Meet the people behind Engage: Alex McCuaig, Business Development & Strategy Director at Engage Works.

Meet Alexander McCuaig , our Business Development and Strategy Director at Engage Works. With over 20 years of experience in the creative industries, Alex has a proven track record in high-level strategy, creative storytelling, and international expansion. Alex's empathetic approach, knack for seeing the bigger picture, and his ability to not take life too seriously make him an invaluable asset to our team. Learn how he's helping us shape the future of cultural experiences at Engage Works.

1. Name: Alex McCuaig?
2. Job title: Business Development and Strategy Director
3. What is your skill set and expertise? High-level strategy and business diversification. Creative strategy, storytelling, international expansion, BD and relationship building.
4. Can you provide a summary of your career history up until now? My career kicked off as an advertising creative, but it didn't stop there. I've been involved in designing, delivering, and executing experiential projects for various brands. One significant chapter saw me as the Creative Director at Live Nation, the world's largest live entertainment agency. During my time there, I crafted experiences for some of Europe's largest FMCG and tech brands. After five years at Live Nation, I ventured into MET Studio, a globally recognised experiential design agency. I took on the role of Strategy Director and later became the Managing Director of the London agency. Eventually, I had the privilege of becoming the CEO of the MET Group, overseeing operations in London, Dubai, Hong Kong, and Singapore. My creative strategy played a pivotal role in MET Studio's success, allowing us to deliver projects for some of the world's most iconic destinations and brands, such as the Burj al Arab, Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, and EDF and London 2012 Olympics. In 2022, I started a new adventure by joining Engage Works. I want to expand our capabilities, reach new regions, explore diverse sectors, and, ultimately, boost our market share. Today, I'm proud to be part of the senior team and board, contributing to our strategic growth.
5. What do you think are the best skills that you bring to your job? Empathy, understanding people, seeing the bigger picture, calmness, getting on with people, keeping things in perspective.
6. How do you think your colleagues would describe you? Hopefully, by the things I've said above.
7. What publications do you regularly read? BBC News, Design Week, UKTI Middle East Review, Middle East Construction Week, Experience Magazine, Creative Review.
8. What are you happiest doing when you’re not working??Taking my wife, 3-year-old daughter and 1-year-old dog away somewhere beautiful. We swim, eat, drink, play and laugh in nice hotels or remote AirBnBs. I also never go anywhere without music or podcasts in my ears. Despite being over 40, I also play football twice a week; it clears out the knots of the week.
9. How has your career created value in your life? We create things that make people smile or be in awe or amaze them for a living. What’s not to love about that?
10. Do you have any regrets regarding your career path? Working in the music industry, I was a rabbit in the headlights for too long. I should have partied less and focused more, and a role in LA may have come up. But hey ho, it was a wild ride!
11. What is your most significant accomplishment in your career? Getting through COVID without losing a single member of staff. It was skin of our teeth, but with a combination of furlough, some loyal clients, some new projects landing just in time and sheer hard work, we all pulled through.
12. Set aside formal education; what are the career life lessons you have learned? People and personality are everything. Most people are just trying to do their jobs with the same things going on in their lives as you have. They want to have a nice life, friends and family and their jobs to be as fun and rewarding as possible. Think about that when things get stressful. Going for a pint instead of having an argument can solve most issues.
13. What is the unique point of view that only you can share about your industry? Knowing audiences. It’s taken me 20 years, but it's my USP with the team I work in.
14. How did you get into this line of work? I was cocky and good at art at school. I didn’t know that was what advertising was! From there, I moved into experiential and was headhunted into the live music and festival experience world because of my experience working with the sort of brands they wanted to work with.
15. Who is/was your greatest mentor? My father. He ran a very successful design agency for 40 years, and not a day went by when he didn't love what he was doing.
16. What is it about Engage Works that attracted you to the company??We had worked together on a couple of projects where I was their client. I always thought they could do more, and Steve Blyth (Founder & Group CEO at Engage Works ) brought me in to help them do just that.
17. Which Engage Works ethos resonates most with you??The right narrative and creative thought should always lead everything else on a project. It's what makes us, us.
18. What is it about Engage Works that keeps you coming back every day??The team and where we are going. We feel like we are right on the edge of greatness!
19. Which Engage Works projects are you most excited about? A project in the Middle East that opens at the end of the year will mark a sea change in Engage’s trajectory. It will put us on the map and open many doors for us.?
20. What does the future hold for Engage Works? Big things. We want to be the best experiential agency in the world. I wouldn’t be here if I thought we couldn’t be.

I want to extend a massive thank you to Alex for generously sharing his insights despite his busy schedule. As Alex pointed out, our team is a key factor that sets Engage apart, and we're excited to bring you more interviews with our team members in the coming weeks.