Olswang has appointed a chief operating officer (COO) for the first time in four years in a bid to support the firm's recent international expansion.

Simon Glynn, formerly group director of strategy and operations at Management Consulting Group (MCG), will join the firm at the end of the month. He will initially work alongside former COO Kevin Munslow – who stepped down from the role in 2007 to become chief executive and is now a consultant at the firm – while he gets to gripswith the new position.

Glynn has been at London-based professional services group MCG since 2005, prior to which he spent three years as a partner at management consulting firm Oliver Wyman.

Olswang chief executive David Stewart said: "As Olswang has become more international, the partnership has decided to appoint a COO to lead our operational teams to provide excellence in operational support for a growing firm. Simon has led the operational function of a 2,500-employee multinational professional services firm and we are looking forward to 
his contribution."

The COO position was abandoned by Olswang in 2007 when former chief executive Jonathan Goldstein stepped down from the firm, prompting an overhaul of Olswang's senior management.

The firm has since reviewed its management once more, dropping its managing partner position in May last year and installing former post-holder Stewart as 
chief executive.

Glynn's hire comes in the wake of significant international expansion for Olswang during the past year. The firm is set to launch an office in Singapore by the end of 2011, while it also opened in Munich in July at the request of key client Microsoft.