London, UK - Award-winning science communications agency First Create The Media is delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Sarah Hazell as its new Chief Executive Officer.

Founded in 2018 by renowned science writer and broadcaster Dr Kat Arney, First Create The Media has quickly become a prominent player in the life sciences sector. The agency brings together a team of experts with decades of experience to provide strategic communications consultancy and high quality written, audio and video content for innovative companies and the ecosystem that supports them.

First Create The Media turned five in the summer of 2023, bringing significant expansion of the team with the addition of key hires across project management and content delivery. This prompted the leadership to undertake a strategic review to set the future direction of the agency. As a first step, Dr Sarah Hazell, who has served as Chief Operations Officer since the early days of First Create The Media, will now take on a new role as the agency’s first Chief Executive Officer.

Bringing years of experience in leadership, management and communications at multiple organisations within the research ecosystem, including major UK research charities, Sarah is adept at dealing with multiple stakeholders, developing impactful strategies and planning for success. She and Kat first met when working together in the science communications team at Cancer Research UK, forging a deep personal and professional relationship that has lasted more than a decade.

During her time as COO of First Create The Media, Sarah has transformed the operational side of the agency. She developed and implemented systems and processes to support growth, alongside cool-headed logic under pressure to make strategic and sometimes difficult decisions to move us towards our company goals.

As the agency continues to grow, Sarah’s new role as CEO will allow her to focus on developing the company's strategy and supporting its growth, steering First Create The Media towards an even more impactful future.

Kat Arney will retain her position as Chief Creative Officer, focusing on delivering high quality communications strategy and content that hits the mark. She expressed her excitement about the appointment, saying, "Sarah has been my right-hand woman since the very earliest days of this company and has been at the heart of our culture and values as we've grown. I can't think of anyone I'd rather be building a business with, and I'm so excited for what's coming next."

Sarah added, “The past five years has been a period of constant growth and change as we’ve worked from the ground up to establish our foundations and reputation. I’m so proud of our team and feel lucky to be in a position where I can help guide them and the business through the next critical phase as we refine our strategy and vision to take us forwards into the future.”

About First Create The Media
First Create The Media is a science communications strategy and content agency founded in 2018 by multi award-winning science writer and broadcaster Dr Kat Arney.

Specialising in life sciences, biotech and the convergence of biology and technology, we provide strategic consultancy, compelling written content, podcasts, video, and PR/comms support to a diverse range of clients including startups, scaleups, larger companies, charities, universities, and research institutes.

We are proud to have won two Drum awards for our work with ZOE and King’s College London on the ZOE COVID Symptom Study. We have been finalists in 2021 and 2022 OBN awards for the most impactful business support organisation, and won several awards and recognition for our flagship podcasts, Hormones: The Inside Story and Genetics Unzipped.

Find out more: firstcreatethemedia.com