I have spent the last 43 years conceiving, selling and delivering multi-million pound solutions to major institutions. My main focus has been on building businesses, rapidly growing revenues and delivering innovative solutions.
My early career was spent at Accenture where I became the Global Managing Partner responsible for Accenture’s CRM, M&A and e-Commerce businesses – a major growth sector with a revenue target of £900m.
I left Accenture to become the Global Leader of the Financial Services Industry practice within EDS. Running this $3.4bn outsourcing and consulting business was a hugely rewarding experience. However, the prospect of launching my own start-up in a totally new sector of innovation proved overpowering…
Today, I am the MD of Clustre – the ‘Innovation Brokers’. I divide my time between selecting potential new member firms and helping to open-up high level connections for them. Innovation genuinely is my passion – along with American V8 muscle cars!
My early career was spent in advertising where I worked with a number of leading agencies to become a Creative Director.
In the mid-80s, I left to become a founding partner in a new start-up agency. We had big ambitions (and equally big overdrafts) so the business had to grow quickly. It did. Our client list soon featured global banks, major retail and energy companies, IT and telecoms giants as well as two top car makers.
After successfully selling the agency, just before the Millennium, I have helped to launch Shell’s global sustainability programme, advised major Formula 1 sponsors on asset exploitation and undertaken key strategic consulting projects in financial services. I also write film scripts and play blues guitar (badly).
As a founding director of Clustre, I concentrate on raising the company’s profile and helping to improve the total marketing effectiveness of our member firms.
I am a passionate believer in the importance of customer service. I built my career by helping clients to acquire, develop and retain profitable customer relationships. I have worked with some of the world’s largest companies and some of the smallest.
As managing partner for Accenture’s CRM practice in Financial Services and Government, I was responsible for growing a multi-million dollar business. My client work covered the creation of overall business strategies, the launch of business start-ups and the development of new channels, products and services.
I teamed up with former Accenture colleagues to become a director and shareholder of Clustre. I provide consulting services to clients and members firms and focus on promoting Clustre’s innovation community to major banks and the public sector. And when not driving that business, you can often catch me behind the wheel of a rare Aston or Ferrari (I have close interests in one of the UK’s leading classic car companies).
For the last 25 years, I have been responsible for building some of the biggest brands in the world.
At one of the UK’s largest not-for-profit healthcare providers – I was in charge of Group marketing for 31 hospitals, 75 consumer gyms, 200 corporate gyms as well as regional medical centres. That certainly focused my mind!
However, for me, the challenge of creating great advertising and marketing isn’t confined to global brands. I get just as big a buzz from helping entrepreneurs and innovation teams. They spend their life pushing boundaries and breaking rules. And it’s been my privilege to showcase their unique technology skills by optimising their meagre marketing budgets.
I have worked on the most challenging campaigns, supported Sir Bradley Wiggins across the winning line in the Tour de France and sponsored it the following year. I have even travelled in the Pope-mobile – and that’s about as close to ‘Heaven on Earth’ as anyone ever gets!