“Build Today For The Future You Want To Be A Part Of”: 10 Of The Best With Finecast’s Tania David

We hope you’re enjoying B&T‘s ’10 of the Best’ interview series, because we’ve got plenty more still to come.

[Looking for the live stream of B&T’s Best of the Best awards? You’ve found it – click here!]

Of course, the series was created in celebration of our inaugural Best of the Best awards. What are they, you might ask?

Presented by Finecast, Best of the Best will bring something unique to this year’s awards season. While most awards focus on the work of an agency or company as a whole, Best of the Best will celebrate the immense individual talent on show in every area of advertising, marketing and media.

Our Best of the Best awards will also be celebrating the people who continue to do the most, with categories for mentors and social change-makers.

You can find a breakdown of all the different categories here, along with a downloadable file outlining the full submission criteria.

Come on, you know you want to enter! Head on over HERE to complete your submission/s by Friday 25 June 2021.

To inspire you even more to enter Best of the Best, we’re continuing to publish some fab interviews with a number of senior folk from Finecast and the broader WPP AUNZ network.

We’ve asked them everything from their best piece of career advice, to the best mistake they’ve ever made, to their best guilty pleasure.

Next up is Finecast’s head of marketing and business development in Australia, Tania David. Enjoy…

Best piece of career advice… 

Build (do the work) today for the future job, organisation and industry you want to be a part of. I’ve found it rewarding in my career to contribute to and, work on projects and initiatives that align with my own values and motivators around people, culture, and the social impact I’m able to make beyond my day-to-day. By throwing myself at opportunities to make an impact, I’ve played an active role in the development of GroupM’s Reconciliation Action Plan, developed and integrated GroupM’s Peer Recognition program and am an industry UnLtd Ambassador of Good.

It was Gandhi who said “be the change you want to see” if you want things to change and to make a difference. It all starts with you, your values and your motivators.

Best agency in Australia now (that’s not yours) and why…

The standout creative agency for me right now is Special Group. Their Uber Eats ‘Tonight I’ll be eating…’ with Magda and Kim is one of my all-time favourites (partly because my mum’s name is Sharon/“Shaz” and in a previous life, I played GK in netball), but mostly because it was just so clever and an iconic Aussie viral marketing moment. Noice.

Best industry leader and why…

Empathy and authenticity are values that I relate most to in leadership, and Fleur Marks embodies this in everything she does. I trained with Fleur during her time at WPP and have always found her to be honest and caring. Today, Fleur is chief wellbeing officer of her own workplace wellbeing consultancy, training and coaching business Well You. With a relentless focus on the promotion of good health and wellbeing in our industry, Fleur continues to inspire me, and I’m sure a lot of others in our industry, to be well.

Best mentor in your life and why…

I’m so grateful for the mentors that I’ve worked with in my career, who’ve helped me sharpen my strategic thinking, leadership principles and approach to challenges.

Brendon McKeon, talent director at GroupM, has been an incredible mentor in helping me navigate the sometimes complex world of people management and how to support the best performance out of my team.

Best brand you’ve never worked on and why…

I’d love to work on Qantas. There’s something joyful and nostalgic seeing the Qantas kangaroo on a plane or when travelling, and every kid growing up in Australia in the 90s would know the feeling I’m talking about when they hear the Qantas anthem “I Still Call Australia Home”.

Today, I’m inspired by Qantas’ commitment to creating a workplace environment and culture that is modern and reflective of all its people. The organisational changes Qantas is making to policies that address gender balance, reconciliation, LGBTI+ inclusion and strategic focus on diversity and inclusion initiatives, and the way it is prioritising the conversation, is commendable.

Best song for inspiration and why…

I find myself at my most creative when listening to classical music. Mozart and Wagner are both amazing, but for pure inspiration – joy, even – it’s big man Ludwig Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and Symphony No. 6.

Best mistake you’ve ever made…

I started my career in media as an exec at a digital publisher, where I’d mistakenly forgotten to book in a client sponsorship and had to optimise the value into alternative placements using behavioural targeting (BT). At the time, BT was a new concept in the market, and this was the first campaign I ever booked using data to find audiences in digital marketing. While I was devasted at the time, it did ignite my curiosity and lifelong passion for data, technology and marketing. More importantly, the experience taught me an important lesson to always pay attention to detail.

Best rumour you’ve heard about yourself…

I heard a rumour once that I was a good singer and could’ve gone professional. And, as much as I love to sing (sign me up for an 80s power ballad at karaoke any day), the truth is I’m a horrendous singer with a voice only a mother could love. Sorry to disappoint any fans out there.

Best ad of the past decade and why…

The KFC ad with Plucka Duck cruising down a mountain in New Zealand tops my list for best ad of the past decade (and personal favourite). I love it because it’s classic, evocative, appealing to the Hey Hey It’s Saturday audience of yesteryear or even simply because of its absurd, nonsense nature. Sing it with me now, “b-b-b-bird, bird, bird, bird is the word…”.

Best guilty pleasure…

I’m a sneakerhead and my best guilty pleasure is copping a new pair of kicks, fresh out of the box.