Gilson Gray swoops HR Director from Global Brand

A LEADING Scottish legal firm has attracted a renowned Human Resources specialist from the Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy Group – The Glenmorangie Company – to help develop its rapidly growing business.

Lesley Naylor will bring many years of specialist HR and talent development experience to Gilson Gray.

Previously Human Resource Senior Business Partner at PWC and with big business management and directorship level experience across Havelock Europa and the John Menzies Group, Lesley will assume the role of HR Director serving the full service legal firm’s many teams and offices in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Lesley said: “Although I had not specifically looked at working in the legal sector, Gilson Gray is the one firm in the industry that I have been keeping a close eye on should the HR Director role become available.

“The Firm is an exciting, disruptor brand within the Scottish Legal market and it is a thrilling prospect to suddenly be a part of it.

“To put the ambition and success of the firm into perspective, I am one of four new employees joining in the same week. The growth rate of the business and success of its culture is attracting the very best talent from the sector”

An Edinburgh native, Naylor graduated with an MBA from The University of Edinburgh and is a Fellow with Chartered Institute of Professional Development in recognition of her achievements and standing in the profession.

Managing Partner, Glen Gilson believes the firm is positioning itself for further growth with the creation of the new role.

He said: “The entrepreneurial and unusual culture throughout Gilson Gray has been central to our success and rapid growth. We aim to be the best law firm in Scotland by using insightful and imaginative thinking uniting people with our common purpose.

“This has allowed us to attract the best and brightest from the biggest names in the sector and to deliver exceptional client service at a price point that reflects a model unburdened by outdated traditions and the profit demands of English parent firms”.

“It is critical for us as we reach this scale that our unusual culture is not diluted. This is why we have broken the industry mould of appointing junior HR functionaries or using in house legal resources to manage employees.

“In Lesley we have appointed one of the leading talent and people management executives in the country, a talent in her own right that I believe sets us apart from the rest of the profession.”

Managing Director of Property Services, Matthew Gray, said: “This appointment is of significant importance to the firm as we bid to be the best law firm in Scotland. We pride ourselves on attracting the brightest and best in everything that we do and Lesley is certainly that.”