Finding a good mentor at work can make or break a career. And in this outing of B&T’s Best of the Best, we’re taking a look at some who have shaped and moulded the careers of others.
In many respects, creating a list of these people is rather gauche. All are number one in our eyes. And while our format allows for only ten people (admittedly we do sneak in a handful of joint entries where responsibility is split, most commonly between offices), we’d like to shout out some people who could just as easily have been part of the top 10.
Virginia Hyland, recently co-founder at SQUAD M&A, for instance, narrowly missed out. As did Equality Media + Marketing’s Amy Weatherlake and The Media Store’s Jacquie Alley. So too Emily Cook from dentsu QLD, Index Exchange’s Adele Wieser, incoming Ogilvy boss Kirsty Muddle, former Boody marketing chief Ruth Haffenden, Lexlab’s Maija Gwynn, Wink’s Kristie Atkins and Man of Many’s editor-in-chief Nick Hall.
Even B&T’s own Greg ‘Sparrow’ Graham through his moonlighting with The Nest Consultancy has proven an invaluable advice-giver and supporter to many—including the walls of B&T itself.
I’d also caution that this list does not include any individual whose main business revolves around the mentorship and development of other people—such as The Marketing Academy’s Sherilyn Shackell, Compadres’ Clive Burcham or last year’s #1 Sarah Scott Paul, who last year founded SSP which offers human-centric leadership programs and executive coaching among other functions.
As a reminder, B&T’s Best of the Best will run all the way up until 17 December, when we’ll be hitting you with a bumper double edition. A Christmas present or poor scheduling? You decide.
Coming up next we’ll take a look at Independent Agency Creatives, Holding Company Creatives and—for the first time—In-House Agency Leaders the week after. You can nominate for those—and you really should—and all other forthcoming lists via the form below.
10. Liana Dubois, MD, Entertainment Partners
Liana Dubois is one of the most recognisable faces in the media industry following her 12-year stay at Nine with just under three years as its chief marketing officer.
Dubois was recommended to B&T multiple times via our nominations form in previous weeks, with respondents lauding her unwavering support and honesty.
“She never shied away from delivering constructive criticism – but always in a way that was thoughtful, purposeful, and ultimately empowering. What made Liana truly stand out as a mentor was her ability to see potential even before you saw it in yourself. She challenged me to think bigger, act braver, and lead smarter,” said one respondent.
Now at Entertainment Partners, Dubois also sits on the boards of the Cerebral Palsy Alliance, Inclusively Made and Women In Media Australia. Few have had such an impact on so many.
9. Bel Harper, chief product and marketing officer, oOh!media
Bel Harper is another new name to the list and was heartily recommended via our form. She the ELT sponsor of oOh!media’s Gender Equality pillar and has championed partnerships with The Village to support working parents.
She was praised for her “courage and conviction” as well as encouraging a “deep curiosity” in staff. Cathy O’Connor, last year’s #3 on the Mentors list will be departing oOh! later this year. But it seems the outdoor business is in good hands with a respondent saying “Among some of the female leaders within the business, we often ask ourselves, ‘What would Bel Harper do?’ when navigating challenges.”
That sort of impact and leadership is hard to overstate.
8. Nat Taylor, founder and executive producer, Poppet
Nat Taylor is a powerhouse in the world of production. As the brains and driving force behind Poppet, she’s created a business that produces with purpose and empowers others from across the industry. She was also the Woman of the Year at B&T’s Women in Media Awards earlier this year, picking up the Creative Producer trophy as well as being a finalist in the Mentor category.
As well as building a thriving production business, Taylor works as a mentor for The Trenches, The Aunties and also runs weekly open mentoring sessions via Poppet. In these roles, Taylor has supported the careers of countless women, many of whom have gone on to become award-winners and even Oscar nominees. She also sits on the board of Snehalaya, a charity rehoming vulnerable women who were trafficked as girls.
How she finds the time is simply beyond us.
7. Mark Coad, CEO, IPG Mediabrands
As the nearly six-year CEO of IPG Mediabrands Mark Coad already has significant sway on the industry. But the people Coad has mentored mean that his impact has been felt far beyond the four walls of the Mediabrands office.
