Nev Phillips
Chief Technical Officer
For Nev, curiosity has always been the spark. Long before co-founding Symmetry, he was already the kind of person who needed to understand how things worked – and how they could work better. That mindset has led him on a lifelong journey through entrepreneurship, engineering, and a fair few adventures off the beaten path.
Nev’s career began with a fascination for technology and systems, and how even small details could make or break them. That fascination evolved into a series of successful ventures across telecoms, energy – and even the perfume industry – where he built businesses from the ground up and developed pioneering telecom solutions that challenged convention. Each venture has taught him something new about design, precision, and how to turn complexity into clarity.
By the time Nev co-founded Symmetry with Bill Leahy, he had seen the same pattern repeat itself across countless projects with major players like EY and O2: reference data – often overlooked – was quietly responsible for some of the biggest revenue assurance headaches in the industry. Nev saw an opportunity to rethink this; not by applying a sledgehammer, but with the careful precision of a scalpel.
The best ideas often start with curiosity – and a question no one’s asked yet.
That philosophy has become Symmetry’s foundation: solving problems elegantly, preventing issues before they happen, and designing systems that just make sense. Nev approaches every challenge this way, whether it’s helping clients build resilient data frameworks or tackling his latest DIY project at home! As one colleague puts it, he’s “fluent in the details” – yet always able to see the bigger picture.
A visual thinker at heart, Nev believes a picture really can say a thousand words. He thrives on mapping out complex systems until they reveal their simple, beautiful logic – sometimes even ideating solutions in his sleep! For him, the most satisfying moments are when a problem’s solution feels effortless.
There are many ways to solve a problem, but some just make you think ‘gosh, that’s clever’.
Outside of work, Nev’s curiosity doesn’t rest. He’s hiked to Everest Base Camp, grows his own fruit, vegetables, makes homemade wine and still can’t resist the lure of an adventure – whether that’s on a mountain trail or in his workshop.
He may miss the days of designing systems on the back of pub napkins, but the spirit remains the same. For Nev, every challenge – every misbehaving pipe, every tricky dataset, every new idea – is an invitation to explore, improve, and create something smarter than before. After all, the best ideas often start with curiosity – and a question no one’s asked yet.