People

Paul Baverstock joined MHP in October 2010 to lead our Corporate Reputation discipline.

Paul's expertise is in the development and management of complex corporate reputation programmes operating in multiple markets. He has developed his skills in a number of leadership positions in consultancy and beyond.

Before joining MHP, Paul served as Strategy Director at Bell Pottinger Sans Frontieres and in his career has also been European Director at Ketchum, Chief Operating Officer of Bell Pottinger Group and Strategic Director of Communications at the Conservative Party. Paul is an elected Patient Governor of the Chelsea Westminster Hospital Foundation Trust and an Advisory Board Member of the award winning charity Coaches Across Continents.

Brian Bender is a Senior Adviser at MHP.

Brian retired from the civil service in 2009, having been a Permanent Secretary (the most senior civil servant in a UK government department) for nearly 10 years. His last post was leading the Department for Business, and before that the Department for Trade & Industry and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (leading the process of creating that Department in 2001). In his career Sir Brian has overseen a range of policy areas including energy, climate change, science and innovation, better regulation, and, latterly, helping business through the economic downturn. He also led cross-Government work on risk management. Brian has considerable EU experience, having served twice in the UK Representation in Brussels. He was also Head of the European Secretariat of the Cabinet Office 1994-98.

Other parts of his current portfolio include chairmanship of the London Metal Exchange, member of the Offshore Advisory Board of Mainstream Renewable Power, Governor of the Institute for Government and of Dulwich College, and Associate of Criticaleye.

Mike Birtwistle has been with MHP and one of its predecessor consultancies, Mandate, for over 10 years. Leading MHP Health, MHP’s specialist health consultancy team, he advises a range of commercial, voluntary and public sector clients whose organisational success depends upon influencing the health environment.

Mike was a key advisor to the Department of Health in England on its development of flagship strategies on cancer and end of life care, as well as the Richards Review on so-called ‘top ups’. He has also advised the UK government on its recent project assessing the extent and causes of international variation in drug usage. Mike also sits on a number of Department of Health advisory bodies. He has been a responsible for a series of award-winning campaigns, ranging from securing greater access to cancer treatments, to winning acceptance for the critical role of clinical nurses and saving a hospital threatened by closure.

Mark Cater plays a leading role in developing and delivering communications programmes and campaigns for MHP’s expanding global client base.

Mark Cater joined MHP in January 2012.  Previously he was president at Cohn & Wolfe New York where he worked with several of agency’s global corporate and healthcare clients. His responsibilities also included building worldwide business in partnership with Cohn & Wolfe offices and affiliates around the world.

Prior to his global responsibilities at Cohn & Wolfe, Cater led key clients for the European region across a range of industries. Mark Cater also built the agency's offering across EMEA following the 2008 merger with GCI Group, bringing former GCI offices under the Cohn & Wolfe brand and expanding the network to include the Middle East and North Africa and a joint venture partnership in Africa.

Mark Cater also brings extensive healthcare expertise previously as partner and director of global healthcare for Ketchum, and UK and European healthcare leadership positions at Edelman.

Gay Collins is Executive Chairman of MHP. Gay has over 20 years experience in PR and specialises in advising companies in the financial services space. After university, Gay began her career selling eurobonds to fund managers for five years at Merrill Lynch and at Dean Witter in London and New York. She then moved into PR, joining an agency where she was part of the team that completed a MBO to set up Ludgate, a public relations firm where she was head of the Corporate Division. In 1998 she co-founded one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Penrose, making it the market leader in specialist capital markets and financial services PR.

One of Gay’s specialisations is strategic positioning for investment and pensions businesses. She has built up extensive contacts and is experienced in all aspects of corporate work.

A founder member of the 30% Club, established to increase representation for women on UK plc's boards, Gay is involved in several charities including Bottletop, Sense and the NSPCC.

Matt Decker is Principal of MHP’s office in Washington DC.

Before joining MHP, Matt served as the Congressional and political advisor to the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. There, he provided the British Government with its insider perspective of American politics, the federal government, and the legislative process.

