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Joel Wright, chief executive and co-founder of Sinecure.ai, and Sarah Skinner, EMEA chief executive and global managing director of Grace Blue. |
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Dear <<First Name>>
2024 is shaping up to be a pivotal year on many levels. Firstly, for us at Grace Blue. Our recent acquisition by Sinecure.ai is the most exciting step change in our history - we are the first search firm to be acquired by a tech services business.
This acquisition – a unique combination of AI and human- expertise – means we can provide an enhanced talent solution to our clients, both in terms of talent discovery, but also how we partner with talent acquisition teams beyond executive search, to help improve retention and provide industry insights that ensures talent is top of the Board’s agenda.
Talent needs to be on every Board agenda this year. Companies who believe that having the best people is integral to high performance will thrive, as highlighted in our talent predictions for 2024. Ignore the importance of your employer brand at your peril. We want to help your company be the first, and best, choice for people to work for.
2024 is also pivotal globally - more people participating in democracies this year than ever before as a result of the high number of political elections being held around the world. A big theme in so many of the political debates? The critical importance of leadership and how it can shape the direction of people’s voting choices.
I’m delighted we continue to be involved in many successful leadership appointments across industry; a selection of which are highlighted in this newsletter. We are looking forward to what this year will offer for our consumer and sports practice as we celebrate 5 years of operating in the former, and our most successful year with the latter.
There may be uncertainty with how 2024 will unfold, but we are always optimistic and see signs of that reflected amongst many of our clients as illustrated in our recent interview with Marketing Week. We believe the most important thing this year is to be proactive, agile and innovative in your talent recruitment and retention approach.
Finally, happy Year of the Dragon. It is reassuring to know the Dragon symbolises wisdom and good fortune - we hope these will be the values that come to the fore for us all in the year ahead.
Yours,
Sarah Skinner, Global MD & EMEA CEO |
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Grace Blue Latest News |
Sinecure.ai Acquires The Grace Blue Partnership To Grow Talent Discovery And Recruitment Solutions |
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We are delighted to announce we have been acquired by Sinecure.ai, a technology company leading the charge in the application of AI for talent recruitment and retention.
When we launched Grace Blue in 2007 we set out to become a globally recognised executive search business, respected for our knowledge, advice and service at a leadership level. We continually challenge ourselves to lead: in our client service, our partnerships with talent and in the use of technology, to support the high-quality personal commitment that sits at the heart of our values.
This news means Grace Blue’s specialist service offering, helping companies to build the very best leadership teams by attracting and retaining world-class talent, will now be powered with leading edge technology to complement the skills and expertise of our specialist team of consultants.
There is no doubt in our minds that AI is going to shape the future of every industry, and so too, the leadership team of every successful business. The combined offering of Grace Blue and Sinecure.ai means we are right at the leading edge of how using this transformative technology can help the best leaders and their teams succeed.
If you would like to talk more about how the combination of executive search and AI can help you build the very best leadership team, please get in touch. |
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Celebrating Grace Blue’s consumer practice’s 5 year anniversary |
November 2023 marked five years since we launched our practice and since then we have partnered with some of the world's leading consumer brands from global brands to entrepreneurial scale-ups and more. We have been privileged to have placed over 70+ consumer brand leaders in this space and got to know a vast number of outstanding candidates along the way.
We are honoured to have been voted as one of the five best executive search firms globally by the CMO community.
We are committed to providing strategic advice to both clients and candidates, and championing the ongoing growth of consumer brands.
We wanted to thank all those who have referred us, and the clients and candidates for the trust they have placed in us, and now look forward to continuing our mission to secure the best leadership talent in Consumer brands for the next five years and beyond.
Thank you for partnering with us, recommending and supporting us. Watch our short celebratory video.
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Lessons in Leadership webinar series |
 | ‘Future-Proof Your Brand, Attract Top Talent & Save The Planet
Want to know how to use the power of sustainability to attract top talent and build a thriving brand while supporting a sustainable future?
Join our upcoming Lessons in Leadership webinar on Monday 18 March at 12:00 GMT featuring Advertising Association’s Director of Communications, Matt Bourn and Ad net Zero Chair, Sebastian Munden off the back of their recently published book, “Sustainable Advertising”, available to buy from 3 March. The session will explore the intersection of sustainability and employer branding hosted by Grace Blue’s Global MD and EMEA CEO, Sarah Skinner.
Read more about what the session will cover and register to attend below.
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 | ‘Lessons from Sport’ with Barney Francis
Nothing captures an audience quite like the drama and emotions of sport…
Barney Francis, Executive Vice President of Global Production at IMG Studios and formerly Managing Director of Sky Sports, sat down with Managing Partner, Tim Palmer to share his ‘Lessons from Sport’
Barney shared his insights and experiences that fuelled the transformational stories of both Sky Sports and IMG Studios, and what we can learn from the world of sports broadcasting when it comes to content, digital and social strategy, and audience engagement. | |
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Leadership & Talent Insights |
 | Top 10 Talent Trends of 2023
Our senior leadership team shares the top 10 talent trends for 2023 having worked across multiple executive search and selection briefs for many of the world’s largest brands, agencies, media owners, tech platforms and sports and entertainment properties.
