About

Hi there.

I’m Mark, Principal Consultant at Fire Maverick…

With experience from building billion-dollar brands at world-renowned creative and marketing agencies to launching my own brands and businesses in frontier markets, I’m highly agile, adaptable, ready to roll up my sleeves, and dive in at any level, time, or place.

Comfortable wearing many hats, I'm strong in brand & creative strategy, client relationship building & account management, business development & sales, creative design, and management & operations. Able to deliver to a high standard in each discipline, when combined I am a force amplifier that even more efficiently and effectively delivers strong commercial results.

I’m a people person who readily builds rapport and fosters strong relationships with colleagues and clients alike. I’m naturally confident and as comfortable in a boardroom as in a bar - both places where business gets done.

A tireless team player who values all voices, I work collaboratively and cross-functionally, leads with empathy, and always aims for a win-win outcome.

I connect dots quickly and believe clear, concise, and commonsense strategy is the red thread that aligns business, brand, and creative for best-in-class solutions. It’s both the forest and the trees and I understand the role of each and easily shift perspectives between the two.

I believe tenacity and building trust are equally important to winning business and am both a fervent farmer and headstrong hunter with financial fluency and a focus on bottom line growth.

My multidisciplinary experience with corporate and FMCG brands enables me to unlock insights quickly, articulate ideas clearly, problem-solve pragmatically, align senior stakeholders, click with clients, up & cross-sell, and lead key accounts to deliver business solutions.

Now I want to focus on senior freelance, consulting, or full-time roles that pique my interests and play to my strengths - Brand & Creative Strategy, Client Relationship & Account Management, Business Development & Sales, or a hybrid combination - to create value and drive growth.

Let’s chat about working together…

Areas Of Expertise

    • Agile methodology & project sprints

    • Balanced scorecard development & implementation

    • Board-level management

    • Business case development & implementation

    • Business continuity planning

    • Business expansion

    • Business imperatives

    • Business transformation

    • C-suite management

    • Category expertise

    • Chairman

    • Chief Creative Officer

    • Chief Growth Officer

    • Chief Marketing Officer

    • Chief Operating Officer

    • Chief Strategy Officer

    • Chief Strategy Officer

    • Commercial negotiation training

    • Corporate governance policies, procedures, & protocols

    • Corporate social responsibility (CSR) advisory

    • Decision tree development

    • Distribution strategy

    • Emerging market

    • Employee value proposition (EVP) development & engagement

    • Environmental, social, governance (ESG) advisory

    • Executive coaching

    • Financial audit advisory

    • Financial compliance advisory

    • Financial reporting advisory

    • Founder exit strategy

    • Franchise strategy

    • Fundraising & investor prospectus advisory (Pre-seed)

    • Fundraising & investor prospectus advisory (Seed)

    • Fundraising & investor prospectus advisory (Series A)

    • Fundraising & investor prospectus advisory (Series B)

    • Fundraising & investor prospectus advisory (Series C)

    • Goal management (OKRs)

    • Growth models & forecasting

    • Growth strategy

    • Import / export strategy

    • Innovation pipeline planning & implementation

    • Know your customers (KYC) compliance advisory

    • Market expertise advisory

    • Organizational culture alignment

    • Organizational structure optimization

    • Product development roadmap & implementation

    • Public relations strategy

    • RACI management model development & implementation

    • Role charter development

    • Rolling forecast development & implementation

    • Shareholder relations

    • SMART goals

    • Stakeholder feedback management

    • Strategic business process development

    • Strategic partnerships

    • Strategic planning

    • Strategic planning

    • Strategy analysis, insights, & refinement

    • Sustainability advisory

    • SWOT analysis

    • Synthesize information, analysis, insights, & recommendations

    • Thought leadership strategy

    • Value proposition development

    • Vision & value setting

    • Audience messaging framework

    • Audience personas

    • Brand activation

    • Brand architecture

    • Brand equity analysis

    • Brand governance

    • Brand guardianship

    • Brand guidelines

    • Brand playbooks

    • Brand portfolio

    • Brand portfolio evolution

    • Brand positioning

    • Brand promise

    • Brand purpose

    • Brand pyramid

    • Brand strategy framework

    • Brand strategy models

    • Brand strategy schematics

    • Brand tonality

    • Brand values

    • Category expertise

    • Competitive landscape analysis

    • Consumer behavior

    • Consumer insights

    • Creative briefs

    • Creative pitch leadership, development, & presentation

    • Customer experience (CX) journey map

    • Customer journey

    • Dark market strategy

    • Demographic profiling & analysis

    • Employee & key stakeholder onboarding

    • Employee value proposition (EVP)