Matt has also served as a political advisor to the Japanese Embassy in Washington, D.C. Similar to his role with the British, advising the Government of Japan on all aspects of U.S. government and politics. His particular focus was on international trade agreements and legislation affecting Japan. Specifically, he was brought in to help guide the Japanese Embassy through the U.S. debate over granting Permanent Normal Trade Relations to the People's Republic of China.

Matt started his career in politics working in the U.S. Congress. He served as an international trade and foreign policy advisor to Congressman Mark Souder of Indiana.

Nick is head of MHP’s pensions advisory and investor services practice. He has worked in financial PR for over 25 years and is a specialist in financial services. He advises trustees of many of the UK’s largest pension schemes including Cadbury’s, ICI, Royal Mail, Sainsbury’s and GEC. He also has worked with a number of leading general and specialist asset managers and financial services firms.

Over the years he has advised a range of plcs (from FTSE 100 to AIM), and his experience includes large scale IPOs, privatisations, contested transactions, and other corporate initiatives.

Nick graduated from Cambridge University and started work in advertising and marketing before joining Dewe Rogerson for whom he established their Australian PR consultancy. He subsequently moved in-house at Eurotunnel and then returned to general financial PR advisory practice, before co-founding one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Hogarth.

Sacha Deshmukh is CEO of MHP. Before this he was CEO of one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Mandate, from its foundation in 2008 and prior to that was Managing Director of the corporate and public affairs consultancy AS Biss & Co.

Passionate about integrated communication, Sacha has devised and led multi-audience strategies and campaigns for businesses and brands worldwide.

Sacha started his career in the world of pressure group campaigning and keeps that interest alive in his role as a Board Trustee of Citizens Advice, the organisation bringing together the 438 Citizens Advice Bureaux across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Gavin Devine is Chief Operating Officer of MHP, and Head of Transport.

He joined AS Biss & Co, one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, in 2004, having previously been a senior civil servant working in the House of Commons. In more than a decade in Parliament Gavin worked in the legislation service and managed the secretariats of a number of Select Committees.

Since joining the company Gavin has provided senior strategic advice to a number of high profile organisations including Crossrail, Kraft Foods, EDF Energy and Network Rail. As a former Clerk of the Transport Committee he has had a long association and involvement with the transport sector. He has worked closely with some of the most significant transport organisations, giving them the business and communications advice they have needed to flourish and grow.

Gavin was awarded an MBA in 2004 and is Deputy Chair of the Association of Professional Political Consultants (APPC).

Darren Ennis joined MHP in September 2011 as part of our growing Brussels office.

In his nearly decade in Brussels, Darren has held positions including economics, sports politics, trade and foreign affairs correspondent at Thomson Reuters - breaking news at international events from the G20, UN and WTO to the FIFA and Rugby World Cup Finals.Upon her appointment, High Representative & Vice President Ashton personally appointed him as her media and strategic communications advisor giving him a key role in developing her narrative for EU foreign policy and helping deliver her political messages to world leaders and media around the globe. He was responsible for creating the communications team that now supports the European External Action Service – the EU diplomatic service - and was a leading member of HRVP Ashton's European Parliament policy team.

Since the start of the Arab Spring, Ennis has been dispatched to the region by Ashton, notably to Libya where he helped open the EU delegation in Benghazi and visited Tripoli.

Lis is MHP’s Deputy Head of Corporate Reputation, having joined one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Mandate, in March 2010. She has more than 11 years’ experience delivering corporate, public affairs, B2B and consumer campaigns for a variety of transport clients.

Having worked within international agencies including Four, Weber Shandwick, and the Red Consultancy, Lis has handled multi-territory campaigns for a variety of leading brands and associations across the transport sector including bmi, Etihad Airways, Scandinavian Airlines, The Passengers Shipping Association and Flybe.

Before joining us, Lis spent 7 years at Four, where she set up the agencies’ travel division, delivering PR programmes for leading airlines, tour operators, hotels and destinations. Lis amassed considerable international experience, helping to drive the agency’s international expansion with the foundation of several offices across the Middle East, in addition to delivering communications programmes across multiple European territories.

