Verve announces senior Advisory Board in preparation for international growth
London, 21st May 2009, Verve, the specialists in customer advisory panels and online brand communities, today announces Professor Patrick Barwise, Gareth Firth and David Packford as founder members of the Verve Advisory Board. The purpose of the Advisory Board is to allow the business to tap into the skills of a talented pool of individuals to assist Verve build both thought and service leadership in preparation for international expansion. Each member will have specific areas of focus to help the business develop. Patrick (Paddy) Barwise is Emeritus Professor of Management and Marketing at London Business School. He has published on a wide range of topics including audience and consumer behaviour, new media, advertising and branding. His last book, “Simply Better”, won the American Marketing Association’s 2005 prize for the best recent book in marketing. He is a Fellow of the Marketing Society, a frequent conference speaker, a consultant, and an experienced expert witness. He was also a founding investor in, and advisor to, the online fieldwork company Research Now, co‐founded by Andrew Cooper, Partner and CEO of Verve. Paddy will contribute to the Verve model of “How Online Brand Communities Work” which is being developed by Mike Hall, the founder of Hall & Partners and author of their model of how advertising works. Mike is a co‐founder and partner at Verve. Gareth Firth was a senior partner at PA Consulting Group – the global Management and Technology Consultancy comprising some 3,000 staff. During his time with PA’s Business Transformation Group, he led many major assignments, focusing on helping high skill professional organisations improve their effectiveness. Two of his assignments received awards from The Management Consultancies Association. Prior to joining PA, Gareth spent 12 years as a Civil Engineer and he is a graduate of the University of Cambridge. Verve Partners Limited Linton House |164‐180 Union Street | London | SE1 0LH | Tel: +44 (0)20 7928 4314
Gareth will help the Verve management team build an organisational structure suitable for international growth. He will also tutor on how Verve can take some of the best commercial advisory approaches from management consulting and effectively apply these to the marketing services industries. David Packford was a Partner in, and founder member of, the Transactions Services Department at PricewaterhouseCoopers, a division which has grown to a market‐leading worldwide business with more than 3,000 dedicated specialists. David has significant experience in consulting on M&A transactions, finance and structures for International growth. David holds degrees from Liverpool University and London School of Economics. At Verve, David will assist the management team with work on strategic business development and specific growth opportunities. Andrew Cooper, Partner and CEO of Verve comments: “We are excited to be working with Paddy, Gareth and David who are each proven leaders in their respective professions. They are remarkably well placed and motivated to help Verve take our position as international thought and service leaders in the exciting space of online brand communities for research or marketing” All three Advisory Board members are cash investors and shareholders in Verve. Verve’s website can be found at www.haveverve.com
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Verve Partners Limited Linton House |164‐180 Union Street | London | SE1 0LH | Tel: +44 (0)20 7928 4314
Background to Verve Verve specialises in building and managing customer advisory panels and online brand communities. These are built to deliver companies not only more cost‐effective research, but better business returns from their greatest business asset, their customers. Verve delivers through a world‐class team of innovative, entrepreneurial professionals with proven track records. The team includes: •
Andrew Cooper: Partner & CEO ‐ Co‐founder of Research Now Plc ‐ building the business over the last six years to an international business with 400+ staff in 15 offices across the globe. Previously a Chartered Accountant with PwC. • Mike Hall: Partner, Development ‐ Founder of Hall and Partners. Seminal name in advertising research. Built a highly successful Market Research business in the UK and USA before selling to Omnicom. • Peter Chopra: Partner, Strategic Finance & International Development ‐ Former CEO Synovate UK, Global CFO Synovate and Deputy Group Finance Director of Aegis ‐ delivering market‐leading organic and inorganic growth for both businesses. Experienced financier with over 40 successfully integrated mergers and acquisitions. Trained accountant, barrister‐at‐law and corporate financier. • Jeannie Arthur: Partner & UK MD ‐ Managing Director of FreshMinds for the last five years (UK Best Agency for two years running). Previously with PA Consulting Group – one of the UK’s leading management consulting firms. • Jon Gumbrell: Partner, Technology Progression ‐ Technology entrepreneur and founder of ID Factor which was sold to a UK listed company. Enquiries: Emma Morioka, Partner, Proposition Development e.morioka@haveverve.com T:+44 (0)20 7928 4314 M:+44 (0)7801 414596 Andrew Cooper, Partner and CEO a.cooper@haveverve.com T: +44 (0)20 7928 4314 M:+44 (0)7718 588399 Verve Partners Limited Linton House |164‐180 Union Street | London | SE1 0LH | Tel: +44 (0)20 7928 4314