Board of Directors
Neil Hutchinson
Founder & Managing DirectorNeil founded Forward in August 2004, thus beginning its meteoric rise from one-man-band to one of the fastest growing internet companies in the UK. Neil's vision for the future is to provide industry leading marketing solutions, as well as to build consumer websites and applications that everyone talks about.
Rob Murphy
Finance DirectorRob is a Chartered Accountant with over 25 years experience of working with fast growing media and technology companies. Before joining Forward, Rob worked for over ten years in video games where his experience included public reporting, fundraising and acquisitions. Rob joined in 2008 to support the group’s growth and commercial development.
Paul Fisher
Corporate Development DirectorPaul is responsible for acquiring new businesses, investing in new projects via Forward Venture Partners and managing the portfolio of Forward Innovations. Paul was previously an investor with Advent Ventures where he worked with web companies including, Qype, FarFetch and DailyMotion. Paul is also an investor in WorldStores, Mint Digital and Picklive. Prior to this Paul was Associate Director and an early investor in First Capital, a European leader in technology investment banking. He also worked in a number of early stage technology companies, including Rawflow, Reevoo.com and OmniPerception.
Mark Opzoomer
Non-Executive DirectorMark has 25 years of corporate operating and deal-making experience. He was the Managing Director and Regional Vice-President of Yahoo! Europe, Commercial and Finance Director of Sega Europe Ltd and is non-executive director on the Boards of several companies including Newbay Software Limited, WRI Holdings Limited, MIVA Inc. and Blinkx PLC.
Mark Philips
Non-Executive DirectorMark was made a partner in the Corporate Practice at Harbottle & Lewis in 1990. He's also joint head of their eCommerce and Technology Group and is consistently recognised as a leader in the fields of interactive entertainment, new media and publishing. Mark's background in legal matters, as well as general business acumen, is proving vital as the company expands its operations.
Frank Herman
Honorary DirectorThe late Frank Herman, hailed as the 'first suit in the gaming industry', co-founded the computer game publishing company Mastertronic in 1983. He later successfully negotiated a merger with Branson's Virgin Interactive and then went on to serve as Managing Director for Sega Europe. We all count ourselves as exceptionally fortunate to have benefited from 'Uncle' Frank’s infinite wisdom and kindness. His presence is sorely missed.
Senior Management
Carl Gaywood
Search DirectorCarl started programming 14 years ago at the tender age of 10. After joining as a developer in 2007, Carl showed a real flair for search and played a fundamental role in driving innovation in our search division. Carl now heads up our search team and proved the inception for key projects such as Cardwall.
Fred George
Agile DirectorFred brings over 39 years experience in software product development experience to the Forward group. Experienced in object-orientated programming for nearly two decades and exploiting agile methods for nine years, Fred helps manage our offshore teams and internal development processes.
Martin McNulty
General Manager, Forward3DWith over 10 years experience in international online marketing, Martin has worked with the world’s most innovative businesses across a range of sectors. From marketing to consulting and administration, Martin has managed established brands including Netflix and Skype, across 26 markets.
Paul Ingles
Senior DeveloperPaul joined Forward in 2008 from a leading software development consultancy where he was a Technical Lead and Lead Consultant for over 2 years. He brings a varied development background including: investment and retail banking, financial research, and publishing. Since joining, Paul has worked with the rest of the development teams to deliver innovative data analysis tools and consumer facing products at Forward.
Sarah McQuade
HR DirectorSarah is the HR Director for the Forward Internet Group. She joined in 2010 to assume overall responsibility and enhance the current HR function. Prior to joining Forward Sarah was the European People Manager for Openx, an ad technology company, and was also part of Yahoo!'s talent acquisition team. She is CIPD certified and holds a BA from University of Oslo, Norway and a degree in Business English from University of San Francisco.
Steve Weller
General Manager, uSwitchSteve is the General Manager of uSwitch. He joined in 2006 to expand the product portfolio and drive the company forward as a leading price comparison website. His previous 10 years in the telecoms industry saw him managing the launch of Irish network Meteor Mobile and steering Wanadoo's convergence launch. Specialising in Marketing and Proposition development, Steve holds a MBA and Masters of Engineering.