Livewire Sport Launches Second Year Of Mentoring Programme
LiveWire Sport has launched the second year of its Diversity in Digital Mentoring Programme with a search for a new intake of applicants.
The initiative, set up by the London-based agency in late 2019, aims to address under-representation in the industry by providing opportunities for a diverse range of people to gain experience working in sport.
In the programme’s first year, a group of 12 young people took part in the initiative, which pivoted away from the venue and event-based platform it was initially due to host because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Instead, the scheme offered a distanced-based learning programme with regular weekly calls and bespoke training sessions. Guest speakers included the likes of Director of Surrey Women’s Cricket, Ebony Rainford-Brent; Series Producer, Paralympics at Whisper TV, Andy Stevenson; TV Presenter, Manish Bhasin; and Director of Design & Facilitation at Beyond Sport, Radha Balani.
In 2021, LiveWire Sport says the programme will once again be ‘largely remote-based’, allowing participants to continue to work throughout. Applications are open to those who have faced challenges in their career development or progression, whether through age, beliefs, sexuality, race, disability or gender, all the way through to people facing financial, geographical, health, family or lifestyle challenges.
Each successful applicant is assigned a LiveWire Sport mentor based on each person’s skillset and aspirations. In addition, the group will also benefit from regular training sessions and hear from new guest speakers from a variety of areas within the industry.
You can find out more about the programme and what it involves here: https://t.co/XZAboS5UmM #DiversityInDigital
And check out what this year’s cohort have been up to so far in 2020 here pic.twitter.com/HDKVDUryIM
— LiveWire Sport (@LiveWireSport) October 22, 2020
Pranav Soneji, Director and Co-Founder, LiveWire Sport, said: “The last six months have rightly seen the industry spotlight focus on its lack of diversity and not representing the diverse audiences it serves.
“Our 2020 cohort is a shining example of how diversity from all areas can enrich the industry and audiences, and our next challenge is to ensure they become leaders and decision makers to affect real, long-term change.
“So to anyone looking to break into the digital sport industry, or looking to progress their career following their first steps in the industry, we look forward to hearing from you.”
Reflecting on a recent group task, in which the cohort responded to a request for proposal in front of a live panel of industry experts, Adam Addicott, a tennis writer born with mild coordinational cerebral palsy, added: “This experience highlights the beauty of the Diversity in Digital Mentoring Programme. People like me would have never had a chance for the experience or gained knowledge in these areas if it wasn’t for LiveWire Sport. This is something that’s impossible to put a price on.”
LiveWire Sport says the applications window for the 2021 intake is now open, and will close on Thursday 10th December 2020.
