DPAA has expanded its Women's Empowerment in Digital Out of Home initiative to the United Kingdom, establishing a local WE.DOOH chapter and a programme of in-person activity around professional development, recognition and representation.
The new UK chapter was announced on August 11 and is due to begin with an event in London on August 13. The launch arrives as the DOOH sector increasingly depends on skills drawn from software, data, measurement, creative technology and omnichannel planning as well as traditional outdoor sales and operations.
That makes representation more than a reputational issue. It affects who builds the systems, defines the measurement language, presents the research and occupies the decision-making roles of a rapidly changing medium.
What has been announced
DPAA says the UK chapter will be led locally by Camille Andrews, head of media sales at London City Airport and chair of the DPAA UK Advisory Council.
Its first in-person gathering is scheduled aboard the Sunborn London Yacht Hotel at Royal Victoria Dock, in association with London City Airport and with Daktronics as sponsor.
The announcement also connects the UK launch to DPAA's 2026 Leading Women in Digital Media Awards.
The award categories are Rising Star, Unsung Hero and Vanguard. They are designed to recognise emerging leaders, people whose contributions are often overlooked and experienced women who advance both the industry and other women within it.
- WE.DOOH UK announcement: August 11, 2026
- First UK in-person event: August 13, 2026
- Award nomination deadline: September 2, 2026
- Award recipients due to be announced: September 25, 2026
- Recognition at DPAA Global Video Everywhere Summit: October 13, 2026
Why a UK chapter matters
The UK is one of the world's most digitised OOH markets. IAB UK reported that digital accounted for 67% of UK OOH expenditure in 2025 and forecast that the share could reach 76% by 2031.
As the commercial model changes, the industry's talent requirements change with it. Modern DOOH brings together:
A leadership programme operating across this ecosystem can connect people who might otherwise remain inside separate professional groups. That is particularly useful in a sector where a media owner, agency planner, ad-tech vendor, venue operator and measurement company may all contribute to the same campaign but have few shared development structures.
- Media planning and buying
- Programmatic trading
- Supply and demand platforms
- Audience and mobility data
- Measurement and attribution
- Creative technology
- Screen hardware and software
- Retail and place-based media
- Privacy, policy and standards
- Operations and infrastructure
Recognition should be tied to influence, not visibility alone
The three award categories address different ways leadership appears.
This category focuses on emerging women whose influence exceeds their seniority. In a fast-changing industry, that may include specialists introducing new data practices, improving creative workflows or translating technical systems for commercial teams.
The category is intended for work that materially advances a company or sector without consistently receiving public recognition. OOH depends heavily on operations, trafficking, approvals, finance, delivery and client-service roles that are less visible than keynote speakers or chief executives.
This category recognises experienced leadership combined with a commitment to advancing others. The important test should be demonstrable impact: building teams, opening access to decision-making, sponsoring talent and changing how the industry operates.
Together, the categories create a wider definition of contribution than a list based only on job title or public profile.
- Rising Star: This category focuses on emerging women whose influence exceeds their seniority. In a fast-changing industry, that may include specialists introducing new data practices, improving creative workflows or translating technical systems for commercial teams.
- Unsung Hero: The category is intended for work that materially advances a company or sector without consistently receiving public recognition. OOH depends heavily on operations, trafficking, approvals, finance, delivery and client-service roles that are less visible than keynote speakers or chief executives.
- Vanguard: This category recognises experienced leadership combined with a commitment to advancing others. The important test should be demonstrable impact: building teams, opening access to decision-making, sponsoring talent and changing how the industry operates. Together, the categories create a wider definition of contribution than a list based only on job title or public profile.
The opportunity—and the test—for WE.DOOH UK
Networking events and awards can create visibility, but their long-term value depends on what happens between ceremonies.
A strong year-round programme could help the UK industry address practical questions such as:
The initiative will be most credible if it combines recognition with skills, visibility with decision-making access, and networking with measurable progression.
- Who receives access to technical and commercial training?
- Who is invited to speak on measurement, programmatic trading and infrastructure—not only workplace culture?
- How are mid-career professionals supported when progression stalls?
- Are mentoring relationships linked to real sponsorship and opportunity?
- Do media owners, agencies and technology companies publish consistent leadership data?
- Are panels and award lists followed by changes in hiring, promotion and procurement?
Why advertisers and agencies should care
Talent initiatives may appear separate from campaign planning, but the quality of a media market depends on the breadth of experience represented in its decisions.
DOOH campaigns routinely make choices about public space, audience classification, movement data, creative context and measurement. Teams with a narrow range of perspectives can miss practical risks or produce messages that work in a presentation but fail in the environments where people encounter them.
Representation does not automatically create better campaigns. It improves the pool of knowledge available to challenge assumptions, understand varied audiences and build more resilient systems.
For agencies and advertisers, there is also a supplier-governance question. When evaluating OOH and ad-tech partners, procurement can ask about:
These questions are more meaningful when applied consistently instead of only during an awards period.
- Leadership and technical-team composition
- Promotion and retention practices
- Pay-equity review
- Flexible career pathways
- Mentoring and sponsorship
- Speaker and panel representation
- Harassment reporting and accountability
- Evidence of progress rather than isolated campaigns
What to watch next
The August launch establishes the chapter and its first event. The next indicators of substance will be the programme that follows:
The chapter does not need to solve every structural issue itself. It can be valuable by creating a consistent place for the sector to identify talent, share access and make under-recognised work more visible.
- Frequency and accessibility of UK activities
- Participation beyond senior commercial roles
- Inclusion of technical, operational and measurement disciplines
- Published objectives or progress indicators
- Opportunities for people outside London
- Collaboration with existing UK advertising and OOH initiatives
- Whether award recognition creates further speaking, mentoring or leadership opportunities