Priest Steps Down as Future Thinking CEO

Jon Priest has moved from his role as Group CEO of Future Thinking, to a Non-Executive Director (NED) position on its investor Board alongside the firm's lead shareholder Next Wave Partners. Future Thinking Group's CFO David Griffith will serve as Interim CEO.

Having led the recent acquisition and subsequent integration of Future Thinking's data driven insights business Gemseek, Priest is taking up the NED position to support the strategic development of the group. He has held the top job at Future Thinking Group for eight years, after seventeen years at SPA which he co-founded in 1994. Next Wave Partners acquired SPA in 2010 and merged the firm with Oxford agency Future Thinking (formerly known as TORA), in which Next Wave held a 60% stake. Last month, Next Wave Partners led a £6.5m investment round in Future Thinking, adding to the £13m round led by Beechbrook Capital and Access Capital Partners the previous year.

Future Thinking now employs more than 300 people in six offices across Europe and is expecting revenues of approximately £27m for the current financial year. The Board now comprises Griffith; Sue Homeyard, Group MD Operations; Stephane Marder, MD for France; Glen Khouw, CEO Bulgaria; Petko Tinchev, MD Bulgaria; and Adele Gritten, UK MD.

Priest says now is the perfect time in his career to assume a different role, while continuing to work closely with investors. Mark Bezerra Speeks, Chairman of Future Thinking Group, adds: 'Jon has been instrumental in growing the business and ensuring that the group is at the forefront of offering its customers data technology solutions as a core part of our added value insight offer. We are delighted that he has agreed to remain on the main investor board as a Non-Executive Director and look forward to continuing our long-term working relationship with him'.

Web sites: www.futurethinking.com and www.nextwavepartners.co.uk .