Those mentees have gone onto take leading roles in the industry, too, such as Mark Jarrett, who is in the frame to become the chief operating officer of Omnicom Media Group, being promoted from CEO of PHD.
“He is always so positive, his glass is definitely always half full no matter the situation, and he is incredibly knowledgeable,” Jarrett told B&T.
“I vent sometimes about frustrations and he never pushes back. He’s always empathetic in the way that he talks you through that. He tries to feel what we’re all going through and be on the journey with us,” Mel Fein, managing director of Accenture Song Media added.
6. Margie Reid, CEO, Thinkerbell
Margie Reid brings order to Thinkerbell but there’s so much more to her work in the industry than trying to keep Adam Ferrier on the straight-and-narrow.
She sits on the boards of Support the Girls and Inclusively Made and speaks openly about leadership and resilience, actively championing a more inclusive industry, she’s also part of the Youngbloods VIC Speed Mentoring program and is a mentor for The Marketing Academy, of which Thinkerbell is also a premier partner.
5. Jo McAlister, CEO, Initiative
Jo McAlister has been CEO of Initiative for a little over a year and her people-focused and people-first empathetic leadership have brought the media agency back on track following a rocky 2024.
McAlister was highly commended in the Executive Leader category at this year’s B&T Women in Media Awards where she was hailed for her personal touch with staff and clients. Few are so well-regarded in the industry and fewer still form such deep connections with others.
4. Chris Savage, The Savage Company
By day, Chris Savage runs his own consultancy specialising in business growth, reputation management, marketing, and brand communications.
But it’s his work away from that where he often has the greatest impact nowadays. Many count him as a close personal friend and confidant, able to form connections, vouch for others and open doors. His time for others, on matters both small and large, is seemingly limitless.
With such vast experience in the industry, it’s little wonder he was simply described as “the GOAT” by one of the nominators using our form.
3. Dr Sameera Durrani, assistant professor, UTS
It isn’t every day that a serious academic graces the pages of B&T. But it isn’t every day that you get an academic like Dr Sameera Durrani at the University of Technology Sydney.
Durrani won the Mentor category at this year’s Women in Media Awards on the back of her exceptional work at the university. She has taught hundreds of undergraduate and postgraduate students at UTS for six years, with at least 80 per cent of her students being women.
Her student approval ratings are close to 100 per cent and the young professionals she has taught and still actively mentors now work with organisations including Archetype, The Monkeys, HerdMSL, Deloitte, Amazon, Optus and Qantas.
She creates environments where trust and empowerment enable staff to flourish, with mentoring, peer mentoring and reverse mentoring built into team culture.
One postgraduate student said of Durrani: “As a mentor, Sameera shapes more than skills—she shapes futures”.
2. Esther Clerehan, founder and CEO, CLEREHAN
Esther Clerehan is one of the most distinguished figure in Australia’s creative industries. Having worked in the industry for more than 35 years, Clerehan has been a pivotal force in shaping the careers of countless creative professionals and the success of numerous agencies. Her dedication to mentorship and coaching has earned her a reputation as a trusted advisor, sought after for her expertise and discretion.
She has lectured at AWARD School more frequently than anyone else and served on its Council for eight years. Her efforts at supporting creative talent are peerless. She’s the OG Auntie for good reason and remains a tutor at Copy School Sydney. Her relentless advocacy for women in the sector is well-known, too. Many have much to thank Clerehan for.
She won the Lifetime Achievement trophy at B&T’s Women in Media Awards in 2024. But there’s still so much more she offers to the industry and we are all better for it.
1. Peter Vogel, CEO, Wavemaker
Mentoring often takes place over a coffee, sometimes a beer, over dinner, or through informal chats. Wavemaker’s Peter Vogel, meanwhile is both a behind-the-scenes mentor and the single most public supporter of all his staff.
The work is never about him. His staff talk first at pitches and presentations. When Wavemaker wins, he rarely claims the limelight. He previously told B&T that he hoped his leadership style would be seen as “supportive, involved, committed, authentic”. We can scarcely think of better words to describe his leadership.
Many would do well to learn from his approach to celebrating staff.
