B&T’s 30 Under 30 Awards, presented by Vevo, are gearing up for another big year in 2027, and we’ve caught up with the people who made the 2026 class one to watch.
From career-defining wins to big plans for the future, we’re finding out what makes these rising stars tick and what they think the industry needs more of.
In the first instalment of this series, we spoke to Grand Prix and Media Sales/Account Management winner Nikyah Hutchings. This week, we’re back with another 2026 Media Sales/Account Management winner, with Snapchat’s Will Mitchell.
Think you’ve got what it takes? Enter the 2027 30 Under 30 Awards.
Mitchell is a standout operator whose impact is hard to ignore.
As an agency partner at Snapchat, he leads senior relationships with agency holding groups across ANZ, bringing a disciplined, strategic approach that has delivered more than eight per cent growth across the holdcos.
In his first year in the role, Mitchell and his team increased revenue and grew the number of agency advertisers activating on Snapchat by 54 per cent.
What truly distinguishes Mitchell, however, is his willingness to step up without waiting for permission.
Keen to take the next step in his own leadership journey, Mitchell actively sought greater responsibility and embraced the opportunity to lead the initiative.
The results speak for themselves. Under his leadership, participating agency clients recorded 31 per cent year-on-year revenue growth, while the program received an average cohort rating of 4.7 out of five.
Want to see all the 2026 winners? Click here to see the entries that secured their wins!
Now a winner of B&T’s 30 Under 30 Awards, Mitchell has reflected on his career and what’s to come next.
B&T: After winning a 30 Under 30 Award, where do you see yourself in 3, 13 and 30 years’ time?
Will Mitchell: The non-negotiables never change: still growing, still surrounded by brilliant people, and still genuinely loving what I do. When the work doesn’t feel like work, you know you’re in the right place.
In three years, I’ll have turned 30 – so hopefully will have another 30 Under 30 under my belt? But seriously, I see myself still at Snap Inc., stepping into a bigger leadership role across ANZ and driving real growth for the agency team. What excites me is how much has already changed since I joined – the confidence, the skillset, the relationships, the career trajectory. Snap genuinely invests in its people, and I’m laser-focused on watching that compound over the next three years.
At 13 years in, I’d expect to be leading a broader commercial function – or setting my sights on a regional role across APAC. The agency relationships I’ve built have been the backbone of everything, so I’ll never be too far removed from those, but with more energy on scaling teams and building the kind of culture that makes talented people want to stay.
And in 30 years? If I’m not retired and playing 9 holes somewhere, I’ll be giving back properly – mentoring the next generation, sitting on industry boards, joining advisory panels. The early bets people took on me opened doors I’m grateful for every day. I want to make sure that pipeline stays wide open for the people coming through.
B&T: Why did you choose to enter the Awards?
WM: B&T 30 Under 30 is a jewel in the crown of industry leadership recognition. For someone still relatively young but with genuine runs on the board, it felt like the right time to put my hand up.
And for transparency, I entered last year, made the finalists, and did not bring home the gong. Gutting! But I used it as fuel – another year of results, bigger relationships, and better work.
These awards are also a rare chance to slow down and take stock of what you’ve actually built. Entering was a way to put that work on record and, more importantly, shout out the brilliant people who’ve been in my corner along the way.
B&T: What would you do differently if you were to enter the Awards again?
WM: Land on one tight story earlier. I went through way too many drafts trying to fit everything in, before gradually cutting back.
Next time I’ll nail the single narrative upfront, get a trusted mate to sanity-check it before I’ve invested too much ego in it, and spend more time on delivery than rewriting the script. Less quantity, more conviction.
B&T: What’s one issue the industry should be spending more time on?
WM: Protecting the entry-level experience and improving retention – because we are quietly hollowing out the foundations.
Offshoring, AI and automation are creating real efficiencies, but they’re also removing the junior roles that used to teach people the fundamentals: how to think commercially, solve problems, and build client instincts. I started as an intern at Kaimera – then a 12-person agency – and learned by being thrown into the deep end. That pathway is disappearing, and without the right support, we’ll lose good people before they’ve had the chance to find their feet.
We need a clearer early-career model and more structured mentorship – programs like NGEN and the IAB Mentorship Program are great, but access needs to be universal, not a lucky draw. Every junior should have a mentor.
There’s a bigger values point here too. The leaders people remember aren’t the ones chasing the most impressions – they’re the ones who bring people with them and create real opportunity. That’s the version of this industry worth building. And honestly, it’s the culture I’ve experienced at Snap – where your Inner Circle, the people closest to you, are the ones who actually shape how you grow. If we don’t protect that first step into the industry, we risk ending up with a less experienced, less diverse, and far less interesting industry in the years ahead.
Big career moves deserve big recognition. Enter the 2027 30 Under 30 Awards NOW.
