A new generation of creative pioneers will be created by the IPA, its new president has pledged, which will in turn develop better skills, better connections and will ‘re-energise’ the advertising industry.

In her inaugural speech, the IPA’s first female president Nicola Mendelsohn, executive chairman and partner at Karmarama, spoke about an industry that would work together with the IPA, in a bid to ‘secure and win the future’ in the continually evolving digital age that she said was no longer predictable or linear, but was ‘the most exciting time to work in our industry’ she added.

“In the next two years of my Presidency I want to create a stepchange in collaborative creativity, to work with new partners, so that all of the 18,000 individuals in the IPA membership fully embrace the new convergent digital environment. In doing so we can become smarter and more valuable to our clients as we steer them through the new frontier of this emerging content, data and channel landscape,” she said.

Mendelsohn also outlined her three step agenda which includes promises to develop better skills through partnership and new programmes, creating better connections with similar creative industry and renergising the industry with fresh talent through a mixture of graduates, new advertising talent and the development of new craft skills.

“Skills, connections and talents represent the secret magic of our industry and are hence not easy to replicate or commoditise.  If we are to meet the challenge of the future we must concentrate on developing the magic of our industry as hard as we have applied logic and routine,” she explained.

Mendelsohn also announced new collaborative partnerships with independent TV and film production association PACT, gaming and content providers UKIE, Google, which will provide funding to invest in a Hyper Island programme, BBC Academy for multiplatform training and Facebook, which will showcase Facebook Studio Live and provide agency training.

A study tour of senior advertising agency figures will also be led by Mendelsohn to California in November. 

“We will continue to reach out across the globe strengthening our reputation, presence and position, such as in China with a new memorandum between the IPA and the China Advertising Association.  We will create an expanding programme of co-operation at the China International festival in September of this year,” promised Mendelsohn who succeeds Rory Sutherland, vice chairman of Ogilvy Group UK.