Meet the Joiners

Hannah, Strategy

Hello, I’m Hannah, I’m from Leeds and I joined M&C Saatchi London after the first Open House programme back in 2020. I now work as a Strategist. A job title I didn’t even know existed until Open House lifted the lid on agency life. The job is a strange one, but I’ll give explaining it a go:

As a strategist, I try to make sense of a client’s problem and look for a way to solve it with the creative team.

I do this by researching people, competitors, the client’s business, and attempt to uncover insights and human truths that allow us to tackle the problem in a way that makes people reconsider what they thought they knew.

I try find something interesting which sparks ideas for the creative team, whilst they find the right way to bring the idea to life creatively.

Before Open House, I worked in a variety of client-side marketing roles for 8 years, from event management, to internal communications, brand to content marketing, all within the tech industry. I decided to join Open House purely as a learning opportunity, to understand how I could better work with the marketing agencies we used in my former role. However, as the weeks went on, the more I realised that agency life was probably a far better fit for me and strategy work had my brain firing on all cylinders.

Open House not only taught me about the advertising industry, but it helped me get my foot in the door, made me realise my skills were transferable and gave me the confidence to switch careers.

Kristian, Creative

Hello, I’m Kristian and I’m an alumni of the 2022 Open House programme. Having spent a few years trying to change career, it was Open House that finally gave me my break – landing me a creative placement that would lead to my current position here – a Junior Art Director.

If you have ADHD and a busy mind like I do – then being an Art Director is a dream job. Together with my copywriter Tupelo Browne, we get paid to think all day and put thoughts down on paper, turning them into creative concepts for ad campaigns.

Prior to Open House, I studied architecture and worked as an architectural assistant. I also tried my hand as a musician (albeit a bad one), and as a freelance designer. When I realised advertising was the way I wanted to go, I soon found out there were many barriers to entry, despite not even being from a disadvantaged background.

Open House breaks down those barriers and creates a level playing field, which is what allowed me to come in and tell my story – rather than being told “I haven’t been to AD school”, or “I don’t have a creative partner” – which is what I was being told at other agencies. Moreover, it was very informative, educating me about other aspects of the industry, providing a holistic view of the advertising world.

I remember when I applied, I said to my girlfriend “I have no chance”. So, if you’re like me, you have a story to tell and you have the drive to make your career change happen, then do what I did. Ignore that self-doubt, and just go for it!

Zizzy, Account Management

Hi there, I’m Zizzy and I’m an Account Manager.

I joined M&C Saatchi in September 2023, a career-changer, having previously been a secondary school teacher. Open House was a fantastic way to learn about the industry, gain practical experience, and get a foot in the door. It can feel like a hugely daunting thing, considering such a big change, so the programme was a lifeline in giving me the insight and knowledge to be able to apply my experience and transferable skills to a new challenge.

Similarly to teaching, account management is about communication and building relationships. You are the main point of contact between clients and the agency, and having great relationships with clients builds the trust that enables great creative work to be made. As an account manager, you have to be adept at spinning multiple plates – keeping an eye on differing deadlines, projects, and the needs of various stakeholders to keep morale up, keep the cogs turning, and make the work the best it can be.

Don’t be put off by having a different or more unusual route in. As people working in advertising, we are in the business of communication – and communicating with the whole of society. To be able to do that effectively, diversity of thought is a must. Your previous career, your background, your passions, these are all things that give you insight that others may not have, and so are vital in pushing the industry forwards in speaking authentically to all audiences. Take the leap!

Caitlin, PR

Hi, I’m Caitlin! I took part in M&C Saatchi Open House during my final year of university. At the time I was studying BSc Business Administration at The University of Bath and had completed two placements, the first in banking and the second in pharmaceutical marketing.

Despite knowing I loved marketing as a whole; I was still very undecided on where I wanted to start my career. Having only experienced the corporate sector; I was keen to learn about the creative industry and what agency life might be like. In my search for answers, I stumbled upon M&C Saatchi Open House and with nothing to lose, I thought I might as well give it a go!

By the end of week 1 I knew that I was in the right place. The course provided invaluable insight into the wide variety of roles within the industry and which skills are required to excel in each. Despite loving every week, PR really piqued my interest due to the flexibility to use different tactics to achieve a desired result. From redefining brand narratives to media pitching, influencer marketing, events, stunts and more, the world of PR is always changing, providing endless opportunities to create the extraordinary.

Following Open House recruitment, I joined M&C Saatchi Talk, the PR arm of the business as a Junior Account Executive in the consumer PR team and have since been promoted to Account Executive and now Senior Account Executive. Over the past two years, I have had the privilege of working across a diverse range of incredible clients including Burberry Beauty, Gucci Beauty, Sonos, instax and Irish Distillers on a wide array of interesting projects.

I highly recommend Open House to anyone curious about agency life or the creative industry—whether you’re fresh out of uni or thinking about a career change!”

