-Development (UK) founder Michelle Mook as a shareholder and director of the York-based company, which specialises in employee engagement and development.
She has also joined the leadership team as a director.
Mook, who established the business ten years ago and has grown it from a standing start to an employer of 11 with more than 100 clients across the region, retains a majority shareholding.
Pro-Development is aiming to hit its first £1m turnover in the next two years as part of a wider ten-year growth plan.
Flannery joined Pro-Development in 2020 as a learning and development consultant to provide strategic support for the team and help clients.
She said: “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to become a shareholder in a business that I am passionate about, and I feel is bursting with potential. I jumped at the chance to be a part of Pro-Development. I am extremely excited to be part of the leadership team as we enter the next chapter of growth whilst ensuring our existing customers continue to receive high quality support and guidance.
“Our mutual passion to make a difference to the businesses we work with is what makes this a perfect partnership and we both enjoy bringing a sense of fun into what we do.
“Michelle and I have known each other for over ten years, and I have had the privilege of watching her build this business to the well-deserved success it is today. She is a remarkable and creative leader with a great team behind her and a desire to make a difference. The business has come a long way in the time I’ve been working here, and I am excited at the prospect of how much further it can develop over the next ten years.”
Michelle Mook added: “It’s no coincidence that we have grown at the rate we have since Tracey joined the team. She’s helped to put a solid strategy in place and move the business forward already in the 18 months she has been here. Her extensive experience of leading a company whilst supporting growing businesses, along with her strategic awareness and financial planning, make her uniquely placed to be a director here.
“It has been a fantastic decade since I set up Pro-Development and I am thrilled to now have Tracey by my side during the next ten years and beyond.”
No advisers were named in relation to the transaction.