WX is an award winning agency model of the future: a registered social enterprise and community interest company with a purpose to attract and develop young people often bypassed by traditional routes to influential jobs in our industry
We want to disrupt a world where who you know has been more important than what you can do. For too long, some young people without the advantages of a middle-class background have been kept from opportunities in the media and communications industry.
A new generation of consumers heralds a new era of communications challenges. The mainstream is being informed and shaped by underground, grassroots youth culture and emerging technology. This is a new heartland where brands are vying to connect and seek relevancy and credibility.However, as agencies strive to navigate these changes, the young people who really understand the issues are not in the room.
The London media and communications industry is notoriously inaccessible to those without the right contacts and education.This inevitably creates agencies filled with identical people, with identical life experiences and perspectives. The result is client work which doesn’t challenge the status quo or speak to the new audiences brands want to reach.
WX actively seeks out young, talented people from lower socio-economic backgrounds, who have the ambition and potential to carve out successful careers in communications and bring a diversity of thought and life experience. It combines these fresh eyes and perspectives with the power and experience of W to create ideas and campaigns that traditional agencies are not set up to deliver.
All WX staff are offered paid training and ongoing mentorship to help them forge a successful career in the media and communications industry. WX recruits are inducted in every aspect of communications by W’s senior business team. They also gain formative and practical work experience across live WX and W client projects.
Herein lies the value exchange at the very heart of these opportunities: young people gain access usually closed off to them, and brands gain perspectives and experience far beyond the conventional wisdom that the old agency model can offer.
Successful WX graduates are either offered full-time roles at the agency or ongoing mentorship to continue to support their career development and path into the industry.
Previous WX graduates have progressed into a range of roles, both at W and companies including Island Records, whilst others have progressed into further education or work experience within other creative industries, including content production.
We provide WX Training workshops to inform and excite young people – from primary age to school leavers – about the possibilities of careers in the communications industry and give age appropriate career advice and insights to help improve their cultural capital. We do this through WX training events and speaker panels, as well as partner events with schools and charity partners.
We’re building a network of young break-through businesses who are already operating within the industry, and through a combination of mentorship, partnership, incubation, and investment, we aim to turbo-charge these businesses’ growth and connectivity to secure greater opportunities within our industry.
This also provides brands with optimised products and services they wouldn’t otherwise have been able to access. Most recently, WX has partnered with Word on the Curb, a youth insight and research agency that represents the underrepresented.
Together we have developed WordX –a joint venture service that provides brands with D&I communications powered by real insights.