The NDA Podcast

The topic that everyone has an opinion on — creative awards. One of the most contentious conversations in the industry, you either love them or hate them. Which is exactly where our guests stand this week. We’re asking those who’ve won them, lost them, judged them and scorned them some of the questions we all want answered.How can you judge something so subjective? Are the projects real? Are judges biased towards the studios & clients? Is it just a money-making exercise? How does it impact our teams? Do our clients care? Rob Duncan, Creative Director at Mucho, believes they enable him to hire the best talent in the world and help the studio cast a critical eye over the work they’re making. But that remote judging has lowered the standards of the shortlists.Mitch Paone, Partner & Creative Director at DIA, has boycotted them entirely. Believing they’re a business first & foremost. And having been in the judging room, he thinks bias runs too deep to ever be truly objective when choosing the winners.Katherina Tudball, Creative Director at Superunion, sees the good in them. A chance to celebrate good ideas and your team's hard work. Having been involved for years, she shares the criteria for jury selection and what it’s like narrowing down a year of industry hard work.Alice Ishiguro Tosey, Independent Creative, sits on the fence, acknowledging that getting them early in your career opens doors, but that the mental health repercussions of rejection have a long-lasting impact.And ultimately, are the people who hate them, just bitter because they don’t win them?* It's not won any awards.–Hosted & created by Katie CadwellEdited by James from Be HeardOriginal music 'Theme From NDA' by Jamie Ellul & Toby McLaren

Every agency website says “We’re an inclusive studio” but are they? Beyond the buzzwords, how does that play out for those working there? What are they doing day-to-day to action the claim? Because it’s not a simple one. Especially when what’s inclusive to one person, isn’t to another. So is it even possible to build a studio that doesn’t exclude anyone in it? This week, we’re trying to define inclusivity. Asking what it means to each guest, how it affects client relationships, the red tape and policies need and how to challenge exclusion when you see it.Wale Osunla, Designer at Studio Moross, shares what it’s like to work somewhere that puts so much emphasis on inclusivity, how it works in practice and compares it to other studios he’s worked in.Aries Moross, Creative Director at Studio Moross, reflects on over a decade of building a studio that strives to be inclusive. The lessons, the red flags and the advice they have for other leaders wanting to make changes.Ebony Montague, Director & Founder at HR Said That, helps us understand the practicalities of inclusion, and how HR can empower employees. She also shares her experience witnessing exclusion of all forms.Yee Poon, Illustrator & Designer at Hey What Studio, explains what she’s looking for in a workplace, and how she tackles raising issues without upsetting the status quo.A conversation that asks more questions than it answers, but at least, starts to uncover the issues we so often tip-toe around.–ACAS helpline https://www.acas.org.uk/contactCIPD Knowledge hub https://www.cipd.co.uk/knowledgeDefinition of the psychological contract https://www.cipd.co.uk/knowledge/fundamentals/relations/employees/psychological-factsheet#grefThe Other Box https://www.theotherbox.org/Resources for D&I in theatre https://uktheatre.org/theatre-industry/guidance-reports-and-resources/diversity-initiatives-for-uk-theatres/BBC guidance on Neurodiversity in buildings https://bbc.github.io/uxd-cognitive/Job Ad Gender decoder http://gender-decoder.katmatfield.com/Supporting mental health at work: guide for people managers (CIPD & MIND) https://www.cipd.co.uk/knowledge/culture/well-being/mental-health-support-reportHR Rewired: Anti-racism & racial equity advisory firm for the workplace https://hr-rewired.com/ –Hosted & created by Katie CadwellEdited by James from Be HeardOriginal music 'Theme From NDA' by Jamie Ellul & Toby McLaren

On average, 1 in 7 people are neurodiverse. In the creative industry, that number jumps to 1 in 5. If we all take a look around our studios, there could be a lot more divergent thinking than we realise.In this week’s episode, we try to unpick what it’s like to be an ND creative and what ND actually is. We discuss all the obstacles neurodiverse people face in our industry. Having to fit into different ways of working, challenging studio environments, attention spans and how those things deteriorate mental health. And of course, the benefits. How masking helps clients, divergent thinking being brilliant for creativity, the freedom in diagnosis and how adjustments for ND creatives would serve us all. Lucy Hobbs, Founder of The Future is ND, reflects on how the industry has changed in the fifteen years since her diagnosis and how she helps studios create more inclusive environments.Ali Slater, Designer Director at Chase Design Group, shares her experiences being in studio environments and the negative impact working from home has on productivity.Ana Jaks, Illustrator & Artist, discusses how working freelance suits her ways of working and the journey to finding an agent who helps facilitate space that enables her best ideas.Daniel Edwards, Founder of Bloody Lovely Branding Co. talks about his dream of setting up the first neurodiverse agency and the strength in divergent thinking for clients and work alike.An insightful conversation that should help us all become more educated about the diversity of thinking in our industry, and question the historic working practices that may not suit us all.–The Future is ND https://thefutureisnd.com/LS:N Global ‘Divergent Design’ Creative Equals Quality StandardLocal Government Association ‘Neurodiversity’BIMA 'Tech Inclusion & Diversity Report 2019'–Hosted & created by Katie CadwellEdited by James from Be HeardOriginal music 'Theme From NDA' by Jamie Ellul & Toby McLaren