Sonia, Apprentice

My name is Sonia and prior to Open House I was an A-level student and Head Girl at Sixth Form. I was always keen on pursuing an apprenticeship but didn’t know what exactly I wanted to do. All I knew was that I loved working on meaningful projects, and I absolutely loved Media.

I am now a Trainee Account Manager and Advertising & Media apprentice at M&C Saatchi. I get the opportunity to work with clients whose campaigns I’ve watched growing up and feel part of real change. My work is brimmed with meaning and opportunities for growth.

I came across Open House and couldn’t resist the opportunity to learn about the industry. During the 8 weeks of learning, I was able to get a real insider of the various roles in creative agencies. Through having this exposer, I felt comfortable that I was making the right career choice and was ready to jump straight in post-exams. I’ve been welcomed by a very kind community at work and really enjoy my role.

Noor, design

Hey! I’m Noor and I joined M&C Saatchi as a Design Intern.

I took part in Open House during my final year at university where I was studying Design Engineering. Knowing my degree was a bit atypical for what I wanted to pursue, Open House was the perfect opportunity for me to  explore pathways in the Creative industry. Each session built up an understanding of how every role connects to form an agency that can act with real impact. With M&C Saatchi as the perfect case study, Open House made me want to work here more and more each week!

Juggling the pitch process with university was challenging but definitely worthwhile for everything I learned. The best thing about it all was seeing how closely it mirrored what really goes on at the agency. I’m equally proud of the work I produced during Open House and my actual internship here!

Whether you’re already immersed in the industry (or a newbie like me!), Open House is the perfect environment to grow your understanding, experience and, most importantly, connect with other creatives.

Shaun, creative

My name is Shaun and after four years of trying to get a job with progression opportunities, I’ve miraculously landed a role at M&C Saatchi as a junior creative. I’m relieved and elated, but alongside new challenges such as tackling isolation in a workplace where remote working is the norm, I feel a strong sense of survivor’s guilt.

I was recruited off the back of M&C Saatchi’s Open House scheme. It’s a totally free, eight-week remote training program that’s open to anyone who wants to learn more about a career in advertising. The advice, opportunities and connections born out of the program have been critical to me personally being able to overcome some of the employment barriers facing my generation – barriers that have been worsened by the pandemic.

So many agencies are still looking for work experience in their entry-level candidates. This has now become a running joke for my generation – a classic catch-22 that employers use to avoid their responsibility toward the entry-level work force. How are we supposed to get experience if you won’t give us experience opportunities? It makes no sense. Fortunately for me, M&C Saatchi has been leading the charge. It has reached thousands of people (including myself) through Open House, Saturday School, Mentoring Black Business and Carbon Academy – which connects with female inner London sixth formers.

Sunny, production

Hello, I’m Sunny. Before Open house I worked for 5-6 years as a freelancer in the theatre world; Designing, painting, stage managing and propping shows.

I took a chance doing Open house in 2020, during lockdown, looking for other work avenues I might succeed in that would still be creative and have career progression. I’m delighted to say, that after completing Open house, I was offered a job and I joined the agency in April 2021 as a Production Assistant upskilling on a one-year Creative Project Management Apprenticeship.

I am now a Creative Producer at M&C Saatchi LDN. I help manage projects through the production process, from creative conception to the realisation of the campaign so it can be delivered into the world.

Open house was an eye opening programme for me. I knew very little about the advertising industry beforehand and was intrigued to discover the different roles and jobs that collaborate to make insightful creative work.

Sophie, PR

I’m Sophie, a Corporate PR Account Manager at M&C Saatchi Talk where I earn attention for my clients through the art of navigating, creating and leading conversations.

I joined the agency in 2021 as a Senior Account Executive after the Open House 2020 programme and have since worked across corporate and consumer accounts including retail, travel, public sector, food and beverage and technology. In my role I build media and client relationships, lead next-generation press offices, work to develop and execute campaigns and strategy – and more!

Open House introduced me to the power of a creative community. Coming from the tech world in my role at Vodafone Business, I was struck by how transferable my skills were and the value of a different perspective when it comes to creating a story that will capture media.

Sandra, creative

Hi, I’m Sandra, and I currently pinch my arm everyday as one of the Junior Creative Art directors at M&C Saatchi London. I work together with my copywriter Jak, and we are the ones who get paid to have ideas and use creativity to create meaningful change.

I joined Open House in 2021 as I was finishing my MA degree. After a year of studying, I wanted to learn more about the ins and outs of the industry, and Open House was a great experience as it provided me with some more tangible knowledge to fill the gaps. As someone who has previously worked as both a lecturer and an illustrator– it was refreshing to see how my previous skills were transferable and encouraged. Any doubt I had about working as a creative was demolished by Ben Golik and his talk about storytelling and creativity.

Being a creative is a rollercoaster of a job, and I feel very fortunate to already have worked on some really interesting briefs since joining the agency in March 2022 after Open House.

Millie, Account Management

Hey, I’m Millie! I’m a Trainee Account Manager at M&C Saatchi, where I help provide a support service for both clients and employers, helping to get creative work out there.

