Non-Executive Director
Neil Backwith is Magenta’s non-executive director. He is a Psychology graduate of University College London, and spent 10 years ‘on the client side’ before joining Countrywide Communications (now Porter Novelli) as an account manager in 1982.
He rose to Group MD in 1993 and worked to develop and implement the ‘go global’ strategy which saw Countrywide merge with Porter Novelli in the US and ultimately become one of the top 3 International PR Groups with more than 100 offices across 50 countries.
Neil ‘retired’ from his post as CEO (EMEA) in April 2004 to establish his own management consultancy aimed at helping other firms improve their commercial success. He regularly lectures, speaks at conferences and trains directors on commercial management as well as working as a consultant. He is the author of the PRCA book ‘Managing Professional Communications Agencies’ published in 2007.