Female leadership is on everyone’s radar, as the industry works to reverse the sad statistics of the gender split at the top. While we should be celebrating the women who’ve made it there, not many people are asking, how did you manage it? With all the barriers and biases in the way, how did you tackle them? Especially in environments that aren’t set up for women to succeed.In this week’s episode, we hypothesise that the changing of the tide might not be because the industry is creating space for female leadership, but because women are altering their working style to mimic their male counterparts. We’re talking to four female leaders and asking them some really difficult questions about how authentic they’ve been during their career, whether they code-switch, what they’ve witnessed in female colleagues, and whether looking back, they believe they’ve carved a path they want other women to follow.Livia Lima, Freelance Design Director & Lecturer at UTS talks about the stereotypes she’s witnessed being a Brazilian woman, and how she’s embarrassed to have suppressed some of the attributes she believes make her a great leader.Katy Cowan, Founding Editor of Creative Boom tells some shocking stories from her career, and what she can do to ensure young female creatives do not have the same experience she did.Rebecca Harrison, Creative Director of Love Blood Creative recalls women she’s worked with who have defended their hard-won title, and challenges the notion that all women lead with empathy. Jack Renwick, Founder & Creative Director of Jack Renwick Studio opens up her meeting room and tells us what goes on inside – how she runs a successful studio in the face of clients who want her to fulfil a stereotype. An incredible conversation with candid anecdotes from the industry. And a level of introspection that digs deeper into whether we’re truly addressing the gender imbalance in our studios. –Hosted & created by Katie CadwellEdited by James from Be HeardOriginal music 'Theme From NDA' by Jamie Ellul & Toby McLarenStatistics from Creative Equals 'Future Leaders 2021'

The dirty topic of money. A conversation held in hushed tones in the staff kitchen. Tentatively approached around the pub table. Awkwardly brought up in a final interview. The creative industry has long had a money problem. But why is it so difficult to discuss? Today’s episode lifts the lid on salary secrecy, debating the pros & cons of transparency, and interrogating why we’re all so tight-lipped about our finances. Cat How, Founder of How&How shares how salary transparency works in their studio and whether her team (both present and future) is on board with telling the world what they earn.Alec Dudson, Founder & Editor-in-Chief at Intern, talks about the creative industry being chronically undervalued and how this bleeds into our view on salaries.Josie Young, an independent designer, reflects on negotiating with employers & sharing with peers, and how those experiences have shaped her negative feelings around money.In an episode filled with those awkward, difficult questions… ultimately, we’re asking today's guests to put their money where their mouth is. –Hosted & created by Katie CadwellEdited by James from Be HeardOriginal music 'Theme From NDA' by Jamie Ellul & Toby McLarenHonourable mentions include Johnson Banks & BufferState salary increase bans 'https://www.hrdive.com/news/salary-history-ban-states-list/516662/'

Not many of us can relate to being in university during a pandemic. But we will all meet those who can, as a new generation of epidemic trained academics enter the industry. Creative courses are known for their collaboration, the osmosis of ideas, and use of amazing facilities…. Experiences the 2020 – ’22 graduates missed out on.In this episode, we’re hearing from both sides of the desk. Neeraj Kainth, 2021 BCU graduate, talks about lockdown fatigue affecting his projects and a year’s worth of work that’s banished to the bottom drawer. Claudia Aggett, 2020 Falmouth alumni shares how anti-climactic the end of her degree was and the fear of graduating into a stalled job market.Lecturers Nicola Salkeld (Senior Lecturer at Falmouth, UAL External Examiner) and Martin Schooley (Course Leader at Norwich) look back on how the universities handled the pandemic, the long-lasting effects on the graduating years and how education has changed forever. We ask them all, was it worth the money? And ultimately, did an epidemic education produce designers armed and ready to hit the workforce? –Hosted & created by Katie CadwellEdited by James from Be HeardOriginal music 'Theme From NDA' by Jamie Ellul & Toby McLaren