Leo's Futures - Entry Level Programme

Company Description

As Leo Burnett himself once said: “At the end of the day, we’re just people talking to people.”

And that sums up how we think. We never forget that on the other side of every screen, watching every ad or reading every tweet are people. Not just pairs of eyes with credit cards. But human beings, who want to be entertained, engaged and listened to.

At Leo UK we like to make the good stuff in life accessible to everyone. It’s our agency’s big shiny North Star, guiding everything from our work and how we build our culture, to the values we uphold and the initiatives we implement to improve Diversity Equity & Inclusion.

We believe in the power of a strong culture that puts people and creativity at the heart of everything we do. Our incredible team is made up of some of the most passionate and creative minds in the industry, and you’ll be hard pushed to find a more genuinely friendly bunch. We’ve created an informal atmosphere where everyone is invited to share their ideas and thrive. And that way of working. Well, it’s working. We’re proud to say that our staff survey shows record happiness scores over the last 12 months.

We are an open, down to earth and friendly bunch who are always on the lookout for passionate and curious people to join our gang.

It’s never been more important to us to reflect the wonderful mix of people who consume our advertising, which is why when it comes to improving Diversity Equity & Inclusion we’re not just talking the talk, we’re walking the walk. Our internal group D&I Allies at Leo’s (DIAL) was formed to help us make and track progress against our commitment to DE&I. DIAL spearheads policies, processes and initiatives to actively advance positive change.

Furthermore, in 2022 we created The Everyone Way, a process designed to embed positive DE&I practices into the creative process with our clients, working alongside DE&I consultancies The Unmistakables and The Diversity Standards Collective.

We also support industry-wide initiatives such as Unstereotype Alliance, Free the Work, Just Runners, WACL and Bloom to name a few.

It’s our distinctive approach, combined with our passion for populist creativity and relentless pursuit of excellence that makes Leo UK such a uniquely special and enjoyable place to work.

Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion

Diversity and inclusion are a core part of our DNA at Leo UK. We’re committed to building an inclusive culture that encourages, celebrates, and supports our wonderfully diverse employee group irrelevant of their age, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability or ethnicity. Diversity and inclusion fuel our creativity and innovation, it enables us to be closer to our people and audiences. We will continue to strive to create a culture and environment where everyone feels empowered and more importantly comfortable enough to bring their full, authentic selves to work.We are committed to providing reasonable adjustments for employees with disabilities and for candidates in our application process.  If you need assistance or adjustment due to a disability, please contact us.

Overview

Leo UK

Details:

• Start Date: 21st October
• Duration: 21st October – 16th December
• Salary: £25,520
• Contract: Fixed-term contract with the opportunity to progress into a permanent role from January 6th following successful completion of the programme

We are hiring for Leo’s Futures, an exciting entry-level programme designed for people who want to start their career in advertising. This is an opportunity to gain hands-on experience within one of the industry’s most creative agencies, working alongside talented teams while learning how campaigns are brought to life for real clients. From strategic thinking to creative delivery, you’ll build practical skills, grow your confidence and develop a strong foundation for a future career in advertising. If you’re naturally curious, enjoy working with others and are excited by the power of great ideas, we’d love to hear from you.

Responsibilities

What you’ll be doing:

• Support the successful delivery of client projects by helping manage timelines, approvals, meeting materials and day-to-day project coordination
• Coordinate activities across campaign production processes to help ensure work is delivered smoothly and effectively
• Build strong working relationships across the agency to support high-quality collaboration and delivery
• Partner with colleagues and agency partners to help bring creative ideas to life across a range of channels and touchpoints
• Develop client-facing skills by communicating clearly, staying organised and building trusted relationships
• Learn how strategic insights shape creative work by working closely with planning and project teams
• Support budget tracking and project administration to help ensure financial information remains accurate and up to date

Qualifications

Skills we’re looking for:

• Creative Enthusiast: You love great creative work and can explain why it stands out.
• Organized Multitasker: You’re skilled at juggling priorities and staying calm under pressure. You can deliver tasks within deadline and anticipate problems ahead of time
• Team Player: A collaborative working style, and you thrive in fast-paced environments.
• Detail-Oriented: Excellent attention to detail, whether it’s managing budgets or fine-tuning presentations. You understand the importance of paying close attention to detail.
• Curious Learner: You’re eager to grow and learn from those around you.
• Great Communicator: Clear and concise communication style with persuasive presentation skills.
• Agile: You’re flexible and adaptable able to exercise calmness and control in an ever-changing environment.
• Problem Solver: You're able to handle challenges with a proactive and solutions-oriented mindset.

Additional Information

The Application Process: 

Once you've submitted your application, you will be emailed a link and asked to complete an online assessment task. This email will come from our partner Arctic Shores. You will need to complete the assessment within 3 days of submitting your application.

If successful at the application and online assessment task stage, you will then have a screening call with a recruiter from the Publicis team.

The final stage will be either joining one of our assessment centres or having an interview.

🌟 What to Expect from the Arctic Shores Assessment

As part of our selection process, we use an Arctic Shores game-based assessment to help us understand your natural strengths in a fair, engaging way. This isn’t a quiz about what you know, it’s about showing how you think, behave and solve problems in real time.

 What it is

• A series of interactive tasks (games) designed to measure problem-solving, decision-making, adaptability, focus and other work-relevant behaviours.

• You won’t see typical questions, instead, you’ll play activities that look and feel like simple games.

How it works

• You’ll receive an email with a link and simple instructions.

• Before the official assessment you can try a practice task so you’re confident with the format.

• The assessment usually has around 7-9 tasks and should take about the same time as a standard online test.

Tips to succeed

• Choose a quiet, distraction-free space with a reliable device.

• Read the instructions carefully before starting each activity.

• Be yourself - Arctic Shores is designed to capture how you naturally approach challenges, not what you think is the “right” answer.

After you finish

• Candidates receive a personalised feedback report that explains what your responses suggest about your strengths - valuable insight whether you join us or not.

There are no right or wrong answers - your results simply help us understand where you’ll thrive. Approach it with confidence and focus on performing consistently throughout each task.

Leo UK offers a wide range of benefits to support our employees. Full details are shared when you join, but highlights include core benefits such as Pension, Life Assurance, and Private Medical cover, alongside enhanced policies like Reflection Days and Shared Parental Leave. You’ll also have access to a range of additional initiatives, including:

📖 Please check out the Publicis Career Page which showcases our Inclusive Benefits and our EAG’s (Employee Action Groups).

Publicis Groupe works primarily from the office or our clients' office four days per week.

At Leo UK, we are proud to be an equal opportunities employer. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, and do not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion or belief, disability, age, citizenship, relationship status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected characteristic.

We are committed to providing a fair, accessible, and inclusive recruitment process. If you have any access needs - for example, related to disability, neurodivergence, or a health condition - please let us know. We’ll work with you to ensure the process works for you. Sharing this information will never impact your application.

Guided by our values, we listen with empathy, uplift each other, take responsibility, and embrace change - building a culture where everyone feels seen, respected, and genuinely included.