It is with profound sadness Today’s Wills and Probate learnt of the passing of Clive Ponder who died last week. As founder and Director of CTT Group, Clive was instrumental in driving the business forward alongside his long time friend and ally Bob Massey; and was a vocal advocate for the will writing profession.
An industry titan, Clive was very much one of a kind. He led his business from the front, and was never shy to share his own thoughts and opinions on matters. He was a champion of the unregulated legal community and did so much to improve the quality, understanding, and professionalism of the sector.
He often described the will writing profession as a second career for many; a job that people came to later in life, having already had their first career. He himself had been General Manager of a coal mine before reinventing himself as a will writing professional before teaming up with IFA Bob Massey in 2002 to launch their fledgling business.
Visionary
In the 20 years since, Countrywide Tax and Trust Corporation has grown to a multi-disciplinary operation. Never one to rest on laurels, Clive and his team constantly drove the business forward, finding new avenues and complementary opportunities to add to the growing list of services.
In 2019 CTT Law, an SRA -regulated law firm, was established and is now a strategic partner to CTT Group. In 2020, having outgrown their former home in Coventry, the business moved to their current Gables House office in Leamington Spa. It was a space Clive was rightly proud to show off and welcomed visitors with open arms. In 2022 the introduction of the CTT group brand, recognised the group’s growing array of services spanning software to technical support.
That same foresight saw the business integrate his daughter Charlotte into the management team as Legal Director, promote longstanding employee Spencer Tattam as Technical Director, and bring former Barclays Executive and Managing Director of their Wealth Management Division Andrew Houston into the fold in 2019. The senior leadership team grew further in 2023 with the addition of Jonathan Maskew as Director of Partnerships, and earlier this year Andrew Houston was appointed Managing Director.
“You always knew where Clive stood on an issue”
Whether in person, on the phone, on social media, or in writing, nobody was ever in any doubt as to where Clive stood on a particular issue. He was forthright and firm. Today’s Wills and Probate has been on the end of more than one of Clive’s “Ponder-ings” on a range of issues. In some of the sentiment shared in an online Book of Remembrance, first meetings with Clive were not always easy; but he won you over with his charm, wit and encyclopaedic knowledge of the sector.
And he really knew his stuff. He was vociferous in encouraging education and a better understanding of the art of will writing and estate planning, knowing about its importance and ultimate impact of individuals and families.
One thing I always admired about Clive was while he crossed swords with many, there was never any grudge; once all was said, it was done, and we all moved on.
Technology
He embraced technology, and while openly admitting he couldn’t write a line of code, recognised the huge value and point of differentiation it gave him and the business. This commitment to innovation saw him acquire the early incarnation of what was to become CTT’s “Legacy” will writing software which has developed into a platform with a suite of solutions for advisors. Ever the evangelist, the business continues to run regular training sessions on a host of estate planning related topics and user functionality with Clive personally delivering many, many sessions over the years.
That desire for innovation remained undiminished. In a podcast with Today’s Wills and Probate in June 2023, Clive shared his thoughts on the future of the sector, offering two key pieces of advice to professionals.
“Get rid of paper, and take on digital… manage clients and risk more effectively…. The solutions clients of today want are different from the client of 50 years ago.”
Support
What is clear from the sentiment shared is Clive and the CTT business have played their part in the launch, and success, of many individuals and businesses. Like so many, Today’s Wills and Probate was the beneficiary of Clive’s incredible generosity, coming on board as the very first advertising partner in 2014 and providing some much needed clout to the fledgling industry publication. His support was predicated on it remaining a publication which welcomed a broad church of readers and views; with independent editorial output and no bias either way on the debate around “regulated” and “unregulated” legal services – which to this day is a founding principle and core philosophy.
More recently CTT Group followed in the footsteps of Arken.legal and Property Solutions Group in supporting the British Wills and Probate Awards as Headline Sponsor.
Clive was “inspirational”, “One of a kind,” innovative,” “full of humour” and “direct” to take just a few words from the many outpourings of sentiment; from all of us at Today’s Media, and the collective Today’s Wills and Probate readership we offer Clive’s wife Kay, daughters Charlotte and Hayley, his grandchildren and all the team at CTT Group our condolences at this very sad time.
A statement on the CTT Group says
It is with profound sadness that we share the news of the passing of Clive Ponder, one of the founding directors of CTT Group.
Clive was a man of extraordinary vision, strength, and determination, whose passion laid the foundations of our business. Clive was more than a leader – he was an inspiration, known for his booming voice, unmistakable laugh, and genuine care for the people who worked alongside him, as well as the clients and industry that we serve.
Clive believed in striving for excellence and dedicated his life to making that vision a reality. He will be deeply missed, but his legacy will continue to shape our business for years to come.
With deep gratitude and appreciation, we honour his memory.
A book of remembrance has been launched with tributes welcome
2 responses
I’m so sorry to hear of Clive’s passing. He was a great guy and an innovative business leader in the estate planning world.
My thoughts go out to his family at this sad time.
I was shocked to read on LinkedIn just now (26.12.24) of Clive’s passing. He was indeed a one-off. I had the pleasure of delivering my How to Get Paid Your True Worth programme to the top people in CTT a few years ago. Clive was present and I don’t mind saying that I was nervous, knowing that he was very direct. I needn’t have worried. Afterwards, he said that what I had delivered was exactly what he wanted and I breathed a sigh of relief. To receive such a comment from Clive was indeed something to be proud of.
My condolences to his family and colleagues at this sad time.