UNIFY CHANGEMAKERS
An international network of likeminded people across the world who are passionate about change.
FOR CREATIVE & TECH INDUSTRY LEADERS WHO WANT TO CHANGE THE INDUSTRY FOR THE BETTER
Where the world’s most influential creative and tech organisations to communicate, collaborate and unify to work together to transform the creative and tech industries.
BUILD LONG TERM RELATIONSHIPS WITH A COHORT OF LEADING EXPERTS IN IN THE CREATIVE AND TECH INDUSTRIES
RECEIVE THE LATEST DATA AND TRENDS DIRECT FROM INDUSTRY PEERS ON YOUR AREA OF EXPERTISE
DISCOVER WHAT CHALLENGES ARE UNIQUE TO YOUR ORGANISATION AND WHAT CHALLENGES ARE INDUSTRY WIDE
BENEFIT FROM A SAFE SPACE TO SHARE PERSONAL CHALLENGES AND DISCOVER TANGIBLE SOLUTIONS FROM INDUSTRY PEERS ON HOW TO OVERCOME THOSE CHALLENGES
WHAT IS IT?
A safe space for leaders in the creative and tech industries to meet with other like minded people to empower change in their lives and their industry. Our sessions are focused on leaders open sourcing industry knowledge and industry insight for personal and industry change.
WHAT’S THE FORMAT?
90 minute sessions held every 6 weeks, online.
WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?
Our personal lives, professional lives, working environment, society and the world has changed a considerable amount since 2020. This means we have an opportunity to change the way we work for the better.
These sessions are designed to create a safe, open, innovative peer learning space, on how you can make change in your career, business and the industry, together.
Further Information Below…
OUR PARTNERS
A SELECTION OF OUR INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATORS
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Sarah Jenkins
Managing Director, Saatchi & Saatchi
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Beth Freedman
CEO, DentsuX
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Mat Goff
CEO, adam&eveDDB
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Oona King
VP, Diversity & Inclusion, Snapchat
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Serhat Ekinici
Managing Director, UNITE OMG
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Olivia McEvoy
International D&I Lead, Twitter
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Harjot Singh
Global CSO, McCann Worldgroup
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Sam Hawkey
CEO, AMV BBDO
How do our members describe UNIFY?
WHAT DO OTHERS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT OUR UNIFY SESSIONS?
“Being able to connect meaningfully with other people working on DEI in our industry is so valuable. And it's not just a talking shop! I always learn something from these conversations or take away a new action. I feel very fortunate to be able to listen and learn from this amazing group of people, to share experiences and pool knowledge. Dismantling oppression and working on achieving equity for all transcends our individual organisations, and I love the opportunity to collaborate, find and express solidarity and explore ways of working that can drive positive change.”
— Kate Williams, Head of Diversity & Inclusion, Publicis Groupe
“My mum taught me two things: the first is that if you have a positive mental attitude you can get 10-15% more out of yourself and those around you. The second is that you make your own luck, and that’s what Ashley and Charles are all about. That’s the kind of infectious feeling that we all get from being a part of UNIFY Creative. That’s why this group has attracted the types of people that it has. If you look around at those here today, I’m also seeing a lot of new faces, who I don’t see on the panels all the time. That’s what makes this interesting to me. UNIFY Creative is bringing a genuinely different perspective.”
— Sam Hawkey, CEO, AMV BBDO
“Charles and Ashley do a terrific job of getting a great line-up of people together to debate these issues. There is a really strong desire from everybody that I meet in the industry to make this industry as good as it possibly can be and forums like this are very important. The more that we talk and share problems, the more likely we are to get to the right solutions.”
— Stephen Woodford, CEO, Advertising Association
“It's unique and refreshing to have this brain trust made up of people across the DEI industry: these are real thought partners as well as colleagues.”
— Ivy Martinez, European DE&I Manager, Google
“UNIFY is challenging what has made us all comfortable. The topics we have covered in these sessions isn’t something everybody has been willingly to talk about in the past. Being a changemaker requires confidence and it requires an ability to want to challenge the status quo. I think that’s what UNIFY stands for.”
— Lauren Ogúndèkó, Co-Founder, Bicycle
“UNIFY is great because it has brought together so many senior people to collaborate on issues that are so much bigger than any one of us. UNIFY is a space that has not really existed before within the industry. We’re not coming to it with the sort of existing institutional frameworks, I think there's something interesting and different about UNIFY, a kind of a new space that we can all work in.”
— Craig Mawdsley, Founding Partner, Craig + Bridget (Ex CSO, AMV BBDO)
“You’re with people who are like-minded, who are working in the same industry and want to represent the creative industries, but also who want to do something that makes change.
“Personally I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to have my voice amplified. To make a change you need to be part of a group that does so. We have the right people and the right opportunity.”
— Elizabeth Diaferia, Senior Advisor, Creative Industries Trade and Investment Board (CITIB)
The Process
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1. Interview
Your organisation will put forward applicants, we’ll host a 45 minute interview to run through our needs analysis.
The needs analysis allows us to understand what value their UNIFY Changemakers cohort can bring them based on their individual challenges, goals and what they would like to change in the industry.
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2. Placement
Based on the interview, we’ll place the applicants into the best cohort for their needs and experience.
They will be notified who is in their UNIFY Changemakers Cohort, the dates of the sessions and the agenda for the first session.
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3. Introductory Session
The first session will give the cohort an opportunity to get to know each other in a personal and meaningful manner, beyond the job titles, everyone will get to know what experiences people have been through that shaped who they are today and how they see the world.
They will all then get an opportunity to hear and share the biggest challenges they are facing and begin open sourcing solutions.
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4. Ongoing Sessions
The session agendas are focused on sharing personal, professional and industry challenges that are unique to the members of the cohort and open sourcing solutions to these challenges.
The sessions are held over a 90 minute session, every 6 weeks, online.