FWD Hires Long-Time FS Sector Exec Martin Grimwood

In London, financial services sector specialist FWD Research has hired long-time ORC International executive Martin Grimwood as Director of Research, responsible for consultancy and services to support clients' implementation of Consumer Duty across their businesses.

FWD is a multi-disciplinary communications consultancy, with expertise from across business sectors including insurance, asset management, fintech, wealth management and automotive. Grimwood (pictured) joins with more than three decades' financial services (FS) industry experience, leading research and consulting support to both service providers and regulatory bodies. Most recently he was Senior Client Officer - FS at Ipsos; before which he worked for GfK as Divisional Director - Life, Pensions & Investments; and Kantar as Group Director - FS. Earlier he spent nearly eighteen years at ORC International, latterly as Global Director - FS, coordinating a virtual global team of FS experts.

In his new role, Grimwood's immediate focus will be helping clients use research to develop Consumer Duty information architectures. This regulation is designed to guarantee that any consumer-facing provider in the sector ensures their products and services meet customer needs, offer fair value, and provide 'helpful' and understandable customer support and communications.

FWD Joint MD Elliot Lane comments: 'We are delighted Martin has decided to join the business at this crucial time, as the FS community faces the challenges of the Consumer Duty legislation. Martin's experience of working alongside the FCA and his experience in developing consumer protection frameworks, including measuring customer outcomes and characteristic of vulnerability, means he is uniquely qualified to advise clients in this sector'.

Web site: www.fwdconsulting.co.uk .