Mission Accomplished
We’re transformers.
We help transform creative concepts into business reality, and the training courses we deliver help creative professionals take their careers to the next level.
Alison spent 15 years working at senior level in many media companies – predominantly in international television and film production, rights management and strategy – but she also has formal academic training and is a Nesta-accredited Creative Enterprise Trainer.
Add to that mix that Alison is also an entrepreneur who has established her own businesses and it becomes clear why she is in such demand by many creative businesses as a consultant and non-exec.
She is also the author of the Penguin bestseller, The Freelance Bible
Currently Alison owns Mission Accomplished, a consultancy offering training, mentoring and strategic advice to start-ups and established SMEs in the Creative Industries. Alison has extensive experience in providing one-to-one business support and workshops to both pre-start and existing Creative Industries SMEs through her work on a range of programmes with universities and institutions including ScreenSkills, the British Council, the BBC Academy, Birmingham City University, Coventry University and Aston University.
Alison Grade quickly understood my business better than I do and her advice transformed the way I plan for and get new work. Transformed.
Mentoring sessions with her were cathartic and entertaining, it was like working with a funny and trustworthy therapist. Yet she is also very specific and practical about what can be achieved.
So whether it was a small technical issue or a pie-in-the-sky fantasy of what I wanted to do, she approached it all with the same considered insight and just sheer cleverness. I’ve recommended her to friends, colleagues, and random people I pass in the street so now I want to recommend her to you.
I had what was simply an idea; with very little understanding of how to turn it into a reality.
Alison taught me how to fine-tune that idea, create detailed plans and treatments: all of the things my potential clients would want to know, and the best way to communicate that. She taught me how to monetise my idea, opening up new opportunities that I hadn’t even envisaged. Above all she is able to guide you, whilst at all times encouraging you to help yourself, and put her teaching into action.
With the help of Alison, I learnt in 6 weeks what most people would learn in 6 months, maybe even longer.
Step Up To Development Producer Course
“After attending Mission Accomplished’s ‘Development Summit’ earlier in the year I was really excited to get another opportunity to learn more from Sophie and Alison with their ‘Step Up To Development Producer Course’. Sophie is a wonderful person to lead the training as she’s passionate, friendly and bursting with industry knowledge. She is always open to questions – there’s nothing you can’t ask! The mix of Zoom and in-person training has really inspired me to further my career and has been flexible around my work. It’s great to learn and develop alongside others from companies across the UK.”
Alison Grade: Hero-ette.
In recent years Alison has become such an influential figure in the way the studio thinks, delivers and presents itself, which I’m forever grateful for.
After undertaking an enterprise training scheme in 2015 which Alison mentored on, I found it not only extremely useful but inspiring and motivational also. She has the ability to share the same passion and enthusiasm that you do about your own business, and unlike most, can see goals to strive for and develop the business in a direction that’s (what you think) far beyond expectations. She’s a forever friend of the studio and we cannot recommend her highly enough!
Unscripted TV Development Summits
“I really enjoyed attending the Unscripted TV Development Summit and felt it provided me with many useful tools and strategies to help strengthen my contribution to my company’s development team. It was a relaxed and supportive environment and the sessions gave me a better understanding of the development process as a whole.”
Return to Work Craft and Tech.
“The Mission Accomplished Return to Work in High-End TV course has been a fundamental part of my journey to come back to my much-loved work as a Director of Photography. Run by industry professionals, the course provides essential inside knowledge, as well as one-to-one support and guidance, culminating in direct assistance by way of introductions to hiring producers and the opportunity for a paid placement on a production. An essential, industry-funded course for anyone coming back to HETV.”
Alison was the first person who ever took the time to interrogate our values and our vision — as people, not just as a company.
Meetings with Alison are like a science lab: a safe space to turn the microscope on yourself and look closely at your core beliefs and processes — and then she gives you time to experiment, to challenge yourself by throwing new and ambitious elements into the mix, and to have the courage to embrace new ways of thinking and new approaches to working. Because of her we were able to approach change with much greater boldness and bravery than we could ever have found on our own.
The Guiding Principles of Departmental Budgeting
“The Mission Accomplished budgeting course was very enriching, and I came away feeling more confident in the departmental budgeting process. Partaking on the course enabled me to ask questions about budgeting on HETV and large-scale feature films, which I was not able to do before. Budgeting is such an important part of the production process and in my experience, Mission Accomplished’s budgeting course is by far one of the best ways to get a better and full understanding of the budgeting process. I would recommend anyone with the word ‘manager’ in their title role to do it.”
Return to Work Craft and Tech.
“Mission Accomplished gave me the much-needed headspace and direction to focus on where my career was heading. I’m a new mum and was struggling to see how I could continue my career and juggle a young family. Mission Accomplished gave me the much-needed headspace and direction to focus on where my career was heading. The course gave me confidence to ask for roles that suit our family and my new location away from London. I am proud of my new CV and feel comfortable sending it out.”
Unscripted TV Development Summits
“We’ve been busy in production for the past year and recently gone into development mode, so the summit in London fell at a perfect time for us. It was a great chance to focus our time and energy in to how to develop our ideas and it was a rare opportunity to meet other development teams. It was fantastic! The trainers were brilliant, so friendly, approachable and knowledgeable; they both provided so many helpful takeaways and different techniques for brainstorming, structuring and pitching ideas. The processes we were taught will definitely be utilised and were incredibly helpful in shaping our work going forward. We would definitely recommend it to others. It was also great to meet and hear from Commissioning Editors, they were all friendly, insightful and down to earth. Their collaborative approach to working up ideas was really refreshing. We left with confidence and encouragement to move forward and pitch our ideas. Also, incredibly good brownies!”
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We've helped over 2,000 freelancers and entrepreneurs turn creative ideas into reality
Plus our training courses help creative practitioners work on their business rather than just in their business. Get in touch to see if we can help.