Women In Media Profile: Jill Johnston

Inspirational women are all around us, leading the way for others. So to celebrate the launch of our annual Women in Media Awards, we’ve started a women in media profile series to recognise some of these women!

Last week, we profiled Susannah George from the Urban List – and now it’s someone else’s time to shine.

Jill Johnston is head of people and culture at Southern Cross Austereo (SCA), and spent six years at BBC London before moving to Australia.

She also won a Best Employer Award after building a values based culture – which is no easy feat.

So what’s her advice for young woman? Have a vision.

“Work out where your passion lies and build career goals that take you on a journey that ensures you can grow and thrive,” she said.

“Have patience. If something doesn’t work out, don’t give up or stress about it for too long, use it as a learning experience.”

Johnston also said that younger women should always seek out support from other women in more senior positions – like career coaches, mentors and managers.

“Young women need female role models to inspire them,” she said.

“Young women often talk about self-doubt, which holds them back – but seeing women in senior positions instills the confidence that we are all equal.”

Here at B&T, we’re a firm believer in: if she can see it, she can believe it then she can be it – which is exactly why events like the Women in Media Awards are so important; to recognise all the inspiring, hardworking women in our industry, and give aspiring women something to look up to.

At SCA, the company have put in place a number of initiatives to support women and attract them to leadership roles – which include identifying and assessing participants for Women in Leadership scholarships and spotting female talent through succession planning.

“[We’ve] developed keep-in-touch program for women on Parental Leave and educational programs for managers on the benefits of diversity and inclusion – and it’s link to ongoing business success and sustainability,” Johnston said.

“We also review our recruitment policies and practices and develop resources to implement better practice approaches to address unconscious bias in the workplace, including in selection processes,” she added.

And Johnston said men play as much of a role in the selection process (and in making sure women get equal opportunities) as women do.

“[Men need to] ensure females get a seat at the table and have opportunities to have input at any level or stage in their career,” she said.

And companies need women in their company because diversity within a workforce is key to success.

“It creates a competitive advantage by increasing innovation, acceptance and problem-solving capacity through a diverse workforce,” Johnston said.

“The force of having different thinking and styles is a strong case for success.”

B&T‘s Women in Media Awards 2018 will be held on Friday 17 August 2018 at Doltone House – Jones Bay Wharf. Grab early bird tickets to the event here and find all other info on the website.

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B&T Women in Media Awards 2018 Jill Johnston Southern Cross Austereo women in media awards