Summary
Overview
Work history
Education
Skills
Accomplishments
Affiliations
Timeline
Generic

Cally Sheard

Buckhurst Hill

Summary

An earned media specialist, passionate about designing strategic, creative campaigns that connect with the target audience and deliver impactful results. Key strengths in leadership, strategic thinking and creativity, project management and problem solving. Collaborative, adaptable, intuitive and driven. Brands worked on include Tesco, Renault/Dacia, Coca-Cola, vouchercodes.co.uk, Durex and Molson Coors.

Overview

15
15
years of professional experience
10
10
years of post-secondary education

Work history

Associate Director

Splendid Communications
01.2022 - Current
  • Overseeing P&L of over £1.5m, primarily working on the consumer PR retainer and project work for Tesco, in addition to projects on Durex and Naked smoothies
  • I led a team of 10 across Tesco and smaller teams of 3-5 on other accounts, and line-manage 2 staff members
  • Leading on creative strategy and developing creatives for numerous client and new business briefs, and presenting RTBs and pitches
  • Copywriting (RTBs, pitch decks, press releases, research questions, reports, FAQs, toolkits, PPMs, evaluation docs) and reviewing and approving work
  • Managing multiple stakeholders: working into Head of PR and Content and often dealing with other members of SLT at Tesco including the Marketing Director, in addition to working closely with stakeholders at other partner agencies
  • Advising on media and influencer strategies and checking in on media sell-ins, to ensure KPIs are regularly smashed
  • Overseeing supplier and talent contracts and briefing documents
  • Developing strategy and creative for Durex to be rolled out across Europe, and building into a toolkit to enable local market teams to deliver
  • Drafting crisis response matrix and FAQs to support Tesco campaigns. Offering a proactive and solutions focused approach to challenges and obstacles
  • Overseeing campaign and quarterly evaluations, working with third parties to report back on elements such as reach, relevance and resonance
  • Responsible for setting budgets and scopes of work, capacity planning and contributing to agency fee forecasting.

Career break for maternity leave

12.2020 - 01.2022

Freelance Senior PR Consultant

Represent Comms
09.2020 - 11.2020
  • Projects included consumer and trade press office and product launces for Sip & Savour launch of Amaretto Adriatico, The Oxford Artisan Distillery, and The Naked Collective launch of Mude and So:Beer.

Senior Associate Director

Spider
11.2019 - 08.2020
  • Accounts included: itsu, Oppo Brothers, Stryyk, Peperami, Jack Links, Lily O’Briens, English Tea Shop, The Mushroom Bureau, British & Irish Mushroom Producers
  • Leading a team of four, reporting into the COO and CEO
  • Developing strategies and activation plans for a range of food and drink clients across consumer and trade PR, including influencer outreach
  • Drafting and reviewing copy (including campaign plans, key messaging, press releases, briefing documents, FAQs, social copy, white papers) and supporting with media relations
  • Working with SLT at itsu to develop a crisis response plan
  • Leading on the development of new business proposals and pitches
  • Evaluation of ongoing activity and campaigns to ensure KPIs are delivered
  • Line management duties and ongoing support, advice and training to the wider team
  • Introduced a capacity planning procedure which was rolled out company wide.

Associate Director

Munch
01.2019 - 11.2019
  • Accounts included: Coca-Cola, Pact Coffee, MiniVino, Piccolo, National Lottery, Eventbrite, RedSTART educate, PixPax, Michael Serwa, Guy Tolhurst
  • Leading a team of six across all accounts in a fast-paced start-up environment, reporting into Founder/MD
  • Developing strategy and creative to deliver against communications and business objectives for a range of consumer, B2B and personal profiling clients
  • Copywriting (press releases, thought leadership and op-eds, features articles, FAQs, briefing docs and social content)
  • Providing client counsel: often working directly into founders
  • Briefing clients ahead of media interviews and drafting reactive statements to media enquiries
  • Advising on media and influencer strategies and leading on media sell-ins, securing national, consumer, corporate and trade coverage
  • Overseeing measurement and evaluation of activations and campaigns
  • Onboarding new clients, setting budgets, drafting work orders and contracts
  • Working alongside founder on new business planning, identifying new targets and areas for growth
  • Leading on numerous new business pitches, identifying areas for organic client growth and dealing with incoming new business enquiries
  • Responsible for capacity planning and contributing to agency fee forecasting
  • Line management duties and ongoing support, advice and training to the wider team
  • Inputting to and managing agency marketing plans and initiatives.

