The conservatism of advertising when it comes to hiring is a very weird characteristic for an industry that lives or dies by its creativity. There are, however, small pockets of open-mindedness of late. One of those belongs to M&C Saatchi. M&C Saatchi has launched Open House, an initiative that consists of a series of free webinars commencing in January 2021. As well as the content series, participants will have the opportunity to secure a paid internship, aimed at career movers, fresh starters, students – everyone.

Following the success of our M&C Saatchi Growth Sessions earlier in the year, Open House is designed to reach individuals who may have never considered a career in advertising or communications, acknowledging that the industry isn’t doing enough to raise awareness and consideration among up-and-coming professionals. M&C Saatchi is committed to encouraging participation from these groups, while making it clear that advertising is a promising career option for them. The primary goal of the initiative is to remove barriers for people who want to break into the advertising or communications industry, but have not had the support or access to do so.

Nathalie Brady, group general manager, M&C Saatchi AUNZ, explained, “We are setting out to create a programme which is accessible to absolutely anyone and I hope that many people, from a range of backgrounds, are inspired to get involved. It’s critical that we foster initiatives like this, particularly in our post-lockdown world where many are looking for work, some not in their usual field of expertise.”

Open House will offer a series of nine specially created, weekly virtual seminars, each hosted by a different M&C Saatchi expert, including Justin Graham, group CEO AUNZ and Emily Taylor, chief strategy officer, who will share their knowledge on topics such as Data and Innovation, Media and Performance and PR and Communications.

The programme begins on January 27,  offering participants an opportunity to be shortlisted for a future internship with the M&C Saatchi, an in-depth understanding of the industry and a certificate of participation that they can take with them into future applications or career choices.

There are two ways to attend – registering for the webinars and coming along and learning, or, applying directly to the Open House internship. 50 interns will be selected and given the opportunity to complete our online accreditation. Upon completion, interns will receive an M&C Saatchi accreditation certificate, with top performers selected for a three-month paid internship onsite internship within the M&C Saatchi Group.

Find more information here https://www.mcsaatchi.com.au/open-house/