ARN has announced a strategic leadership restructure, including several key appointments, as part of a broader organisational transformation designed to drive growth, streamline operations, and position the business for long-term success in the evolving audio entertainment landscape.
Alexis Poole has been appointed chief financial officer, effective March 1, 2025. Alexis brings over 20 years of financial leadership experience across various industries and businesses, including Group CFO & CIO at Real Petfood Company, Finance Director for Reckitt ANZ Hygiene, and key positions at Inghams Enterprises and Mars Inc., spanning Australia, Asia, and Europe. Under Alexis’s leadership, ARN’s Legal team will transition into the Finance department, consolidating key governance functions to enhance efficiency and decision-making.
“We welcome Alexis Poole to the ARN team, with the CFO role being of key importance at this time of business transformation to ensure ongoing profitable growth for ARN. Her proven track record will be instrumental as we continue to execute our strategic vision and deliver sustainable growth for shareholders. Alexis will play a key role on the ARN leadership team to spearhead business transformation efforts, including process improvements, digital initiatives, and strategic growth projects,” said ARN’s CEO and managing director, Ciaran Davis.
This announcement follows the recent appointment of Michael Stephenson as chief operating officer, who will commence on March 20. Michael’s role will bring together the existing Commercial team with the digital product, and commercial operations teams to create a unified function accountable for developing and leading the delivery of ARN’s All Audio customer strategy for metro and national clients.
As part of the transformation, Lauren Joyce, currently chief strategy & connections officer, will assume the newly created role of chief audience & content officer. This role brings together the existing Content team with the Podcast, Marketing, Creative Production, and PR/Communications teams to strengthen ARN’s All Audio audience offering and enable a holistic approach to attracting, retaining, and growing highly commercialisable audiences.
Duncan Campbell, chief content officer, will transition to a consulting and advisory role. Over his 15-year tenure, Duncan has transformed ARN’s Content function, delivering record ratings results. As Lauren assumes leadership of the content function, Duncan will continue to play a key role at ARN, providing a seamless transition and maintaining continuity of expertise.
“I am pleased to promote Lauren to the critical role of Chief Audience & Content Officer. Her extensive experience as a strategist and content planner across media, creative agencies, and digital publishing will deliver the momentum we need to be Australia’s most valuable audio entertainment company. Lauren’s innate understanding of audiences and her ability to establish a strategy and execute it with precision gives me confidence in our ability to drive future audience growth,” said Davis.
“We are fortunate to have Duncan’s continued support as we build succession in this critical area. Over the past two years, Duncan has worked closely with Lauren on our audience growth strategy, focusing on adapting our brands and content to evolving audience expectations. With Lauren’s strategic vision and Duncan’s invaluable expertise, I’m confident we’ll continue to attract and retain engaged audiences while delivering world-class advertising solutions.”
ARN’s Executive Leadership Team also includes Angela Ewers, chief people officer, who will expand her responsibilities to include oversight of the Technology and Project Delivery teams alongside the People & Culture team. Michael Harvey continues to serve as chief regional officer.
As part of the restructure, the chief commercial officer role, held by Pete Whitehead, will no longer exist in its current form. Pete, who has played a key role in ARN’s commercial success over the past eight years, will remain in the business until Michael Stephenson assumes the COO role. Additionally, Fayad Tohme, Chief Digital & Technology Officer, will transition out of his role at the end of January, having significantly shaped ARN’s digital capabilities. The company extends its gratitude for both Pete and Fayad’s immense contributions.
“This transformation is the result of careful planning to position ARN for long-term success in the evolving audio industry. By streamlining processes, leveraging technology, and simplifying our structure, we’re ensuring ARN is agile and well-positioned to capitalise on emerging trends so that we can maintain our leadership in the audio entertainment industry,” said Davis.
ARN’s new operating model takes effect on February 1, 2025.