I originally joined in August 2021 as an Account Manager Intern after doing the initial Open House programme in 2020. At the time, I was in the midst of doing my BA degree in Philosophy, looking for any kind of experience I could get my hands on to help me break into the business!

As the main point of contact for our clients, my role requires me to build relationships with those within the company and outside of it, as I help us push through our (super) creative work; when you’re in Account Management, you’re as close to the campaign as you can be.

Open House was a great experience aimed at helping you gain the knowledge of the industry in digestible bites. As the industry is so competitive, it really felt like M&C Saatchi were offering those of us without a lot of experience a lifeline to show what we can offer. From the get go, I knew I wanted to apply; M&C Saatchi were a known name, and the Open House programme made me feel like I was already part of the team.

Kinjal, creative placement

Hey, I’m Kinjal. I Zoomed into Open House from Nairobi and saw participants from all around the world on LinkedIn.  I had just completed my degree in English and Management at the University of St Andrews and was working part-time as a Social Media Manager back home in Nairobi. I’d always wanted to join Adland as a Copywriter after Uni but finding roles during a pandemic was proving to be difficult.

Open House turned out to be a truly life-changing experience – I learnt so much in every seminar as we covered topics from storytelling to passion marketing. Being able to take part in and win the final pitch competition (despite being on a different continent) was the icing on the cake! I met such brilliant, talented people on my team, and we hope to finally have a belated celebration in person soon!

Open House also literally opened doors for me – this April, I had the opportunity to undertake a placement at M&C Saatchi. It was wonderful to immerse myself in life at the agency, ideate and work on copy for live briefs as well as gain new skills – from Photoshop to implementing best practices. The incredible and very kind Creative team gave me freedom and guidance to experiment, re-iterate and ultimately create work I will always be proud of! For this and everything, I’m so thankful to everyone at M&C Saatchi!

Anna, Account Management

Hi! I’m Anna and I’m an Account Management Intern here at M&C Saatchi.

I took part in Open House in 2021 alongside a full time internship as part of my degree. I initially joined for training and development for my role at the time, but very quickly became enthralled by everything that M&C do – I knew I wanted to work here very early on in the process. I then joined M&C in May 2022 for a 4 month internship before returning to University to complete my degree. Having had the opportunity to get a foot in the door of the industry, I feel much more confident about the working world post-University, and that’s all down to Open House.

For me, one of the best things about working at M&C is that you get to have a real-life impact on people across the country. Whether it’s helping people to quit smoking, or motivating people to eat healthier, being a part of driving real, positive change is an amazing feeling.

Open House is an incredibly inspiring, real insight into the world of what M&C Saatchi do day in day out, and it gives you the chance to collaborate with such a diverse range of people. It’s a hugely valuable experience, and I’d recommend it to anyone!

Natalie, PR

I’m Natalie, a history graduate with three years experience in the marketing and PR industry. At my previous PR and social media agency, I was on a number of different accounts across food and hospitality. My role was super varied, across social media production, PR, OOH marketing, and events.

By September 2021, I chose to go freelance to understand my ‘true passions‘. First, I felt I needed to better understand the communication industry I was in. I joined Open House gain some inside industry knowledge from a top agency – and from the different seminars, I really enjoyed how PR was talked about at M&C Saatchi.

TALK is the PR business arm of M&C Saatchi Group. We are specialists in the art of conversation and aim to lead conversations for meaningful change in the world. My role as the Communications Manager is to make sure our values, people, and work are amplified on social and PR channels. I also work closely with SERMO, our network of 10 PR agencies around the world that we work with for different campaigns.

Favourite Project so far: Organising and running the SERMO annual conference (virtual this year but looking likely to be abroad for 2023!)

Best thing about working at M&C Saatchi Group: PEOPLE. There are several employee-led networks that always do fun (and important!) things.

When I’m not working I am… watching b2b reality TV whilst booking my next holiday.

Steph, Account Management sport

Hey guys, I’m Steph and I’m from Edinburgh in Scotland. I joined M&C 6 months ago as an account executive on the Sports team.

Prior to Open House I was fresh out of uni after graduating in Business and I was working as a personal trainer and fitness content creator on Instagram, which are now my side hustles.

I knew I wanted to go into the marketing/advertising world but I had absolutely no idea where to start or what agency work actually involved. I was in Greece working as a fitness instructor last summer and hadn’t even started looking/applying for jobs when I heard about M&C Saatchi Open House. I joined the course to purely learn the basics about the industry and to see if it was something that I wanted to do but I never in a million years thought I’d actually get a job at the end of it!

A bit about my job:

It’s safe to say working in sports at M&C will never be boring because its super fast paced, client work varies so much AND you get to work on some of the biggest sporting events (Women’s EURO’s, World Cup, F1, Olympic Games, 6 Nations, Super Bowl etc).

As an account exec you do all the basic account work like setting up calls with clients, sharing status notes, research tasks, organising travel and media days etc. BUT you also get to do the fun stuff like working with creatives to produce an advert from start to finish, working with amazing athletes and planning activations at huge sporting events with brands.