People

The Forward team is an eclectic mix of personalities and nationalities with skills and experience in a wide range of industries. We’re all passionate about the internet and love what we do.

Board of Directors & Investment Committee

Neil HutchinsonNeil Hutchinson

Founder & Managing Director

Neil founded Forward in August 2004 and has overseen our meteoric rise from a one-man-band to one of the fastest growing privately owned businesses in the UK. Neil's vision for the future is to bring together great people to help create a collection of loved and trusted web brands.

Rob MurphyRob Murphy

Finance Director

Rob 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 help support the group's growth and commercial development.

Paul FisherPaul Fisher

Corporate Development Director

Paul is responsible for acquiring new businesses, investing in new projects via Forward Venture Partners and incubating new brands. Paul was previously an investor with Advent Ventures where he invested in FarFetch and worked with web companies Qype and DailyMotion. Paul is also an investor in WorldStores, Mint Digital and Picklive. He also worked in a number of early stage technology companies, including GlassesDirect, Rawflow, Reevoo.com and OmniPerception.

Carl GaywoodCarl Gaywood

Investment Partner

Carl started programming 14 years ago at the tender age of 10. After joining us 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 continues to innovate in search and and is a partner in our investment team.

Mark OpzoomerMark Opzoomer

Non-Executive Director

Mark 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 PhillipsMark Philips

Non-Executive Director

Mark 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 HermanFrank Herman

Honorary Director

The 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.

Portfolio Company Directors

Steve WellerSteve Weller

uSwitch, Managing Director

Steve is the General Manager of uSwitch. He joined us 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.

Darryl NewtonDarryl Newton

Factory Media, Managing Director

Darryl is Managing Director of Factory Media, Europe’s leading action sports media owner. Darryl has 15 years media experience ranging from mass consumer magazines such as FHM and Q, to market leading video platform MPORA.com. For the last 12 years Darryl has focused on the action sports market and was a founder of Factory Media, which joined the Forward portfolio of investment Companies in 2012.

Martin McNultyMartin McNulty

Forward3D, Managing Director

With over 10 years' experience in international online marketing, Martin has worked with some of 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.

James ConstantJames Constant

uSwitchforBusiness, Managing Director

James joined Forward Internet Group in 2010 after 20 years in the energy industry during which time he built and lead a number of independent energy suppliers culminating in bringing Gazprom Energy's electricity business to market in 2009. James joined Forward to help build the uSwitch for Business proposition of providing business energy customers with a better deal and a better way of doing business.

Robin LandyRobin Landy

InvisibleHand, Director

Robin founded InvisibleHand because he was fed up of using shopping comparison websites. He wanted to create a product that would automatically find the best deal with no effort from its users, and that people would love & trust. Prior to InvisibleHand, Robin was an Information Architect at Forward, and an IA consultant for several multinational bluechips.

Paul LawrencePaul Lawrence

Liberta, Managing Director

Paul founded Liberta UK Ltd and formed the Liberta brand, a manufacturer and distributor of pet products in March 2007. Forward acquired Liberta in 2010, since this acquisition Paul has been responsible for winning major branded distribution contracts within Europe and the Far East and distributing B2B. This enabling Liberta UK to offer the biggest range of pet related accessories in Europe (possibly the world).

Hannes OrtnerHannes Ortner

Locaria, Director

Hannes has worked at the company for over four years and comes from a strong background in linguistics and translation for over 10 languages. He has valuable experience in online marketing and localisation technology having managed multilingual accounts for clients like eBay, Hilton and Qatar Airways.