"Neil was a "leading light" in establishing the collaborative working approach epitomised by the CMF community. Neil recognised and advocated the importance of trust in taking forward this innovative form of contract. He instigated and ran the working group looking at establishing a collaborative culture across the CMF contractors. The excellent results achieved in the first CMF contracts in terms of right first time projects delivered on time and within budget (with no claims) were in no small part down to the contribution Neil made to establishing a culture of trust and collaboration across the different disciplines. It is no coincidence, I think that Neil has not been part of the second tranche of the CMF contracts and there has been a significant worsening in the performance of those contractors compared to the first framework. Neil is passionate about the benefits to the industry as a whole of promoting this partnership approach and this passion comes across clearly when Neil addresses audiences of his industry peers (including clients) on the subject. In my experience Neil is also confident and competent whether dealing with clients such as myself in the Highways Agency or his peers across the industry, and is well respected by those who know him. I believe he is a significant asset to the construction industry. "