Nine’s upfront event yesterday was very hotly anticipated, and not least because many were wondering whether the network would address its recently released cultural review in a room full of media buyers.
The recent review of Nine Entertainment’s culture and workplace practices revealed systemic issues of abuse of power, bullying, discrimination, and harassment.
The Broadcast Division was particularly affected, with 62 per cent of surveyed employees reporting power abuses and 57 per cent experiencing bullying or discrimination. The findings highlighted a lack of accountability and leadership failures, with toxic dynamics driven by personal biases. While incidents of sexual harassment were lower than industry averages, 30 per cent of staff still reported issues, often linked to alcohol-fuelled events.
Addressing the elephant in the room
Nine’s acting CEO, Matt Stanton, who took over from Mike Sneesby last month, took to the stage to deliver the opening address at the Carriageworks in Everleigh yesterday. In his introduction, Stanton called 2024 a “significant year of change and disruption” for the organisation.
“We’ve had to face some hard truths and confront systemic cultural issues, which has been incredibly challenging for our people.
“At all levels of the business, we are deeply committed to embedding meaningful and lasting change at Nine, and believe that this difficult yet necessary process will allow more of our people to perform at their best and pave the way for positive industry-leading change.”
Addressing the room, Stanton continued: “As our trusted partners, I’d like to really thank you all for your ongoing support, of which there has been a lot, which I know our people really, really appreciate.”
Changing tone, Stanton moved on.
“So looking ahead, we’re focused on setting new benchmarks in content, data and technology and continue to lead the Australian market.”
The address, which lasted a total of 44 seconds, was direct and to the point, but senior industry executives told B&T that it simply wasn’t enough.
“It was an opportunity for them to address that today,” one exec told B&T. “I would have flipped the address and opened with the cultural review before going into the announcements”.
“I have been talking to other senior executives who are sharing their stories, and then coming here today and having it sort of ignored makes me genuinely angry,” they said.
“I think it’s underestimated how much what is happening in the investigation has genuinely impacted a lot of individuals, but senior females in the industry, not even who are currently working at Nine, but have been part of that culture over the last decade”.
The executive also called for more of an acknowledgement of the risk to brand safety following the review. “They might deliver all the commercial outcomes, but they haven’t got through the other side of this investigation, and I’d say that is a risk for brands right now”.
Another senior executive told B&T that the lack of a “sorry” not to brands but to the people who had endured the issues highlighted in the review was disappointing.
They acknowledged that while the issues were challenging to address, they said they would have preferred Nine to go “all in” to prevent rumours and speculation from growing. They also called for more transparency around the consequences of the findings and just what is being done to improve the culture within the media giant.
Omnicom Media Group chief investment officer Kristiaan Kroon told B&T Nine has acknowledged there have been systemic cultural issues, although he felt they could have spent a bit more time clarifying the situation. He said the industry will now give Nine some time to work out how they intend to fix it, and it will be critical that Nine updates the industry when they have worked out a plan.
It wasn’t all bad, however; many reported to B&T that the nod to what had been going on behind the scenes was incredibly brave and appropriate in the context of the event.
Many said that not acknowledging the cultural problems would have been the worst mistake but, at the same time, diving too heavily into the details when so many things are unresolved would have been wrong.
One senior exec told B&T that it was an incredibly difficult task to come on stage when every person in the room was sitting on the edge of their seats just waiting to hear how the issue would be addressed.
They also acknowledged that it was an incredibly difficult time to make this kind of presentation and that they couldn’t imagine what else could have been done to address the issues.
So, just how is Nine dealing with these issues?
B&T understands that a number of the recommendations have already been addressed, but many will require a much more extensive three to five-year plan.
A source close to the network said that while the media giant is dedicated to improving its culture it may take time.
Nine employs more than 5,000 staff and the source said that many of the problems go back years, requiring more than just a switch to evoke change. The onus, the source said, is not just on senior management but on every member of staff to be committed to creating a more positive culture within the workplace.
In an email seen by B&T, Stanton informed staff just a few days after the release of the report that they would be receiving weekly updates on the action plan to reset the workplace culture at the network.
Stanton said that abuse of power, bullying and sexual harassment have no place at Nine and that there will be major changes with far greater accountability for accusations of this nature.
Stanton also confirmed that perpetrators will be held accountable for a number of active investigations currently underway, being led by an external investigator. These issues, he said, will take time as they will need to be addressed in a manner that follows just process. In the meantime, he called for kindness and the respect of confidentiality.
In the first of the regular updates on Wednesday, also seen by B&T, Stanton confirmed that a cultural response team had been established and that the development of a program to deliver an action plan has commenced. He also confirmed that a communications plan had been developed and a review of the complaints processes had commenced.
Nine declined to comment when reached by B&T.
When the findings of the review were released last week, Nine chair Catherine West said that it was an “incredibly difficult” time for Nine as they confront the findings in the report. “The behaviour outlined in the report is unacceptable. Abuse of power, bullying, sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct is not okay. This behaviour has no place at Nine,” she said.
“We acknowledge that too many of our past and present employees have been harmed by poor workplace culture, the prevalence of inappropriate workplace behaviours, and an inadequate response in the past from Nine to those behaviours,” West said.
“To any individual who has experienced inappropriate conduct that does not meet the values of Nine, we are deeply sorry. On behalf of the Board, I unreservedly apologise”.
