NYWICI Industry Spotlight:
Rene Jones, Partner & Chief of Social Impact, United Talent Agency (UTA)
Rene Jones, Chief of Social Impact at United Talent Agency (UTA), has built a remarkable career rooted in purpose, storytelling, and the power of giving back. Today, she leads UTA’s global social impact efforts—supporting colleagues, high-profile clients, and philanthropic partners through programs designed to elevate causes and spark meaningful change. Her work sits at the intersection of heart, strategy, and human connection.
Rene’s commitment to service began early. She launched her career with AmeriCorps as part of its pilot program, Summer of Service—an experience that shaped everything that followed. With service and giving back as her north star, Rene’s fearlessness showed itself early on. At an event early in her career, she saw Senator Barbara Boxer and boldly approached her, saying she’d like to come to Washington to work for her. That defining moment led to Rene joining the Senator’s team, before eventually moving on to national political campaigns across the country.
Looking to deepen her impact, Rene transitioned into the nonprofit sector, beginning at DoSomething.org and later serving in development, community engagement, communications, and Board leadership roles at several nonprofits. These experiences broadened her understanding of how organizations inspire people, mobilize communities, and drive meaningful change. They also affirmed something essential: that service and giving back would always be central to her life’s work. Ready for her next challenge, she turned to the private sector to reimagine how that commitment could show up in different ways.
Ultimately, that path brought Rene to Los Angeles and to United Talent Agency. She was the fourth corporate executive hired at the young company and later became UTA’s first female non-agent Partner. In those early days, she had the incredible opportunity to create the UTA Foundation. There was no roadmap, but Rene believed deeply that employees and clients wanted to contribute to the greater good. Twenty-one years later, that belief has grown into a dynamic, purpose-driven force that helps shape the culture of UTA today.
From the beginning, Rene made it a priority to understand what mattered most. She spoke with every agent and an essential first step when there was no blueprint. Today, the UTA Foundation continues to support the communities their employees and clients care about by raising awareness for social issues, providing resources to nonprofits, and implementing programs that drive social good. She and her team have been scaling those efforts ever since, building programs that bridge personal passion with collective impact.
The Foundation operates with a two-handed approach. One hand focuses on employees, engaging UTA’s 2,200 colleagues in civic engagement, mentorship, mental health advocacy, sustainability, homelessness initiatives, food insecurity programs, and more. The other hand supports high-profile clients, offering strategic counsel to help them define and activate their social impact goals—whether expanding existing initiatives or exploring new ways to get involved. Her collaborations with clients such as 2025 Matrix Honoree Bellamy Young highlight how storytelling and advocacy can amplify meaningful change.
Among its initiatives, Project Impact has become a signature program. Launched in 2012, it closes the agency for a full day of company-wide volunteerism, bringing colleagues together across divisions to create deeply impactful experiences for employees and nonprofit partners alike.
Another standout, and Rene’s personal favorite, is Live Inspired, a program offering employees a weeklong sabbatical to volunteer with a cause of their choice—enriching both the partner organization and the employee. It reflects UTA’s belief in empowering personal, purpose-driven service.
When asked what excites her most about the UTA Foundation, Rene lights up: “I have an amazing team that constantly finds new ways to lean in, working with our 2,200 employees across all our offices globally and with our incredible clients.” That sense of purpose, collaboration, and possibility fuels everything she does.
Her advice for women growing their careers in entertainment or social impact is simple: Ask yourself what you truly care about. And the most important lesson she has learned along the way: Be fearless! Why not?
