Award-winning registered charity Sport Aberdeen was delighted to welcome the latest addition to its Senior Leadership Team in September this year.

Sarah Gray joins Sport Aberdeen in the newly created Head of Marketing and Commercial Development role based at the charity’s HQ at Broadfold House. Sarah is responsible for leading and managing all aspects of marketing and communications activity and increasing inward investment to the company.

Sarah brings over fifteen years of extensive marketing experience to the role, having previously worked predominantly in the oil and gas sector, latterly as Marketing Manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa for oil and gas services company, Hoover Ferguson.

Her areas of expertise include strategic marketing planning and execution, social media strategy, corporate communications and event management.

The skillset which Sarah brings to Sport Aberdeen is highly valued and will be a great asset as the company moves into its second decade.

Q&A

You bring over 15 years of marketing experience to your new role with Sport Aberdeen. What has been your proudest achievement to date?

I’ve been fortunate enough to be involved in many exciting and rewarding projects over my career, with some exceptional teams. There are a few which stand out for me, including the strategic marketing rebrand and launch of a newly merged business which required delivery within a very tight timescale.  I’m also very proud to have launched, developed and managed a successful social media marketing strategy as part of my previous role. Starting this from nothing a few years ago and watching our following and engagement grow and develop into a lead generating marketing tool, which also delivered value to our followers, was very rewarding.

How have you found moving from a career in oil and gas to one within a leisure trust?

It has been a really interesting and enjoyable change!  Many of the principles remain the same but being part of public facing charity brings some unique elements to the role, which I have really enjoyed learning more about. I’m very proud to be part of an organisation which brings such value to the people of Aberdeen, I have been really moved by the feedback and results that some of our community projects have delivered. I believe that one of the most important aspects of any role is the people that you work with and I’m delighted to be part of such a dedicated, supportive and fun team at Sport Aberdeen.

As Sport Aberdeen moves into its second decade in 2020, what do you look forward to achieving in your new role as Head of Marketing and Commercial Development?

In the near-term I’m particularly looking forward to enhancing our digital offering across both web and social media. Its such an ever-evolving landscape and it’s vital for all businesses to be able to effectively engage with their customers and stakeholders online.

We are delighted to be working in partnership with Aberdeen City Council to bring Northfield Swimming Pool back into use and I’m looking forward to communicating and engaging with the local community though 2020 and 2021 as we develop the venue, bringing another opportunity for people to get active to the area. I’m also really looking forward to developing the commercial offerings that are available with Sport Aberdeen. We have so many great opportunities available to other local businesses to allow them to reach a wide market as well as some fun and unique opportunities for corporate hospitality and team building which are going to be exciting to develop