Creative Access leadership news

Posted on January 11, 2022

Josie Dobrin, founder and CEO, Creative Access, announced an exciting leadership change for 2022. Read more in the announcement from her linked-in account:

“It’s been 10 years since Michael Foster, Nigel Warner and I came together to form Creative Access. We were frustrated at the lack of diversity in the creative industries and aware of the positive impact we could have on the sector if we could go about changing this. So we set out to change the conversation around equity and inclusion; to persuade businesses to prioritise it, take action, and provide access to the sector to those from communities that were under-represented in the sector.

Over that time, we’ve worked with government, industry bodies and many of the UK’s biggest creative companies to bring in new talent and create more inclusive workplaces. I’m so proud of what we have achieved in the last decade; our impact can be felt in all corners of the creative industries. We’ve helped thousands of people find quality paid roles that genuinely impact on both the output and bottom line of the UK’s creative economy.

When we started back in 2012, it was rare to meet someone who wasn’t from a privileged background working in the sector. Although we’ve seen great progress in the last ten years, the fact we still use language around ‘under-representation’ shows how far we still have to go. Many people are still facing visible and invisible barriers to accessing and progressing in the industry – from financial obstacles to racism – which we continue to work hard to help them overcome.

Global events over the past few years have made our work more relevant than ever. Organisations – big and small – are finally seeking to bring in and nurture individuals from communities that continue to be under-represented across the creative economy. Creative Access has seen a huge growth in the volume of companies wanting to work with us.

This all means that Creative Access now needs two different senior people who can really focus on their own role. Firstly, a CEO who will inspire and lead the organisation, evolve our business model to drive commercial growth, and take Creative Access to the next level – while remaining true to our mission as a social enterprise. And secondly, someone with the time and experience to focus on our social mission, devising innovative and impactful strategies with longstanding and new partners to really deliver long term change to the creative industries.

It’s with this in mind that I have decided it’s time to pass on the overall responsibility of growing Creative Access to a new CEO and move my focus to overseeing the development of new and existing partnerships and building on our social mission. To that end, once the new CEO is in post, I will become Executive Chair of Creative Access. Over the last few years, my work has bridged both roles, but now is the right time to split them across two people. So I am stepping aside as CEO, and we are seeking someone exceptional to take on that role.

In this – our 10th anniversary year – and in unprecedented times, we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to improve diversity and inclusion across the creative economy and to support thousands more talented individuals from communities currently under-represented in the sector to enter and thrive in their careers. The world is catching up with our passion for diversity and inclusion; our profile is high, and demand for our services is growing. For the right person, it’s the chance to turn this global interest into future business and join our brilliant team in taking Creative Access into its new phase of growth.”

If you are interested in the role of Creative Access CEO, take a look at our application pack and send your covering letter and CV to Shehrazade Zafar-Arif at shehrazade.zafar@society-search.com by Friday, 11 February 2022