M&C Saatchi Appoints Claire Croft as Head of Talent

M&C Saatchi has announced the appointment of Claire Croft, formerly Coach and Leadership Trainer and Planning Partner at Proximity London, to the newly created role of Head of Talent at the agency.

Reporting into Camilla Kemp, who was recently promoted to COO, Claire will oversee career development across the agency, ensuring the creative shop continues to attract, develop and retain the best possible talent.

With ten years’ experience in agency-side strategic planning, Croft has held senior positions at Proximity London, Craik Jones and Archibald Ingall Stretton. Having qualified as an executive coach, Croft took on the role Coach and Leadership Trainer alongside her position as Planning Partner at Proximity London in July 2013, and has since developed training programmes across the agency, including at board level.

Croft has worked with a range of brands including Lloyds, Boots and Gap and was part of the team that landed a Silver DMA in December 2014 for TV Licensing. She also previously worked client-side, and was Marketing Manager at the Royal Mail for four years.

Tom Bazeley, CEO at M&C Saatchi, said: “Whilst people may well make the world go round, they also make agencies into brilliant places to work. In this sense, hiring Claire will help grow our people and our agency.”

Claire Croft added: “I’ve always recognised that none of us – whether we’re creatives, strategists, or account handlers – can achieve our full potential alone. I’ve been passionate about helping to nurture and grow the talent in the people around me for several years, and I’m really excited to have the opportunity to make this the sole focus of my role at M&C Saatchi, an agency that is bursting with talented people.”

Croft’s appointment follows the recent promotion of Camilla Kemp to the new role of COO at the agency, as well as the promotion of Clare Willetts to Managing Partner, and the restructure of the creative leadership team.