Associate Director

Eulogy
12.2010 - 12.2018
  • Accounts included: Jack Daniel’s, Coors Light, Singha Beer, Sharp’s Brewery, Halo Top, Branston, Sarson’s, Renault, Dacia, Paramount Home Entertainment, Raindance Film Festival, vouchercodes.co.uk, moneysupermarket.com
  • Leading a team of 11 and reporting into Ops Board members, I headed up the experiential division
  • Developing insight driven strategies and creative, integrated brand campaigns to deliver against communications and business objectives
  • Client counsel, keeping abreast of clients’ competitor activity and innovation to inform ongoing strategy
  • Drafting client statements for media enquiries and providing a calm and measured response to any crisis situations
  • Talent liaison, including scope of work, contract and budget negotiations, and talent management at events
  • Liaison with and management of partners, suppliers and operational teams
  • Measurement and evaluation of activations and campaigns
  • Identifying areas for organic client growth and securing additional project or retained fee
  • Onboarding new clients, working with finance team to finalise contracts, scopes of work and invoicing
  • New business planning and pitching - identifying new targets and areas for growth
  • Responding to tenders and briefs, leading the team to develop proposals from insights through to strategy, creative and budgets, and presenting to stakeholders
  • Line management duties and ongoing support, advice and training to the wider team
  • Responsible for capacity planning and contributing to agency fee forecasting
  • Assisting with agency marketing plans and initiatives, including contribution to the agency podcast and developing an internal and external events programme.

Account Assistant

Launch PR
09.2009 - 12.2010
  • Accounts included: Disney World Orlando, The Royal British Legion, Discovery Channel, Casio, Butlins

Education

BA (Hons) Public Relations -

University of the Arts, London
09.2006 - 06.2009

1 year (acting, set build, stage management and directing) - undefined

The Rep College, Reading
09.1999 - 06.2000

3 x A Levels & 1 x GCSE - undefined

Notre Dame Sixth Form College, Leeds
09.1997 - 06.1999

10 x GCSEs - undefined

Lawnswood High School, Leeds
09.1992 - 06.1997

Skills

  • Strategic planning
  • Creative ideation
  • Reputation management
  • Copywriting
  • Media and influencer relations
  • Stakeholder engagement
  • Project management
  • Team management and resource allocation
  • Contract negotiation
  • Crisis management
  • Talent Management
  • Measurement and evaluation
  • Budget management

Accomplishments


  • Durex ‘Condom Testers’ campaign nominated for SABRE award
  • Grolsch Bottling Originality 400th anniversary campaign shortlisted for best special build at Drum Creative Out of Home Awards
  • Creative launch of Tesco Premium Meal Deal landing 243 pieces of coverage and driving a 2,600% spike in google searches for Tesco Meal Deals
  • Increasing brand awareness for Singha Beer by 5% by developing a brand platform and three-year strategic plan where PR, events and social were the brand’s only marketing spend
  • Being recognised by Tesco multiple times in quarterly all agencies for my collaboration with agency partners and receiving collaboration awards for integrated work delivered alongside them.

Affiliations

  • I have two children under three, so a lot of my time is spent at the playground or soft play these days! But I enjoy singing, yoga, live music, exhibitions, theatre and comedy, cultural events, eating out and pop-ups.

Timeline

Associate Director

Splendid Communications
01.2022 - Current

Career break for maternity leave

12.2020 - 01.2022

Freelance Senior PR Consultant

Represent Comms
09.2020 - 11.2020

Senior Associate Director

Spider
11.2019 - 08.2020

Associate Director

Munch
01.2019 - 11.2019

Associate Director

Eulogy
12.2010 - 12.2018

Account Assistant

Launch PR
09.2009 - 12.2010

BA (Hons) Public Relations -

University of the Arts, London
09.2006 - 06.2009

1 year (acting, set build, stage management and directing) - undefined

The Rep College, Reading
09.1999 - 06.2000

3 x A Levels & 1 x GCSE - undefined

Notre Dame Sixth Form College, Leeds
09.1997 - 06.1999

10 x GCSEs - undefined

Lawnswood High School, Leeds
09.1992 - 06.1997

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Cally Sheard