The King’s New Year Honours list has acknowledged several key figures from the marcomms sector, celebrating their contributions to the industry.

Industry veteran Karen Blackett has been awarded a CBE for her services to advertising and the creative industries. This comes a decade after she received an OBE. 

Blackett’s career at WPP spanned 29 years, during which she held numerous high-profile positions and rose through the ranks to become UK CEO and chairperson of the UK’s largest media agency. Her journey continued as she became WPP’s first UK country manager and later the UK CEO of GroupM.

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In 2018, Blackett was appointed as the UK government’s first race equality champion and currently serves as a non-executive director for Diageo and Creative UK. 

Other notable honours in the sector include communications advisor for Love of The Game, Michelle Elkins and Stephen Whiting, lead communications officer at the UK Debt Management Office and, now, OBE.