New York City, New York, United States, January 2026 — Amanda Schmidt has been appointed as Global Chief People Officer at Acast, marking a strategic leadership move as the global podcast marketplace continues to scale its operations worldwide. In her new role, Schmidt will lead Acast’s global people and culture strategy, aligning workforce capabilities, leadership development and organizational design with the company’s ambitious growth agenda.
Schmidt brings deep experience in scaling high-growth media and technology organizations. Prior to joining Acast, she served as Global Chief People Officer at Cision, where she was recruited by the CEO to lead enterprise-wide transformation for the private equity–owned global technology company, overseeing people, communications and facilities functions across more than 6,000 employees in 44 markets.
Earlier, she held the role of Chief People Officer at Edelman, overseeing the people function for the world’s largest family-owned global public relations firm. She also served as Global Chief People Officer at DEPT®, where she led HR and culture strategy for a global digital agency during its IPO readiness phase, and previously as Global Chief People Officer at Essence, part of WPP and GroupM, where she played a pivotal role in scaling the organization from 250 to over 3,500 employees globally while driving integration and rapid revenue growth.
Schmidt’s early career included leadership roles at Havas Worldwide, Spring Studios, R/GA, and Interbrand, building a strong foundation in workforce planning, creative operations and organizational scaling within global brand, media and technology ecosystems.
Acast is a global podcast platform connecting advertisers with engaged audiences across more than 140,000 podcasts worldwide. Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, Acast operates globally and is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm (ACAST), enabling advertisers to achieve scalable, measurable impact across podcast networks through advanced targeting, brand safety and creative solutions.
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