From firefighter to data geek

While my creative, south Wales comprehensive school was great, it seems schools and universities haven’t nailed arts careers guidance… teacher or music therapist were the only options the magic JIIG CAL (Job Ideas and Information Generator – Computer-Assisted Learning) machine churned out in 1995. So, in the absence of a game plan, I took a more roundabout path.

Sales co-ordinator, Giant Bicycles

In classic style, on completion of a music degree, I took the logical next step and worked in bicycle sales for a year, while I toyed with my pre-determined destiny of becoming a music teacher. 

A week of work experience helped me swiftly realise the careers advice machine was not, in fact, all knowing and a different route was on the cards.

Project Administrator, New College Nottingham – 2004-2005
Outreach Co-ordinator, Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama (RWCMD) – 2005-2007 

Early roles in further/higher education helped form my career direction. Knowing the arts and education were where I wanted to be, I joined New College, working to widen access to higher education just as tuition fees were on the rise. It was there I started to toy with marketing as I explored the difference between advice and promotion in the HE recruitment sector.

With Wales calling me, and a Six Nations winning weekend sealing the deal, I moved to Cardiff and another outreach role, this time based in the marketing team at RWCMD. Again, my job was geared towards expanding opportunities for young people in higher education, but specifically focused on creative subjects. 

I realised I was drawn to marketing and set about studying for my Chartered Institute of Marketing Professional Diploma.

Assistant Marketing Manager, BBC National Orchestra & Chorus of Wales (BBC NOW) – 2007-2019

Growing up in Wales, BBC NOW was a core part of my upbringing so the chance to join them was a no-brainer. Symphony orchestras are incredible ecosystems, I can’t think of many marketing jobs when you have 80 stakeholders in the same room on a regular basis – it certainly keeps you on your toes.

As I progressed at the orchestra, taking on more responsibilities, we tried new things from setting up our first social media accounts to live streaming and international tours to South America and China. 

Working as part of a huge institution like the BBC has its inevitable challenges – the cycle of strategy changes, cuts and external opinions – but it was an amazing place. I will always remember my last night as we tried something completely different with a Mixtape gig in Swansea’s Brangwyn Hall. New faces connecting with the orchestra for the first time, magic!

I could have stayed at BBC NOW, but through two glorious weeks locked away with the Clore Leadership Programme, I knew my next step might look a bit different.

Chief Executive, Hijinx Theatre – 2019-2024

Hijinx is one of Europe’s leading inclusive theatre companies, creating performances with learning disabled and/or autistic artists. It is one of the most joyful and joy-bringing organisations I have encountered. That said, taking on my first CEO role three months before a global pandemic was not what I anticipated. I had been more worried about moving from classical music to theatre, how naive I was! 

Coming from the BBC to an organisation of fewer than 20 staff was a shift. Once I stopped looking around for my non-existent HR or legal teams, I discovered one of the standout benefits of a small organisation. If, in the 10am meeting someone says: “Why don’t we…?” By 4pm, it’s happening. An online festival three months into lockdown? Done. New live Zoom-based theatre in month five? Done. In a swiftly changing Covid world, that was our superpower.

But navigating the challenges of the pandemic in an organisation whose community was almost all ‘clinically extremely vulnerable’, knowing how perilous it was, and the number of lives and livelihoods I was responsible for, was scary. 

It was hard to set strategy when I’d only experienced a few weeks of pre-Covid life. Heading into the delayed Arts Council Wales (ACW) investment review was daunting. However, the pandemic had allowed us to explore what was most important, determine where Hijinx was needed, what our power was and what it needed to flourish. 

We weren’t alone in making a compelling case and ACW had a tough job. The delight (and relief) when Hijinx was announced as one of few organisations to get an uplift was quite something; crying happy tears over my laptop in the foyer of the Sherman Theatre I knew Hijinx had been acknowledged as the essential organisation it is. 

Associate Director, Baker Richards – 2024 onwards

Joining Baker Richards has been a massive change from the firefighter life of an arts CEO. The interview process itself gave me a glimpse into the work and I could feel my inner marketer and data geek getting excited. 

Throughout my career I have loved learning how other organisations work, what makes them tick and how they get to do what they do. In this new role, I get to do just that working with an incredible array of clients right at the heart of the cultural industries. 

Sarah Horner is Associate Director, Consulting at Baker Richards.
 baker-richards.com/
@BakerRichards | @sarhhorner