They’re the champions of change and the steady hands guiding teams through major transformation. In an industry facing rapid disruption, fierce competition and evolving workforce expectations, people and talent leaders have never been more vital.
In this edition of B&T’s Best of the Best, we’re putting the spotlight on the brilliant minds behind the people strategies, those shaping workplaces where resilience and humanity thrive.
We a host of nominations for this category and were looking for leaders with more than solid HR credentials. They needed to show impact across culture, DE&I, talent development, change management and organisational strategy.
There’s still plenty of time to nominate for the upcoming categories, too. In the coming weeks, we’ll be spotlighting the Best of the Best Chief Product & Technology Officers and the Social Changemakers who are using their platforms and positions to push the industry, and society, forward.
NOMINATE FOR B&T’s BEST OF THE BEST NOW!
But now, it’s time to celebrate these quiet champions.
10. Tom Richards, Chief People Officer, News Australia
As chief people officer, Richards combines commercial savvy with a people-first approach that’s helped the media giant navigate some of the biggest changes in its recent history. With deep experience across HR strategy, organisational transformation and talent acquisition, Richards isn’t one to mess with culture decks and corporate slogans, he’s been at the centre of real, structural reform.
News Corp has been in the midst of restructures as it navigates the ever changing media market. While these changes are never easy, reports suggest that Richards handled the matter with integrity, transparency and respect.
Richards’ influence goes far greater though. In a media environment where platforms are changing faster than headlines, his remit includes building the kind of talent and culture needed to support AI innovation, digital experimentation and cross-functional collaboration.
And in a time where trust in news media is wobbling, having someone who can lead with both heart and strategy might just be News Corp’s secret weapon.
9. Robert Stone, People & Culture, Clemenger BBDO
Robert Stone’s career spans some of the most influential brands and agencies in the world, including McCann Worldgroup and Adidas. Now, Stone has brought his talents to Clemenger BBDO, where he combines strategic talent management, leadership and deep creative empathy. His global experience, covering London, APAC, Europe and beyond- has enabled him to see talent not just as a function, but as the core driver of brand and business transformation.
At Clemenger BBDO, Stone has been at the heart of a significant consolidation, one that brought together CHEP Network, Traffik, and Clemenger into a single entity. Amid a changing agency landscape, Stone played a key role in preserving culture while helping navigate structural change with as few redundancies as possible and a sharp focus on new opportunities for talent. In an industry where restructures can easily dilute identity, Stone has ensured that people remain the differentiator, anchoring the transition in transparency, inclusivity and a future-facing purpose.
It’s not just internal impact, either. Stone’s influence has hit global stages, from presenting at The House of Lords on workforce diversity to steering the Global Diversity & Inclusion Coalition. He’s also landed a spot on the HRD Global Top 100. It’s safe to say that Bobby Pebbles is a rock-solid member of the team.
8. Kate Rengey, Head Of Experience, Thinkerbell
Kate Rengey brings an energetic and refreshingly human lens to her role as head of experience at Thinkerbell, combining deep expertise in HR and talent management with an unmistakable sense of cultural stewardship. With more than a decade of experience across Australia, New Zealand and the UK, she has consistently worked at the intersection of business performance and people potential. Whether shaping reward programs, driving learning and development or championing engagement, Rengey approaches each challenge with both heart and precision, ensuring that people not only thrive but feel genuinely connected to the places they work.
At Thinkerbell, Rengey has redefined what it means to lead people functions in a non-traditional workplace. Her impact goes far beyond process and policy; she’s the architect of a workplace where boldness and belonging can coexist.
Rengey’s story is marked not by flash but by substance, the kind that builds trust and loyalty across teams and time zones. Her background in both public health and business gives her a rare dual lens on well-being and performance.
One fellow Thinkerbell-er told B&T: “Years ago, we had someone who fell off the bar and hurt themselves whilst dancing, and had to ban people getting on the bar. We wanted to get someone to look after HR in a way that could let us dance on the bar again. That’s what we advertised for when looking for a HR person and Rengey answered that brief and then some.”
