E03 How I Became Chief Brand & Communications Officer Of The Paralympics | Craig Spence

How I Became ...

Jul 13, 2022•1 hr 33 min

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Episode description

Planning the worlds 3rd largest sporting event during a global pandemic is no easy task. That's just one of the many crisis situations Craig and his team have had to manage.

After the success of London 2012, the Paralympic movement and it's mission of changing the world through sport, was at risk of losing all its progress. Rio 2016 was close to collapsing... With only 150k tickets sold with just weeks to go, the whole organisation could go bankrupt. Craig and his team got to work, the rallied the UK advertising and press industry, and vocalised the challenges along with promoting the event.

They sold over 2 million tickets...

The crisis don't end there, Craig and his team have had to manage the comms for the banning of Russian athletes after the Russian doping Scandal of 2016 and more recently, Russia entering Ukraine during the Olympic Truce, which calls for peace during the Summer and Winter games. Craig also shares openly, the personal and professional challenges he faced when he heard the news that Oscar Pistorius had shot and killed his wife Reeva Steenkamp.

Topics discussed:

Growing up in Leeds
Overcoming life threatening surgery aged 8 years old
The importance of leaving a company you love in order to progress in your career
Explaining to your boss why you need a pay rise + Leaving friends, family and network in the UK to start a new life in Germany with no contacts
How to transition from a Director role to a C-Level role
The difference between being a Director and a Chief
How he dealt personally and professionally with the news that Oscar Pistorius had shot and killed his wife
How to deal with being the main spokesperson for the biggest news story in the world
Overcoming the prospect of cancelling the Rio 2016 Paralympics, with only 150k of 2 million tickets sold just weeks before
The Russian doping scandal
Dealing with the isolation of the lockdown and the mental health impact of being away from family and friends
Hosting a winter paralympics during the pandemic
The #WeThe15 mission
What it's like to work with an organisation with a mission to change the world for the better