Chief executive, Teneo
Career so far
I started in the industry about 20 years ago and spent 10 years in sales before running Teneo.
What was your first job and were you any good at it?
Selling paint at Texas Homecare. I wasn’t really any good at answering questions about paint but I did always try and do my best to help the customer find someone who was.
Who was your top teenage pin-up?
Dannii Minogue, which led to many debates along the lines of “Kylie or Dannii?”. How the long winter evenings flew by…
My colleagues won’t know this about me but…
I can juggle with fire.
What is your favourite snack?
Hummus.
What has been your career high point to date?
It’s hard to choose just one. Leading a successful MBO in 2004, becoming debt free in 2007 and winning the 2012 EMEA Riverbed partner of the year for the fifth time are high points.
Has 2013 been good, bad or ugly? So far it has been good for Teneo. We have grown by more than 35 per cent year-on-year, expanded into France and just announced a £100k donation to ActionAid to help build schools in Ethiopia.
What do you say when asked at a party what you do for a living? I run an IT company.
If I wasn’t working in the channel I would probably be…
Bored.
What will be the channel’s biggest challenge in 2014?
Embracing new business models to remain relevant in the industry.
