Mark Blundell – Photo Credit – © Indira Flack
Mark Blundell is a former International racing driver having competed in 61 Formula 1 Grand Prix and also won the Le Mans 24hr race as well as multiple Indycar Winner in the USA. Mark was F1 ITV main F1 pundit for over 7 years when ITV showed formula one on TV and was part of the BAFTA winning presenting team.
Having sat on the board of the British Racing Drivers Club and also as a NED at a Lloyds Insurance brokerage he also ran his own property development business for over 20 years with a mix of residential and commercial developments. Now from racetrack to boardroom he heads up MBP, a relationship driven sports marketing agency.
Tell us a little bit about your business…
- How did you get into the industry? I actually got into the sports management business of managing talent (Racing Drivers) in 2006 where myself and Martin Brundle started a business called 2MB Sports Management Ltd and this was driven off the back of both of us being professional racing drivers and feeling that the market needed people who had been active in motorsport to assist and guide racing drivers thru their careers.
- What are the biggest opportunities and challenges in your industry? Working with talent that assists in getting to the top and watching and supporting their growth both on and off track, so for example a driver I have managed since 2006 called Mike Conway who is now 2 X world champion and Le Mans 24 winner in the world endurance championship. Challenges are trying to maximise the opportunities at the right time in an industry where the access is restricted and also very few make it to the top.
- How would you describe your leadership style? I try not to micromanage my team members and I give them accountability and responsibility but based on the point of their understanding never assume anything so should they feel they need to check then do so first. I very much like to support people with their professional growth and assist but set very high standards as with a small team there is nowhere to hide. I am very focused on attention to detail and on speed of process and delivery.
- How do you get the most out of the people who work for you? I try to give them a platform where they can develop and build relationships within our business network and clients so that they can feel very much a part of the growth of the agency and feel they are having a day to day contribution to the business. I also hope to provide an enjoyable working environment and support them as much as possible to improve their talent and skill sets.
- What are the most crucial elements to your business running smoothly and being successful? Our whole business is built upon relationships and this is key to the smooth running of the agency and these relationships are nurtured and cared for at all levels as we are only as good as what we deliver and the process starts with the relationship engagement at all times.
- How has the past 12 months been for you? A great 12 month period in fact the best fiscal year in the history of our business and all why celebrating our 10 year anniversary.
- What will the next 12 months look like for your business? One of excitement but also one that will require investment both in time and resource as well as fiscally to grow the agency and look forward to the next 10 years ahead.
- What are the highlights of your career so far? I think being able to have been able to get a great team around me, all the team at MBP are top drawer as well as have a fantastic board who have been very supportive, chaired by Theo Paphitis and supported by Ian Childs and our NED Karen Zachary. A real sense of achievement for me personally is also spotting talent in the business as I took on an intern just under ten years ago and his name is Alex Watts and I am proud that decision has led to Alex growing inside the business to the point where he was made a board director 2 years ago and just this month now been promoted to MD.
- What’s the biggest business mistake that you’ve learnt from? Always do as much DD as possible to get as much information as you can as at times this has bitten me in the business world with decisions made without doing more research.
10. What’s the best piece of business advice you’ve been given? First profit is the best profit!
