Julian Boulding
Founder and President of thenetworkone

Julian Boulding is Founder and President of thenetworkone, the world’s leading independent agencies organisation, representing more than 1200 marketing and communications agencies in 109 countries worldwide. Around 30% of these are PR / earned media specialists. Prior to founding thenetworkone in 2003, Julian spent 14 years with the DMB&B Group, later acquired by Publicis, in senior roles in North America, South America, UK and Europe, including President,  International of N.W Ayer.

Thenetworkone operates a radically different business model from traditional ‘one agency per country’ country networks and holding companies. It anticipated today’s business trend towards access rather than ownership, with an agile, flexible model which creates bespoke teams of agencies and collaborators, driven by individual client needs and requirements. A recent example has been the creation of a 40-country global agency network for Lufthans’s new international lead agency, Achtung PR in Germany.

Julian is a noted writer and commentator on industry topics (including his frequently controversial “Cannes Review”, which stands far apart from more conventional media reports.) He is also a regular conference speaker at events like Cannes, the Holmes Global PR Summit, the Indie Summit and numerous regional conferences and festivals. He is a Fellow of the Marketing Society and a Freeman of the Worshipful Company of Marketors.

Currently, thenetworkone is undertaking a project to revolutionise the way agencies contemporise their business models and invest in new talent, drawing on parallels with other professional services sectors, like law and accountancy.