Every year at the CN Agency Awards, the Agency Pioneer award recognises individuals who have made a lasting impact on the events industry. This years agency pioneer is Karen Kadin, co-founder of creative communications agency Brands at Work, in recognition of her role as an innovator and trailblazer. In this interview, Kadin reflects on what it means to be named an agency pioneer and shares insights from her career journey.
Speaking on winning the award, Kadin said: “I was completely flabbergasted.” She says the tribute video, featuring colleagues, partners and clients she has worked with over the years, was particularly moving and gave her a rare opportunity to reflect on the agency’s journey.
She added: “Starting an agency is incredibly hard work. It takes real grit and determination, and you don’t always appreciate how far you’ve come until you’ve faced challenges and come through them. Whether it’s pandemics, travel bans or economic uncertainty, it’s been a rollercoaster. That moment felt like everything pausing just long enough to reflect. It was a truly wonderful feeling to receive that recognition.”
Career journey
At university, Kadin was awarded the Kauffman Fellowship, recognising entrepreneurial spirit and lateral thinking. It was there that she first developed an interest in advertising, marketing and communications.
After graduating, she began her career at life insurance firm The MONY Group , where she gained her first exposure to experiential marketing. She then moved into advertising at J. Walter Thompson, where her work began to intersect with live events. This ultimately led her to MJM, a boutique New York agency specialising in live experiences, where she took on her first dedicated role in the events sector. The agency was later acquired by WPP, broadening her exposure to the global events landscape.
After eight years in New York, Kadin relocated to London to help grow MJM’s UK office. There she met John Birger, her future co-founder at Brands at Work. In 2010, the pair decided to strike out on their own and launch their own agency.
When they made the decision to go out on their own, they were aware that the UK agency market was very crowded. She explained: “We didn’t want to just make up the numbers we wanted to do something different and carve out a unique space.”
“That meant being challengers, trying to challenge the status quo and how things are done. Especially for corporate clients in complex or technical sectors, pharma, professional services, insurance AI, tech the content is heavy. We’ve built a reputation for cutting through that complexity and turning it into immersive storytelling. For us, pioneering meant challenging the norm and igniting clients’ imaginations to do things in a bolder, braver way.”
Reflecting on the agency’s beginnings, Kadin said: “We didn’t even fully realise we were starting an agency at first. We gave ourselves six months without pay and had no external investment just the two of us and a growing cappuccino bill on the King’s Road.”
“We started with smaller projects, which gradually led to bigger opportunities. Within six to nine months, we secured two major client contracts, both of which are still with us today. That was the turning point. Suddenly, we needed people, an office and proper infrastructure. Sixteen years on, we have a thriving business and a New York operation.”
Highs and Lows:
Like many agencies, Brands at Work has experienced significant highs and difficult lows. Kadin recalls some standout moments, one being the agency’s first major event at the Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane a large-scale event attended by more than 1,000 senior delegates. She said: “I remember seeing what felt like hundreds of production crew running around in high-vis jackets with the Brands at Work log o on them for the first time and thinking, ‘That’s us.’”
Another rewarding aspect has been seeing people grow within the business. She says: “Seeing somebody who started as work experience or an intern, investing in them and helping them grow, that’s one of the biggest highs. Sometimes they leave, but then you see them go on to great things and it’s wonderful. The highs for me are about investing in people and seeing talent flourish.”
The lows, she admits, can be equally intense. Balancing agency life with raising two young children, while navigating external challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic, forced constant reinvention. She explains: “The lows can be quite crushing. Covid could have been the making or breaking of us. It made us stronger, but it came at a cost. It came at the expense of my health. I burnt myself out significantly.”
Despite the pressures, Kadin says she still finds excitement in the creative process and seeing ideas become reality. She says: “Seeing ideas that started as scribbles on paper become real, vibrant experiences still gives me a buzz. The collaboration, the partnership, those things are incredible highs. But it’s not without pressure.”
Leadership and Culture:
As the business has evolved, so has Kadin’s relationship with leadership and risk. She describes herself as more of a leader than a traditional manager, with a collaborative approach rooted in encouraging people to contribute ideas and challenge thinking. She said: “I’m somebody who likes to part of a team. I have strong ideas and strong opinions, but I work best when I can bounce off people and include them.”
Creating a culture where people feel empowered to speak up has always been central to Brands at Work. She explains: “We always wanted people who stand up, who have a voice and want to be heard,” she explained. “If you want to be a challenger agency, even as you grow bigger it has to be a spirit within the culture.”
Relationships and legacy:
Reflecting on her career so far, Kadin says the thing she is most proud of is the relationships she has built over the years, both with clients and within the agency itself. She recalls advice from an early mentor who told her that agencies should not measure success by the number of logos on a credentials deck, but by the longevity of their client relationships.
It is a philosophy that has shaped the direction of Brands at Work. More than 16 years on, some of the agency’s earliest clients are still working with the business today, something Kadin sees as one of its biggest achievements. While the agency has evolved significantly over the years, she says it has always maintained the same drive and ambition.
When asked what continues to motivate her in such a demanding industry, Kadin points less to personal ambition and more to legacy, responsibility, and the people around her. She explains that as the agency grew, particularly during difficult periods such as the pandemic, her mindset shifted. The business was no longer just about personal success, but about the wider team, the responsibility of payroll, and creating stability and opportunities for others.
Despite the growth of the company, Kadin says the original purpose behind the agency has remained unchanged: helping brands tell meaningful stories and connecting people to a company’s purpose, strategy and values. Much of her motivation now comes from seeing others develop within the business. She speaks passionately about watching junior team members grow into confident strategic thinkers capable of leading conversations and generating standout creative ideas.
Kadin credits both collaboration and hiring ambitious people as key to the company’s growth, explaining that the business has evolved far beyond being centred solely around its founders. Today, she says, the most rewarding part of agency life is seeing the next generation step forward and succeed in their own right. She says: “Yes, it’s busy and exhausting, but what motivates me is seeing other people shine and become the next generation, people who will hopefully be even better than we ever were.”
Asked what advice she would give to aspiring agency founders, Kadin said: “It’s a cliché, but they always say on a plane: put your own oxygen mask on before helping others. I think that’s true for agency leaders too.”
“If you’re crazy enough to start your own agency, there’s probably a real driving force inside you. That energy can be a force for good or bad, so you have to be aware of it. Are you looking after yourself? Are you becoming obsessive?”
She added: “Passion is wonderful, but it needs to be directed positively. I don’t think balance is truly attainable in this industry, but you can create a blend that allows you to have the things you want. You do need to look after yourself, because that’s the only way you can properly look after others.”