    • Ideation workshops

    • Innovation roadmap

    • Innovation strategy

    • Insight generation

    • Market analysis

    • Market audits, in-person visits, analysis, insights, & recommendations

    • Market expertise

    • Messaging calendar

    • Mood boards

    • New product innovation

    • Place branding

    • Problem statement development

    • Product value proposition

    • Psychographic profiling & analysis

    • Research (Qualitative)

    • Research (Quantitative)

    • Research analysis

    • Research design & planning

    • Scent branding

    • Senior management presentations

    • Sensory branding

    • Sonic branding

    • Stakeholder feedback management

    • Stakeholder interviews & insights

    • Stakeholder interviews & workshops

    • Strategy analysis, insights, & refinement

    • SWOT analysis

    • Synthesize information, analysis, insights, & recommendations

    • Target audience profiles

    • Tone of voice

    • Trend forecasting

    • Unique selling proposition (USP) development

    • Value proposition development

    • Vision & value setting

    • Visual & message hierarchy

    • Workshop design & planning

    • Workshop facilitation

    • Visual identity system framework

    • Brand portfolio evolution

    • Creative audit

    • Creative briefs

    • Creative concepts

    • Creative guardrails

    • Creative pitch leadership, development, & presentation

    • Creative principles

    • Creative reviews & critiques

    • Creative territories

    • Design analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Design evolution

    • Design foundation

    • Design schematics

    • Design thinking

    • Key brand asset framework

    • Mood boards

    • Semiotic analysis

    • Senior management presentations

    • Stakeholder feedback management

    • Touchpoint audit

    • Workshop design & planning

    • Workshop facilitation

    • Advertising copywriter

    • Audience messaging framework

    • Brand guidelines

    • Brand playbooks

    • Content analysis, insights, & refinement

    • Content calendar

    • Content structure

    • Copywriter

    • Corporate copywriter

    • Editorial copywriter

    • Employee value proposition (EVP)

    • Functional specifications

    • Information architecture

    • Key message development

    • KPI development

    • Marketing copywriter

    • Packaging copywriter

    • Retail in-store messaging

    • Retail messaging

    • ROI measurement

    • Senior management presentations

    • Social media calendar

    • Social media copywriter

    • Stakeholder feedback management

    • Strategy analysis, insights, & refinement

    • Tagline development

    • Technical specifications

    • Tone of voice

    • UI design & testing

    • Unique selling proposition (USP) development

    • UX design & testing

    • Value proposition development

    • Video script

    • Video storyboard

    • Visual & message hierarchy

    • Website content structure

    • Website copywriter

    • Wireframe development

    • A/B testing

    • Advertising campaign concept

    • Advertising campaign planning

    • Advertising campaigns

    • Advertising strategy (ATL)

    • Advertising strategy (BTL)

    • Advertising strategy (TTL)

    • Analysis, insight, & refinement

    • Audience messaging framework

    • Brand activation

    • Brand activation

    • Brand activation & implementation

    • Campaign key visual development

    • Campaign planning

    • Campaign planning & implementation

    • Campaign playbooks

    • Communications framework

    • Content calendar

    • Customer relationship management (CRM)

