Paul is a founding partner of Volterra and has many years of experience in business consultancy. He is currently a Visiting Professor in the computer science department at University College London.

He was a founder of the Henley Centre for Forecasting which was sold by the management to WPP Group plc in the 1990s.

Since 2020, Paul has been non-executive chair of the Rochdale Development Agency and in 2022 was appointed by Andy Burnham as non-exec chair of Atom Valley Greater Manchester Mayoral Development Zone, a major development in the poorer northern and eastern boroughs of the city region.

Paul is a best-selling and award winning author. He has authored four books, published in many languages. Paul is renowned for his work on complexity and economic systems, authoring influential books such as "The Death of Economics" and "Why Most Things Fail." He serves as a visiting professor at University College London and was appointed Honorary Professor at Alliance Manchester Business School in 2023. Paul has a weekly column in CITYAM – all his latest articles can be read here.

Paul originally read Economics at Cambridge University, then took the MPhil in economics and econometrics at Oxford University. In 2006 he was elected a Fellow of the British Academy of Social Sciences.