Visionary Leadership Awards 2025 / 6 Visual Communication Innovator of the Year 2025: Laura Evans-Hill From ancient cave paintings to modern murals, visual storytelling is a fundamental aspect of human expression. Our brains are wired to respond to visual cues 60,000 times faster than text and this method of communication allows audiences to process information more efficiently, bridging the gaps between languages, skillsets, and understanding. Championing this ethos is Nifty Fox Creative, a forward-thinking company helping researchers and public sector organisations engage to audiences and find clarity in complexity through visual storytelling with impact. Based in Barnsley, Nifty Fox Creative is an award-winning research communications agency helping academics and public sector leaders translate their insights into impact through visual storytelling. At its core, the agency believes in using visual storytelling for social good and ensuring that all voices are heard to make meaningful change, whether through infographics and animation, live scribing and co-design, or visual communication training. This mission is headed by Laura Evans-Hill, Founder and Director of Nifty Fox Creative. Before founding the agency, Laura trained as a social researcher and worked in universities for ten years in widening participation. Her role entailed translating the work of universities into languages and mediums that people who do not traditionally engage with universities would understand. Laura saw firsthand the sheer volume of exceptional research that promised to truly make a difference yet is ignored simply due to poor communication. “I knew that my purpose was to drive positive societal change by helping researchers communicate differently so that their message landed with audiences,” she told us. “I would have continued to do this within the university sector. However, I developed chronic fatigue syndrome and was bedbound for 12 months, forcing me to leave my job and take time out to rethink my future. This is where Nifty Fox was born – out of a frustration that academic and higher education could be doing better, and the need to do something that allowed me to be creative and flexible.” In 2017, Laura started by working one day a week, which was all she could manage at the time. Laura’s experience as a researcher in widening participation has given her the sectoral expertise to offer a unique, tailored communications package to a sector typically hesitant to work with creatives, whilst her management experience and knowledge of team cultures has enabled her to develop a positive, people-first team of her own. What’s more, Laura’s time with chronic fatigue syndrome had equipped her with the compassion, drive, resilience, and purpose that are essential to surviving the challenge of running a high-growth business. Today, Laura has made a full recovery and applies herself to the agency full-time. In less than a decade, she has expanded to a team of ten, successfully established a seven-figure business, and worked on projects that truly make a difference to the world. Over time, Laura has found her role to shift from Founder and “Doer” to serving as the rudder of the Nifty Fox ship, ensuring her crew are clear on their direction and empowered with the sails and oars to propel the agency further. This has required a significant shift in mindset for the Founder, an ongoing journey that has doubled as a substantial opportunity for the team. “Every business challenge is a manifestation of the individual at the heart of it. I personally have had to grow for us to level up as a business, and my team around me in the same way too,” she shared. “Challenges have ranged from dealing with the chaos of high growth whilst building a team; maintaining a stellar client experience whilst training that team; and staying nimble, energetic, and restless in an ever-changing landscape. As the team grows, changes, and contributes, we are going further than I ever thought possible.” Under Laura’s leadership, Nifty Fox Creative has worked with more than 50 universities internationally, over 3000 researchers, and more than 80 public sector organisations, including the NHS, UK Government, the UN, and international parliaments needing to tell their stories in a way that will make their audience listen. Looking ahead, the agency intends to continue building upon its success, with the theme for 2025 and 2026 being “scaling smart.” Ultimately, Laura hopes to leave a legacy of supporting leaders to collaborate, communicate, and change-make through visual storytelling. Since entering the industry, she has worked tirelessly to make meaningful change through creative communication and has remained wholly steadfast in her mission for more than a decade. For her exceptional efforts in simplifying complexities, engaging audiences, and driving true change through purposeful pictures, Laura Evans-Hill has been rightfully recognised as the Visual Communication Innovator of the Year 2025. Contact: Laura Evans-Hill Web Address: www.niftyfoxcreative.com AIM-Aug25143
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