Barnaby Fry has over 14 years’ experience of financial and corporate public relations advising clients from a diverse range of sectors including professional services, financial services, retail, business services, chemicals and engineering.

He began his career with Ludgate Communications and has, throughout his career, advised on a broad range of M&A, flotations, corporate reputation building and crisis work. In 1999 he joined Citigate Dewe Rogerson as an integral part of its specialist Insurance Division, subsequently joining Flagship Consulting in 2002 to successfully launch its financial PR offering.

Barnaby has extensive knowledge of the communications challenges facing professional services and business support services firms, having worked with a broad range of firms on their strategic communications.

Alisdair is a European public affairs specialist with extensive experience advising companies with regulatory challenges in Europe.

Before joining MHP, Alisdair served as Director at the British Retail Consortium where he led European campaigns on several high profile trade issues, including the 2005 "Bra Wars" dispute between the EU and China, and several consumer antidumping cases on behalf of retailers, leading to an eventual overhaul of EU trade defence rules.

He started his consultancy experience at APCO Europe and European Communication Strategies, advising clients with regulatory challenges in the food, consumer affairs and international banking arenas.

Craig Harrow is MHP’s Head of Property and also Head of MHP’s Scotland office.

Craig joined one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Mandate, in 2009 to establish the Edinburgh office. A year on, Craig’s leadership has ensured that MHP in Scotland provides high profile clients a broad and integrated range of political and corporate communications approaches.

Craig started his career in Westminster before returning a number of years later to Scotland, where he led a public affairs consultancy. Craig then worked in-house for a leading supermarket leading its public affairs team in Scotland, before managing the first regional office of a specialist planning communications business, and then establishing his own consultancy.

Craig has a range of experience working on complex infrastructure, energy and planning projects offering strategic communications and campaigning advice.

Mark Herbert joined MHP in May 2011. His expertise covers media relations, crisis and issues management, government relations and international communications and campaigns. He has specialised in complex multi-disciplinary communications challenges in some of the most demanding environments and market sectors. Mark has over 25 years communications industry experience.

Before joining MHP, Mark worked for 12 years at Bell Pottinger. Prior to that he held Director of Communications positions at two FTSE 100 companies, TI Group and Lucas Industries. He has also worked for leading agencies Shandwick and Porter Novelli.

At MHP he works principally in its Corporate Reputation and Financial & Investor Communications disciplines.

Rachel Hirst was part of the founding team at one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Hogarth. She has over 25 years’ experience in the financial PR industry. Her specialisms include advising plc boards on their stockmarket communications and investor relations, and professional services firms on the management of their image and reputation.

Rachel began her career at Valin Pollen, then one of London’s leading financial PR firms. In the early 1990s, she helped establish the London office of Gavin Anderson. She joined Shandwick in 1994 to lead the advisory team on the Halifax Building Society’s privatisation. She has since advised on a range of large scale transactions in the quoted and private equity arenas.

Reg Hoare is a Managing Director at MHP having joined one of our predecessor consultancies, Hogarth, in February 2010.

Reg has over 25 years of City experience, initially gained in investment banking and securities. Between 1983 and 1995 he focused in research, sales and corporate broking in the UK equity markets with W Greenwell, SG Warburg Securities and Nomura International.

Switching to Financial PR in 1995, Reg has principally specialised in advising mid market companies. As well as being active in the IPO market he has advised clients in a wide range of mergers and acquisitions, fund raisings and crisis communications situations.

He is a Board member of the Investor Relations Society, Europe's leading body for investor relations practitioners, and is a member of The Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment, which evolved as the membership organisation for the securities and investment industry following ‘Big Bang’.

Fiona Holroyde is a public affairs specialist with particular expertise in the media and leisure sectors. She also has extensive experience advising clients on integrated communications programmes.

Prior to joining one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Mandate, Fiona served as Managing Director at FD-LLM Public Affairs and before that was a Director at Bell Pottinger Public Affairs. She started her consultancy career at Brunswick where she worked on a number of high profile transactions, advising on the politics of competition policy.