7. Jacinta Munro, Head Of People, Atomic 212°
Jacinta Munro has spent more than two decades working as a commercially driven HR leader, navigating complex industrial relations and organisational development challenges across sectors including healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing and retail.
At Atomic, Munro’s impact is visible across the agency’s most significant milestones. As part of the leadership team that helped steer the agency out of a turbulent chapter and into stability, she has proven her ability to embed succession planning, hire strategically and build a culture where people thrive. In fact, Atomic’s recognition as Best Place to Work at the MFA Awards and its ability to retain top talent through change, including the recent leadership transition, can be traced to the strength of the systems and people-first initiatives Munro has implemented.
Now Atomic 212° is part of the Publicis Groupe, Munro’s influence is even more pronounced. As the agency scales within a global holding group while retaining its independence and identity, the absence of internal upheaval reflects her steady hand.
6. Haanim Montgomery, ANZ HR Lead, Accenture Song
In her role as ANZ HR Lead at Accenture Song, Haanim Montgomery oversees a complex and ever-evolving workforce of 800 across Droga5, Maud, and a rapidly expanding media division. With nearly two decades of HR experience spanning advertising, technology, broadcast media and design, Montgomery has developed a reputation for crafting cultures where innovation and inclusion thrive. Her generalist expertise, coupled with a deep specialisation in employee relations, has helped position Accenture Song as an award-winning employer, and a place where top talent wants to stay.
Montgomery’s leadership has been crucial during one of the most transformative periods in the agency’s history, most notably the arrivals of Melissa Fein, Sam Geer and Chris Colter, to launch a new media arm, her ability to seamlessly integrate people, culture and strategy has been put on full display.
5. Nicolle Stuart, Head Of People & Culture, Mamamia
Nicolle Stuart has played a pivotal role in shaping Mamamia’s culture during a period of significant transformation and growth. With a background that bridges media operations and strategic HR, Stuart has been instrumental in aligning the People and Culture function with the business’s broader commercial and editorial objectives.
Under Stuart’s leadership, Mamamia has cultivated a high-performing, purpose-led team and has also become a standout example of gender equity in action. In the March 2025 WGEA reporting, Mamamia recorded a 17 per cent median base salary in favour of women, one of the few organisations in Australia where the gender pay gap skews this way.
As the organisation transitions under the leadership of CEO Natalie Harvey, Mamamia continues to set the benchmark for equity-driven workplaces. By embedding inclusion into the DNA of Mamamia’s structure and strategy, she has helped build a culture where women can lead and thrive.
4. Jennie Rogerson, Global Head Of People, Canva
Jennie Rogerson leads Canva’s global People team with a deep sense of purpose: to create an environment where the more than 2,800 “Canvanauts” across nine countries can do the best work of their lives. Under her leadership, the People team has expanded beyond talent acquisition and employee experience to the Canva University.
Rogerson’s journey at Canva began in 2019, working directly with co-founders Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht as their first leadership operations hire. That experience shaped her as a connective force within the organisation, helping to launch landmark initiatives like Canva’s Future of Work strategy and the co-founders’ unprecedented decision to pledge 30 per cent of their equity to the Canva Foundation.
Now, as global head of people, she steers a sprawling team charged with maintaining and scaling Canva’s celebrated culture during a period of extraordinary global expansion.
As the design juggernaut continues its global expansion, including its recent acquisition of AI-powered creative intelligence platform MagicBrief, keeping that culture intact is no small feat.
As the company moves into new creative and technological territory, Rogerson’s role has never been more critical. She’s the one tasked with holding the centre, making sure that, even as Canva scales and shifts, its global teams stay anchored in purpose, cohesion and that signature sense of creative ambition.
3. Pauly Grant, Chief Talent Officer APAC & ANZ, Publicis Groupe
Pauly Grant has spent two decades at the intersection of marketing, creative industries and human resources, crafting people-first strategies that power some of the region’s most dynamic agency brands.