    • Digital media campaigns

    • E-commerce campaigns

    • Established market strategy

    • Event planning & implementation

    • Frontier market strategy

    • Go-to-market strategy

    • Go-to-market strategy

    • Key message development

    • Key opinion leader (KOL) marketing

    • KPI development

    • KPI measurement & reporting

    • Market entry strategy

    • Marketing channel strategy

    • Marketing innovation

    • Media buying

    • Media planning

    • Media planning

    • Omnichannel strategy

    • Product value proposition

    • Public relations

    • Retail marketing campaigns

    • ROI measurement

    • Sales pipeline

    • SEO

    • Shopper marketing strategy

    • Social listening

    • Social media calendar

    • Social media campaign planning & implementation

    • Social media marketing

    • Social media strategy

    • Strategy analysis, insights, & refinement

    • 3D & structural design

    • Advertising design

    • Art direction

    • ATL advertising design

    • Audience messaging framework

    • Brand activation design

    • Brand experience design

    • Brand guidelines

    • Brand identity system

    • Brand playbooks

    • BTL advertising design

    • Concept generation

    • Content structure

    • Corporate design

    • Creative briefs

    • Creative director

    • Creative reviews & critiques

    • Design analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Design development

    • Design foundation

    • Design schematics

    • Design templates

    • Digital advertising design

    • Digital design

    • Editorial design

    • Event design

    • Experiential design

    • Final artwork

    • FMCG design

    • Graphic design

    • Interactive design

    • Key visual design

    • Luxury brand design

    • Marketing communication design

    • Mood boards

    • On press checks & production management

    • Packaging design

    • Photography brief

    • POSM design

    • Retail design

    • Retouching & visualization

    • Senior management presentations

    • Social media content design

    • Stakeholder feedback management

    • Touchpoint design

    • User experience (UX) design

    • User interface (UI) design

    • Video editing

    • Video production

    • Visual identity design

    • Wayfinding & signage design

    • Website design & development

    • Wireframe development

    • Agile methodology & project sprints

    • Budget negotiation

    • Budget planning & management

    • Business case development

    • Category expertise

    • Client dashboards

    • Client interviews & workshops

    • Client portal development

    • Client presentations

    • Client relationships

    • Client satisfaction scorecard

    • Coaching & mentorship

    • Commercial KPIs

    • Communications styles training & development

    • Contract negotiation

    • Contract writing

    • Cost estimate development

    • Creative briefs

    • Creative reviews & critiques

    • Cross-functional team management

    • Cross-selling

    • Customer lifetime value

    • Digital asset management

    • Empathy

    • Freelancer management

    • Global account director

    • Goal setting

    • Growth strategy

    • Invoicing

    • Key account director

    • Key client relationship management

    • Know your customers (KYC)

    • KPI development

    • Market expertise

    • Market visits, audits, analysis, insights, & recommendations

    • Opportunity identification

    • Opportunity prioritization

    • P&L management

    • Pitch development

    • Pitch leadership

    • Pitch presentation

    • Presentation development

    • Process analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Product analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Product expertise

    • Project approach development

    • Project management

    • Project planning

    • Project roadmap

    • Project wrap-up & debrief

    • Proposal development

    • Resource & capacity planning

    • Sale presentations

    • Sales management

    • Sales pipeline

    • Sales pipeline development, forecasting, tracking, & resource alignment

    • Senior management presentations

    • Senior stakeholder management

    • Service analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • SMART goals

    • Soft skills

    • Stakeholder alignment

    • Stakeholder feedback management

    • Stakeholder interviews & workshops

    • Stakeholder management

    • Strategic partnerships

    • Strategy analysis, insights, & refinement

    • Synthesize information, analysis, insights, & recommendations

    • Talent development

    • Team leadership

    • Timeline planning & management

    • Trust Building

    • Up-selling

    • Use case development

    • Value proposition communication

    • Vendor management

    • Agile methodology

    • Agile methodology & project sprints

    • Annual budget development & reporting

    • Communications styles training

    • Contract negotiation

    • Contract writing

    • Crisis management

    • Finance process optimization & compliance

    • Goal management (OKRs)

    • Government relations

    • Human resource process optimization & compliance

    • IT stack framework & implementation

    • Key client relationship management

    • Management dashboard development

    • Media relations

    • Performance KPI development & reporting

    • Process analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Process optimization

    • Product analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Product expertise

    • Production forecasting & planning

    • Recruitment

    • Regulatory compliance

    • Resource & capacity planning

    • Rolling forecast development & reporting

    • Sales training

    • Service analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Standard operation procedures development, training, & adherence

