With a career spanning CPG, FMCG, financial services, and professional services, Liam Loan-Lack, chief commercial and strategy officer at Match & Wood, has built a reputation for driving best-practice growth strategies in both B2B and B2C without compromising long-term brand equity. A firm believer in simplifying strategic thinking, fostering a culture where people feel valued, and elevating commercial acumen within the marketing and communications landscape, Loan-Lack is bringing his expertise to Cairns Hatchlings as an inaugural jury member.
For him, the competition represents more than just an awards program—it’s an opportunity to champion creativity, challenge industry norms, and nurture the next generation of marketing and media talent. He sees Cairns Hatchlings as a proof point that ANZ and APAC punch above their weight on the global stage and an essential wake-up call for senior leaders to invest more in the development of emerging talent.
With just over a week left to enter, now is the time to take action. If you’re ready to make your mark, don’t miss your chance to submit your entry and join an elite group of rising industry stars.
Entries close soon—don’t miss out!
Want to hear first-hand from an esteemed judge like Pacey? Cairns Hatchlings is also launching a series of workshops designed to help entrants refine their craft and elevate their submissions – with some expert advice along the way.
Kicking off on Friday, March 7, these workshops will be available online, providing participants with expert insights and practical strategies across seven categories. The Media workshop will be held in person on March 7 at the Yahoo! offices – Register now!
B&T: What motivated you to join the Cairns Hatchlings jury, and what excites you most about being involved in this initiative?
Loan-Lack: At the core, our industry commercialises the power of creativity and as such, I am thrilled to be involved as an inaugural jury member for Hatchlings because some of the most potent creative outputs originate from the younger age groups in our industry. It is our mandate as a collective to promote a culture where ideas can thrive and be rewarded if our industry is continuing to deliver value for clients and, furthermore, if we are to attract smart people from backgrounds like STEM and non-traditional disciplines.
B&T: Why do you believe programs like Cairns Hatchlings are so important for emerging talent across the Asia Pacific region?
Loan-Lack: I think it is a great proof point that meritocracy is alive and well in our Communications business and that, moreover, we have such a swell of talent that we can populate an APAC-centric event that competes with the established American, European and International awards for emerging talent. It has always been my assertion that ANZ and indeed, APAC, punches above its weight in so many ways when it comes to ‘quality work,’ and so I am pleased we now have a stage to promote our wears to the world.
B&T: From your perspective, what makes Cairns Hatchlings stand out from other industry awards and talent programs?
Loan-Lack: While there are many initiatives already in play to support emerging talent, what I think is unique about Hatchlings is two things; firstly – the immersion finalists will gain with the broader industry across several days, at what is now the region’s leading Marketing conference. Secondly, the 24-hour final round brief response is a true litmus test of talent potential. As we all know, our industry is not short on those who claim to be ‘talent’ and through this round, Hatchlings will clearly delineate who really does have the chops to be considered the future of our dynamic industry.
B&T: Beyond recognition, how do you think the networking and mentorship opportunities provided by the program can shape the careers of participants?
Loan-Lack: Being creative is sometimes a lonely pursuit in our business, and so being able to connect with like-minded peers and forge meaningful professional connections will stand participants in strong stead for their future careers – let’s face it, we all need mentors to bounce ideas off and have ‘off the record’ chats when the pressures of our industry peak.
What is more, I strongly feel it is our obligation as Snr leaders to expose emerging talent to the broadest range of specialisms in our industry, given it is only becoming more fragmented (there are now 20+ competencies you need to be proficient in to be considered a Snr Marketer!). Therefore, having the time-out for participants to immerse themselves in an array of publisher talks, client panels and agency showcases is valuable to make their future work as actionable as possible.
B&T: The program emphasises collaboration with charities to create real-world impact. How important do you think this aspect is in developing well-rounded industry professionals?
Loan-Lack: One of the most important lessons in my career was leading the Amazon media business in the UK for Initiative, where frugality was a core tenet – i.e. Act like you have no $ and think about how to scale with what you have (…entrepreneurship at its finest). Hence, I think it is key that the briefs are for the NFP sector, as one can apply this thinking directly.
We often become accustomed to large budgets and, as per the thinking of the Ehrenberg Bass Institute, we know big brands have a significant advantage via gaining customers through their markets share dominance alone…so the real and most tangible impact from a marketing/media/comms recommendation is for the client-base that is not the market-leader. That is where creativity is game-changing. This entrepreneurial thinking is directly replicable to commercial clients – especially given how many CMOs are expected to do more with less every year.
B&T: What qualities and attributes will you be looking for in the finalists?
Loan-Lack: The biggest thing for me is how you SELL the story. We need a braver standard of work across the board, and to do that, we need to impart a compelling narrative to clients. So, for me, selling the response with simplicity and panache will be marked very highly. However, don’t get me wrong, I am not about style over substance, but consider that in our industry now, you can justify just about anything with the reams of data available, and the ideas that get bought and ultimately executed are the best ‘sold.’
B&T: In your experience, how can initiatives like Cairns Hatchlings help bridge the gap between emerging talent and top industry leaders?
Loan-Lack: I hope it is a wake-up call for our industry that we need to carve out more time and meaningful mechanisms to support our emerging talent if they are to remain engaged and, ultimately, not depart the industry altogether.
Beyond WFH flexibility and ‘perks’ of a job, I believe young talent want top industry leaders to over-invest in them, such as: allocating dedicated $ into assisting them in entering competitions, backing them to present in pitches and other high-stakes parts of the businesses they operate in and protecting time for completion of not just essential training for their immediate roles, but training that will make them more well-rounded marketing professionals in the medium and long-term. To that end, I am pleased to say my current agency, Match & Wood, put their $ where their mouth is in this regard, however, I’d say they are the happy exception, rather than the norm.
B&T: What advice would you give to applicants hoping to make the most of this opportunity?
Loan-Lack: Three broad bits of advice from me:
Don’t be obsessed with the ‘right’ answer – there is no such thing. Back the thinking and keep it simple.
Don’t think being data-driven means you need to have a data point for everything – the best ideas involves risk and sometimes doing things never done before.
And perhaps, remember to enjoy it – we often forget we are in the showbiz part of business – clients enjoy working with creative people as it energises them!
Space is limited, so make sure to sign up to the in-person Media Workshop early to secure your spot!