Before entering the world of consultancy, Fiona was Parliamentary and European officer at the CBI. She has also worked in the House of Commons for Julian Brazier MP.

Prior to joining one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Hogarth, in 2000, Andrew Jaques spent 12 years as a corporate stockbroker with HSBC, BZW and Credit Suisse where he was responsible for several senior corporate advisory and institutional investor relationships.

Andrew has considerable experience in advising management teams on their financial and investor communications and related transactional activity, particularly in the areas of IPOs, M&A and capital raisings.

He was promoted to Chief Executive of Hogarth in October 2009 and now leads MHP’s Financial & Investor Communications discipline.

Lucinda Kemeny is a senior financial PR practitioner and former business journalist, having spent the first 11 years of her career in journalism, latterly as Business Correspondent at the Sunday Times and then as Mergers & Acquisitions Editor and Chief City Correspondent at the Financial Mail on Sunday.

She was named Private Equity Correspondent of the Year by the BVCA In November 2006.

Since joining us, Lucinda has advised quoted clients across a range of industry sectors and unquoted private equity and professional services organisations.

Jonathan is a senior corporate communications professional with significant experience of working with and in the public and voluntary sector. He joined one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Mandate, in 2004 having previously headed up public affairs at one of the UK’s largest charities. He has since advised large voluntary, public sector and regulatory organisations on their communications challenges.

Jonathan specialises in leading cross-disciplinary teams and loves to drive campaigns across the corporate affairs spectrum – whether on sensitive corporate reputation issues or on high-profile calls to achieve legislative or societal change.

Tim McCall started his career in the City with UBS before moving into financial PR and investor communications with GCI Financial in 2000.

In 2002 he co-founded the specialist financial PR consultancy MJ2 Communications, where he was Managing Director until leaving to join one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Hogarth, in 2008.

Tim has extensive experience of providing financial and corporate public relations advice to leading companies across a range of sectors, but specialising in Property and Financial Services.

His experience includes advising companies on issues such as: IPOs; financial calendar; demergers; M&A; property marketing; crisis management; corporate positioning; and reputation management.

He became Deputy COO of MHP at launch in October 2010.

Andrew Nicolls heads up the Banking and Capital Markets sector team at MHP and has 17 years experience delivering corporate communications programmes to some of the world's leading financial institutions, from global banks to leading capital markets players across all asset classes.

Andrew has worked exclusively with international organisations, supporting them across Europe, Asia and the US and implementing integrated communication programmes in a host of different jurisdictions.

His career started in the city at the jobbing house, Wedd Durlacher Mordaunt (subsequently Barclays de Zoete Wedd) where he spent 7 years before moving to James Capel as an Analyst.

Andrew joined Ludgate Communications in 1994 and was a founder of one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Penrose, in 1998.

Robert Nuttall has over 20 years’ in-house experience working in senior communications and change roles for organisations including Marks & Spencer, Cable & Wireless, GlaxoSmithKline, the BBC and Citigroup.

Whilst at Marks & Spencer, he played a key role in devising and implementing the internal and external brand and communications strategy for ‘Plan A’, one of the most comprehensive and acclaimed corporate sustainability programmes .

In June 2009, he joined one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Mandate, as the lead expert in corporate responsibility and sustainability communications. Robert continues to specialise in this focus, advising businesses and non-governmental organisations on how most effectively to communicate their sustainability strategies. His clients have included some of the biggest household names in the UK.

Robert has an MBA from the Cranfield School of Management and is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA).

John Olsen has worked in financial and corporate PR for 25 years. In 1997 he co-founded one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Hogarth.

John has in-depth experience and knowledge across a range of sectors including consumer industries, support services, retail, transport and engineering. He is MHP’s leading expert in the industrial and engineering sector.

Prior to the creation of Hogarth, John spent seven years at Shandwick, becoming a Director of its 100-strong financial, corporate and public affairs consultancy in London. His early career was spent enjoying a brief stint in accountancy before joining financial PR firm Broad Street Associates (now FD).

