UK Industry Program Breakthrough Leaders Widens Focus To International Biz & Becomes Global Breakthrough 360

EXCLUSIVE: British industry initiative Breakthrough Leaders is expanding globally. The UK leadership program for individuals from Black, Asian and Global Majority backgrounds is evolving into Global Breakthrough 360 (GB360) as a response to the increasingly international nature of television. The new evolution of Breakthrough Leaders will place focus on Africa and Canada to open routes to markets, networks and relationships beyond the UK, to equip its cohorts with understandings of international financing, co-production and cross-border partnerships. The international collabs are with MIP Africa and the Canada Media Fund. The MIP partnership will see the 2026/27 cohort travel to South Africa for a supported market visit, meeting creators, buyers, distributors and financiers from across the continent. The pact with the Canada Media Fund will aim to build connections between UK and Canadian talent and industry networks. Watch on Deadline Alongside this international access, participants will build relationships with senior leaders and decision-makers across the sector, develop their own Personal Board of Advisors, and take part in Leadership Integration Labs led by creative leadership advisor and entrepreneur Rémy Blumenfeld — turning programme insights into practical action and networks that extend far beyond the programme’s 12 months. The GB360 calendar will also include a new December event at a “landmark central London venue,” which is a first for the program. A new advisory board comprises Katra Simaball of The Akuna Group, the global creative, entertainment and media company founded by Sir Idris Elba; Tshepiso Sello Chikapa Phiri, founder and CEO of one of South Africa integrated media firm Known Associates Group; Fred Bhat, who leads YouTube, gaming and creator content at the BBC; Tim Yaw Struthers, Head of Original Brands & International Marketing at Sky and Senior Advisor, Global Engagement at The National Film Authority of Ghana; Deep Sehgal, a doc maker and creative director who formerly led Motion WPP Entertainment’s Diverse Indies Fund partnership; Tamara Howe of 22Summers, Elba’s production company; and Sara Putt, talent agent and founder of Sara Putt Associates. Fremantle will continue as a founding partner of Breakthrough Leaders, with ITV and ITV Studios, Channel 4 and 5 all returning to the program. The 2026/27 Global Breakthrough 360 cohort will comprise 50 places available, with applications open through a dedicated website before closing on September 18. Since it began in 2020, Breakthrough Leaders has seen more than 250 senior creatives join its program. Many have gone on to land decision-making roles, and the org says earlier cohorts delivered a 30% promotion rate. Around 32% of previous cohorts are now hiring or championing others for more senior roles, with 68% of alums citing access to decision makers is the single biggest obstacle to career progression. This has directly influenced the decision to sharpen GB360’s focus on networks, visibility and opportunity. Breakthrough Leaders founder Simone Pennant, who is also behind The TV Collective, received a BAFTA Television Craft Special Award for her contribution to the industry earlier this year off the back of her work with the program.“Television, film, digital, gaming, podcasting, brands — these worlds no longer operate in silos, and neither do the leaders shaping them,” said Pennant. “Bringing these industries together widens the pool of opportunity and talent alike, creating collaborations that wouldn’t otherwise exist. GB360 connects people, sectors and markets with a real reason to work together — so leaders don’t just adapt to change, they help shape it.” Ben Frow, Chief Content Officer at 5, said the launch of Global Breakthrough 360 “rightly recognises the shifts in the creative economy and the importance of nurturing business relationships across borders and sectors to deliver innovative new projects,” while Tim Carter, MD of ITV Studios, UK Unscripted added that “creativity and diversity are two sides of the same coin,” and said: “Supporting Breakthrough 360’s excellent programme is about future-proofing our industry.” Sam Tatlow, Head of DEI at ITV, said it had “never been more important for us all to be working together to ensure we develop the leaders of colour of the future, creating a more representative, creative and inclusive industry for us all.” Neila Butt, Creative Equity Lead at Channel 4, said the program “was making a real difference to the careers of Black and Asian creatives,” while Lisa Hardy, People Director at Fremantle UK, called GB360 “an important evolution of Breakthrough Leaders.”