As chief talent officer for Publicis Groupe across APAC and ANZ, Grant plays a dual role: a trusted advisor to senior leadership and a transformation architect who uses data and insight to reimagine the future of work. Her track record spans everything from designing safe, high-performance workplaces to implementing progressive L&D, change management and DE&I initiatives that embed culture into every layer of the business.
Grant’s impact is most clearly seen in the accolades Publicis Groupe continues to stack up under her leadership. From back-to-back AFR Boss Best Places to Work honours to winning Best HR Team (1000+ employees) at the 2023 Australian HR Awards, she’s driven a people and culture strategy only inspires teams.
Her appointment to the Publicis APAC executive team in 2024 solidified her influence, extending her remit across a workforce of thousands, while remaining a hands-on force in the Australian and New Zealand market.
As Publicis continues to expand its media footprint, most notably with the 2025 acquisition of Atomic 212°,Grant’s work is a foundational force behind the Group’s stability amid rapid growth.
2. Romana Sukurma, Senior Business & Culture Business Partner, Enero
Romana Sukurma brings a thoughtful, human-centric approach to her role as Senior People and Culture Business Partner at Enero, where she partners with leaders to embed meaningful cultural and people strategies across the organisation.
With a background that spans agency and internal recruitment, Sukurma combines strategic acumen with a deep empathy for the employee experience, especially when it comes to nurturing junior talent and championing diversity. Her ability to build genuine relationships and drive progressive HR practices has helped shape a workplace culture where people feel seen, supported and motivated to grow.
Her contributions are particularly evident at BMF, where Enero’s investment in people and culture has received industry-wide recognition. In 2024, BMF was awarded B&T’s People and Culture Award for agencies with more than 100 employees.
From the gamified BRAVO recognition platform to menopause leave and D&AD ‘shiftinternship’ partnerships, Sukurma has been part of a team turning values into daily practice. BMF’s average staff tenure, four years across the board and eight years among senior leaders, is a testament to the agency’s approach.
Sukurma plays a key role in sustaining that stability, driving initiatives that balance innovation with long-term development. Whether it’s performance management, workforce planning or inclusive onboarding processes, her focus is on building workplaces where people feel empowered, valued and motivated to stay. In an industry where talent churn is the norm, that kind of culture-building stands out.
1. Scott Laird, Chief People Officer, WPP Media
Scott Laird has been a quiet force behind GroupM’s cultural and structural transformation, now reimagined as WPP Media. As chief people officer, Laird has helped shape a people-first strategy that’s deeply embedded in the network’s resurgence, working closely with CEO Aimee Buchanan to build and empower the leadership talent that has turned the business into a market leader.
With oversight of 1,200 employees across Mindshare, Wavemaker and EssenceMediacom in Australia and New Zealand, Laird has not only kept pace with change, he’s helped engineer it. While there have been a number of disappointing headlines from the US and UK about WPP Media having a troubled birth, it’s far from the case in Australia.
From launching Illuminate, a holistic training and development program, to reimagining the agency group’s Future of Work strategy through Thrive, Laird has led initiatives that focus on long-term growth, wellbeing and future-readiness. His focus on employee-driven innovation saw the creation of Incub8or, an internal ideas accelerator that birthed new networking programs to support culturally diverse staff. Through programs like Better Balance, Boundaries, Behaviours, developed with GroupM’s Young Leaders committee, Laird has created space for people to succeed both professionally and personally.
His influence extends beyond WPP Media’s walls. As chair of the MFA People Steering Committee, Laird has played a critical role in shaping the industry’s Psychosocial Safety Framework, an initiative that will influence standards across Australia.
With WPP Media now repositioned as an AI-driven powerhouse underpinned by a $627 million investment in data, AI and technology, Laird’s remit is only growing more complex. But if his track record is anything to go by, the people strategy will lead from the front.
And that’s why he’s B&T’s Best of the Best People and Culture Leader.