John is Chairman of the Board of Governors of Halstead School in Surrey, and can otherwise be found up a mountain, on a golf course or on the water when time allows.

Joshua Peck is Head of MHP Energy, Utilities and Natural Resources, having joined MHP predecessor Mandate in 2008. He has a decade’s experience of leading in-house government relations teams, including at Powergen/E.ON.

At MHP, he advises a range of energy and infrastructure clients on their relationships with political stakeholders, ensuring they maintain their licence to operate in complex political, policy and regulatory environments. 

Josh is also MHP’s expert on local government, having served as a councillor in a range of senior roles, including Cabinet Member for Finance and Deputy Leader, on a major London borough. He is a board member of the Greenwich and Docklands Festivals.

Shona Prendergast was a co-founder of one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Penrose, where she was responsible for the private equity division.

She has over 20 years experience in financial PR consultancy and has advised clients in the private equity space in particular for over 15 years. In addition, she has covered many other areas including M&A, IPOs, retail financial services and corporate accounts on an international basis. Within private equity her client experience has encompassed a wide range of investment strategies as well as geographic and sector focus. In addition to private equity, she has significant experience of crisis communications and global campaigns.

Prior to Penrose, Shona was at Ludgate Communications and before that at Charles Barker City.

Shona is a Committee member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations Corporate & Financial Group.

Rachael Sansom has over 20 years experience in consumer and corporate PR. Previously, she was a partner in one of London’s top agencies, heading multinational accounts such as The Walt Disney Company and Anheuser-Busch. Following 15 years in the agency world Rachael moved in-house, becoming Director of Communication at Motorola.

Rachael leads the consumer/brand PR discipline in MHP, working with brands and businesses from around the world.

Siobhan Shea-Simonds joined one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Mandate, in 2009 following several years with agencies including Fishburn Hedges and Firefly working on campaigns spanning both the corporate and public sector.

At MHP, her clients have included a range of professional services firms including insurers Hiscox, Zurich and Munich Re, global HR consultancies Hudson and Harvey Nash plc and law firm, DLA Piper. Siobhan has also advised several major financial services clients including American Express, Mazars, KPMG and Visa Europe.

In her career, she has also led a number of high profile public information campaigns working with the Home Office to communicate changes to UK passport security, helping the Department of Work and Pensions raise awareness of employment and benefits service Jobcentre Plus, and running the Department of Health’s NHS Smokefree campaign to promote NHS stop smoking services and pave the way for a ban on smoking in public places.

Siobhan has considerable crisis and issues management experience, having managed the crisis press office function for social networking site, Bebo, and advising on everything from employment tribunals and fraud, to data breaches and strike action a wide range of companies around the world.

Sally Todd is Head of Asset Management at MHP where her focus is on advising clients within the investment industry. Sally's experience draws from her work with businesses operating across all asset classes and alternative investment industries. She also works within the pensions advisory arena, advising pension funds and consultants on their communications strategies. Sally joined one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Penrose, in June 2001 and became co-head of the institutional asset management practice and a member of the Board in 2007. She was promoted to Managing Partner at Penrose in 2008.

Prior to joining Penrose, Sally was a Strategist at Moore Capital Management from 1997 to 2001, focusing on macroeconomic policy research and latterly Japanese economic policy within the Economics Group at Moore. Sally was formerly with Harvard PR, a specialist pan-European technology PR consultancy, from 1995 to 1997.

Leone Ward heads up the Consumer Financial Services sector team at MHP. She is a strategy development specialist, with 12 years  experience in creating and delivering both consumer and B2B media relations campaigns for financial services companies.

She has worked with a range of clients, from large to small companies across multiple financial product sets such as Sun Life Direct, AXA PPP, Cirencester Friendly, Caxton FX, Barclays and Australian credit card Health.

Previously Leone Ward worked at Edelman helping to set up its financial services team. She left to travel, joining Capital PR and then Love Communications in Sydney where she focused on primarily consumer campaigns. Leone Ward joined one of MHP’s predecessor consultancies, Penrose in 2006.