Nexer Digital hires six to boost public sector team

Nexer Digital has hired six staff across service design, user research and accessibility. The appointments expand the agency's delivery team as it works on public sector projects, including assignments for Defra.

The new recruits are Richard Telford, Trisha Mehta and Iestyn Haberfield as Senior Service Designers; Andrew Wiggan as Senior User Researcher; Petra Eriksson as User Researcher and Accessibility Consultant; and Eva-Lena Hagqvist as Senior Accessibility Consultant.

The hires increase headcount in areas central to complex client work, particularly where organisations need to understand user needs, improve service delivery and identify access barriers earlier in the design process.

Several of the new joiners are being assigned to government-related programmes. Telford is supporting work with Defra on the Livestock Information Service, which focuses on how information moves between users, organisations and systems.

Haberfield will also work on a Defra programme, the Landscape Recovery MEL Data Project. Wiggan is set to lead user research for Defra's Common Business Capability programme, examining how the department and its arm's-length bodies can improve and standardise shared business processes.

Public sector focus

The latest appointments bring experience from government and large commercial organisations. Telford has worked in service design and innovation for about 20 years, including roles at Livework, the Home Office and IKEA.

Haberfield joins with experience at Cable & Wireless, Vodafone Group and Companies House. Mehta previously worked in the Department for Education's internal policy lab, where she used design and research methods on education and skills policy issues.

Mehta's work will focus on helping clients use research findings to make practical service improvements, with an emphasis on involving users in decision-making and planning.

Research and accessibility

The two appointments in research and accessibility add an international element to the team. Based in Stockholm, Eriksson brings a decade of digital product experience, including user research roles at iZettle and PayPal.

Her role combines user research with accessibility consulting and includes embedding those considerations into product development. Hagqvist, who is based in the Gothenburg region, joins as Senior Accessibility Consultant and Advisor, with experience linked to health research and care delivery.

Hagqvist will also support key customer accounts. Together, the two hires strengthen the accessibility side of the business at a time when organisations face greater scrutiny over how digital services work for different groups of users.

Hilary Stephenson, Managing Director, Nexer Digital, said: "Our clients are often working with complex services that need to meet very different needs. Helping them make meaningful improvements takes a combination of good research, practical design expertise and an understanding of the organisations delivering those services.

"Andrew, Richard, Petra, Eva-Lena, Trisha and Iestyn bring valuable experience from government, financial services and global businesses. They will strengthen our ability to help clients understand where services are falling short and turn that insight into changes that work for all users and the teams supporting them.

"These appointments also give us greater capacity to support existing clients and take on new opportunities. As we grow, we want to keep building the depth of expertise that allows us to deliver thoughtful, inclusive work and lasting value for our clients," Stephenson said.

Nexer Digital was founded in 2007 and was formerly known as Sigma. The business works across the public, private and not-for-profit sectors and is part of Sweden-based Nexer Group, which has more than 2,800 employees worldwide.