As cofounder and Chairman of Oxford Entrepreneurs, Bob is a leading contributor to the recent rise in entrepreneurialism at UK universities. Having set up profitable design and publishing companies as an undergraduate, he began a sabbatical from his masters degree in April 2004 when headhunted by PayPal cofounder Max Levchin to help start consumer technology companies at his San Francisco incubator, Midtown Doornail. Bob advises a number of student start-ups and welcomes contact from OE members.

Projects

Yelp! Inc., Sept 2004 - present, San Francisco, CA

• Product Manager of Yelp.com - a way to discover and share the best of your city.
• Launched Jan 2005. 20,000+ writers. Mainly SF, growing in Boston, Chicago and Seattle.
• $3M-8M Series A funding from Bessemer Venture Partners. Business Week’s Best of the New Web 2005: Home Services.
• Check out Bob’s Yelp reviews and sign up.

Chatango, April 2004 - Sept 2004, San Francisco, CA

• Cofounder and Product Manager of the first in-browser instant messenger for consumers.
• Originally designed to provide instant communication for online auctions, Chatango was stunted when banned by eBay, becoming popular instead in blog communities Xanga and MySpace.
• 200,000 sign ups in the first 12 months with no ad or marketing spend. To chat to visitors of your blog or website get yours.

Oxford Entrepreneurs, Oct 2002 - present, Oxford, UK

• Cofounder and Chairman of Oxford University’s first organisation for student entrepreneurs.
• Showcased nationally by the Department of Trade and Industry at Living Innovation 2003 as ‘one of the top three organisations in the UK for supporting innovation and enterprise’.
• Watch TV presenter Adam Hart-Davis interview Bob, Kaori and Jenna using Windows Media Player or Real Player.

Prana Publications, Sept 2002 - present, Norwich, UK

• Started a yoga club at UEA - now the most popular society at the University, winning the Outstanding Contribution to Societies Award 1999 and Society of the Year 2002.
• To help students practice independently Bob devised a yoga guide on audio CD - Yoga Retreat and published it across the UK.
• Top ratings from Yoga Magazine, Spectrum and Yoga and Health, stocked by some of Europe’s largest yoga retailers, including Yoga Matters and Yoga Mad, with several thousand copies sold.
• Try this free sample seated at your desk and order your copy by phone +44 (0) 20 8888 8588 or buy online (RRP £14.99).

Turton Creative Marketing Solutions, Summer 2002, Norwich, UK

• Bob worked with the Directors of this agency, writing copy for English Country Cottages (circulation 2m), made strategic recommendations to StartRite Shoes and led market research for the Construction Industry Training Board.

Inspired, May 2000 - Sept 2002, Norwich, UK

• Bob created corporate identities for eight companies, with students contributing design and creative. The motto was ‘Give your venture a vision’.
• Branded TML Ltd., a £20M national building maintenance company (acquired by OCS Group).

Education

University of Oxford 2002 - 2004
MPhil Medieval English Literature (AHRB Scholar) - pending completion University of East Anglia, Norwich 1999 - 2002
BA (Hons) English Literature, Starred First Class (1st of 254)