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|  | Put Talent At The Top Of The Board Agenda In 2024
EMEA CEO & Global MD, Sarah Skinner’s latest article highlights four key factors that should be part of any Board conversation about its talent retention and recruitment strategy in 2024: Employer Brand must take centre stage Recognise the geo-political context Embed technology in everything you do, including your talent plan Putting the customers first
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Grace Blue ‘Out and About’ |
The start of the year has been a busy one for us as we attended some of the industry events such as LEAD 2024, Campaign Magazine’s Year Ahead briefing, The Advertising Association’s Year Ahead in Politics with Steve Richards, The Drum Predictions 2024 and more! |
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Recent EMEA placements |
Agency placements |
| Dan Truman CSO, dentsu Dan Truman joined dentsu in January as Chief Strategy Officer, having previously been a Partner at global growth and transformation consultancy, Prophet. Dan will be responsible for scaling dentsu UK&I’s strategy, business transformation and consulting capabilities to help clients creatively solve their challenges in today's difficult business environment. |
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Consumer Brand placements |
| Greg McCann Head of Wearables, Dyson Greg McCann will be joining Dyson in April as their Head of Wearables - a newly created role reporting to the MD UK&I. He will be leading Dyson’s newest category across the markets, defining the long-term strategy and ambitions. |
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| Bo Kjøller Westphal Global Head of Operations, Lego Education Bo Kjøller Westphal joined LEGO Education in January as its Global Head of Operations - a new and critical position reporting to President, Victor Saeijs with a remit to drive transformation across supply chain and customer experience capabilities.
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| Gautham Narayanan CMO, Thirdway Gautham Narayanan has left behind his successful creative agency career with BBDO and Wieden + Kennedy to join the leading design and architectural firm, Thirdway as their first CMO. |
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| Anna Russell Head of Marketing, The People’s Postcode Lottery Anna Russell has joined The People’s Postcode Lottery as Head of Marketing. Reporting to the Managing Director, her remit will be to help this charitable lottery connect with new and diverse audiences. |
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Sports, Media & Entertainment placements |
| Alexandra Whelan & Mike Soutar Non-Executive Directors, Scottish Rugby IMG’s Senior Vice-President for Strategy, Growth and Marketing, Alexandra Whelan and media and publishing leader and investor, Mike Soutar have joined the Board of Scottish Rugby Limited as Non-Executive Directors. They will support and enable the transformation journey that Scottish Rugby are currently undertaking particular in the areas of data, digital and content, and ESG. |
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| Sam Stone SVP Talent & Partnerships, Wasserman Sam Stone has joined Wasserman, the leading global culture-centric agency as SVP, Talent Marketing & Partnerships. Reporting to Kellen Benjamin, EVP, Talent Sales and Marketing, Sam’s role will drive the commercialisation of the talent Wasserman represent, across multiple sports.
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Recent US placements |
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| Cecilia Lang, Global Chief Revenue Officer, Group SJR Chuck Hajj, US President, Group SJR Cecilia and Chuck have joined Group SJR, an award-winning content marketing consultancy, as Global Chief Revenue Officer and US President. They will work in close partnership with Selena Cameron, Global CEO, to drive growth and shape the future of the agency. |
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| Ara Kurnit, Chief Innovation Officer, Critical Mass We are proud of having partnered with Critical Mass on the appointment of Ara Kurnit for a new global role: Chief Innovation Officer. Ara will focus on identifying the most relevant innovation areas in the market and connecting those to growth opportunities for current clients and new clients. This role is part of the global leadership team and critical to driving industry leading work and solutions across the agency. |
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| Alison Clark Chief Client Officer, Marcus Thomas We are pleased to have partnered with new client, Marcus Thomas, an award-winning independent agency based in Cleveland, Ohio, to place Alison Clark as their new Chief Client Officer. In her new role, Alison will work closely with CEO Nancy Hill and the rest of the executive leadership team to shape the future of account services and contribute to the agency’s growth and expansion plans.
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Recent APAC placements |
| Clare Pickens CEO, Leo Burnett Australia Clare Pickens has been appointed CEO of Leo Burnett Australia and will begin her tenure in April this year. Clare is an executive with over 15 years of experience working in diverse roles in Amsterdam at Wieden + Kennedy, Red&Co. and most recently as Managing Director at HERC. |
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| Raushida Vasaiwala VP of Sales, APAC, Isentia Raushida Vasaiwala has joined Isentia, a leading provider of media intelligence and insights as Sales Vice President for APAC region.
Reporting into Joanna Arnold, Global CEO of Access Intelligence, Raushida will spearhead sales initiatives, cultivate strategic partnerships, and champion growth in APAC, supporting the transformation of the organisation in the region as it redefines the space and seeks to democratise access to audience intelligence. |
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| Yudhi Hastiardi Managing Director, We Are Social Jakarta Yudhi Hastiardi has joined We Are Social, to open its Jakarta office as Managing Director. Reporting into Christina Chong, CEO, Southeast Asia, Yudhi will lead the charge into extending the agency’s reach into the Indonesian market of 280 million people for clients including Ofon (local telco), Etawalin, a goat milk brand, and health tech start up, Klikdokter. |
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Follow Grace Blue on LinkedIn |
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