    • Supply chain & logistics optimization

    • Team coaching, mentorship, & coaching

    • Team leadership training

    • Unique selling proposition (USP) development

    • Use case development

    • Vendor management

    • B2B sales

    • B2C sales

    • Budget negotiation

    • Business case development

    • Business growth strategy

    • Business value proposition

    • Category expertise

    • Client engagement & feedback management

    • Client relationships

    • Client servicing

    • Client servicing training

    • Contract negotiation

    • Contract writing

    • Cost benefit analysis

    • Cost estimate development

    • Creative pitch leadership, development, & presentation

    • Cross-selling

    • Customer insights

    • Customer lifetime value analysis

    • Customer loyalty

    • Customer relationship management (CRM)

    • Customer satisfaction training & evaluation

    • Customer service training

    • Deal closing training

    • DTC sales strategy

    • Effective communication

    • Financial SOP development & training

    • Goal management (OKRs)

    • Key client relationship management

    • Lead qualification training

    • Loyalty program development & implementation

    • Negotiation training

    • Networking coaching

    • New business development planning & training

    • Omnichannel strategy

    • Opportunity identification

    • Opportunity prioritization

    • Post-purchase & after sales service training

    • Process analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Product analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Product sales training

    • Product value proposition

    • Project approach development

    • Proposal development

    • Prospecting training

    • Retainer negotiation

    • ROI measurement development & training

    • Sales forecasting

    • Sales funnel

    • Sales leadership

    • Sales pipeline development, forecasting, & reporting development & training

    • Sales plan development

    • Sales presentations development & training

    • Sales triggers training

    • Service analysis, insights, refinements, & rapid iteration

    • Soft skills coaching

    • Synthesize information, analysis, insights, & recommendations

    • Timeline planning & management

    • Trust building coaching

    • Up-selling training

    • Use case development

    • Value proposition development

Work

  • Senior Client Director
    Singapore
    February-July 2024

    Website

  • Chief Growth Officer
    Singapore
    August-December 2023

    Website

  • Founder, Chairman, CEO, & CCO
    New York, NY, U.S. | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Singapore
    March 2020-August 2023

    Website

  • Founder, Chairman, CEO, & CCO
    Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
    August 2019-August 2023

    Website

  • Co-founder, Chairman, CEO, & CCO
    Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | British Virgin Islands | Singapore
    April 2017 - August 2023

    Website

  • Brand & Creative Strategist
    Client Director
    Senior Account Manager
    Singapore | London, U.K. | New York, NY, U.S.
    September 2013-March 2017

    Website

  • Commercial Director
    Account Director
    Account Manager
    Singapore | Hongkong
    August 2010-August 2013

    Website

Awards

  • CEO Insights Magazine
    Singapore, 2023

    Find out more…

  • LUXlife Magazine
    Southeast Asia, 2023

    Find out more…

  • LUXlife Magazine
    Southeast Asia, 2022

    Find out more…

  • LUXlife Magazine
    Vietnam, 2021

    Find out more…

  • Tripadvisor
    Vietnam, 2021

    Find out more…

  • Tripadvisor
    Vietnam, 2020

    Find out more…

  • Tripadvisor
    Vietnam, 2019

    Find out more…

  • Tripadvisor
    Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 2017

Press

  • Mark Nerney: Bringing People Together With Boundary-Bashing Craft Beverages
    Website

  • Craft Beverage Company of the Year 2023 – South East Asia
    Website

  • Thirsty For Innovative Eco-Solutions, Phu Quoc’s Epizode Festival Partners With beWater
    Website

  • We Go In Search For Vietnam's Winking Seal
    Website

  • Top Southeast Asia Water Companies and Startups
    Website

  • Can-do Attitude: beWater Plans ASEAN Expansion In Bid To Reduce Plastic Waste Problem
    Website

  • Eco-Epizode
    Website

  • Mark Nerney: Philosophy Behind The Beer
    Website

  • Mark Nerney: Collaboration Versus Competition in Vietnamese Craft Beer
    Website

  • Winking Seal Beer Co. Brings a Pop of Color to Saigon's Beer Scene
    Website

  • Vietnam's Booming Craft Beer Scene
    Website