Educated at
The Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, Elstree, Putnam went on to join
Lotus with various roles including
Public Relations Officer, Global
Sales and
Marketing Manager and
Director of Sales & Marketing. Before being headhunted by Sir
John Egan to join
Jaguar Worldwide Marketing and UK Operations Director. From Jaguar, Putnam moved on to be the Chairman of
Ford of Britain. From 2005 until 2006, he was President of
Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. He was also a member of the Government's Energy Review Partnership and Automotive Innovation and Growth Team which reports to the Chancellor on the country's future energy strategy and the AIGT to the Prime Minister on alternative fuels and transport. He was appointed a
CBE for services to the British Motor Industry in the
2007 Birthday Honours. Putnam was responsible for Jaguar's racing programme in the '80's which included two wins at
Le Mans and two at
Daytona. ==Directorships and responsibilities==