Take It To HR… B&T’s Best Of The Best People Leaders, Presented By Finecast, Part Of GroupM Nexus

Peter Drucker once said “Culture eats strategy for breakfast,” and it is easy to see why.

Strategy may be important, but unless you have a team of highly engaged, happy, and competent people working for you, it just won’t happen.

Having the best talent makes the best agencies, and with a tight labour force, attracting and retaining the top players has never been more important.

With four generations now in the workforce together it has also never been more important for everyone to feel included.

This is why B&T is celebrating the top HR leaders. Without further talk from me, here is the top 10!

10. Trudi Sampola, Director of People and Culture, Nature 

There are few places you’d rather work than Nature. With a heavy focus on learning and development, Nature is somewhere that attracts people with a growth mindset. 

At Nature, regular rituals such as team shoutouts mean that no good deed goes unnoticed. It is also B-Corp certified for Australi and NZ – so there’s the feel-good factor too. 

As director of people and culture, Trudi Sampola is the person who makes the magic happen. 

She has spent nearly two decades helping to build amazing teams and has previously held roles at HERO Agency, carsales.com.au, and Ikon Communications. 

She is an expert in strategy AND culture, making everyone feel like an individual rather than just an employee.

9.Lucinda Kitney, Talent and Culture Lead, Match & Wood

Match & Wood is an agency famed for its work culture and Lucinda Kitney is the person behind the strong reputation. 

She has been at Match & Wood for more than five years, starting as a communications manager in 2018. 

It was during this time the agency started to gain significant attention: even being named a runner-up for  Campaign Brief WA Media Agency of the Year in 2019.

A well-respected industry lead, Kitney climbed through the ranks at Match & Wood, becoming culture and talent lead in November 2022. 

Someone also keen to upskill, Kitney is a mental health first aider and takes the mental well-being of everyone at Match & Wood very seriously.

8. Kristy Camarillo, Head of People and Culture, The Royals 

A regular finalist in B&T’s women in media awards, Camarillo has worked with some of the biggest agencies and brands in Australia. 

Before becoming culture champion at The Royals she worked at the likes of M&C Saatchi and DDB New Zealand and has more than 15 years’ experience in people management roles. 

A natural leader, Camarillo is easily able to engage people and has strong relationship-building skills. 

Passionate about both people and results, Camarillo is able to build cultures where everyone thrives! What’s not to love?  

7. Sarah Scott Paul, head of people & culture – Australia, Enero Group

 Here at B&T, we can’t help unashamedly giving rewards to Sarah Scott Paul. Scott Paul was named number one in our mentor category – and was also recognised at the women in media awards. 

As much as we didn’t want to give Scott Paul another award (we hear she has run out of shelf space), frankly, it is impossible to name the top ten people leaders without naming her. 

She’s undoubtedly made  Enero one of the best places to work and is a fierce advocate of learning and development. 

Staff at Enero are able to take as many as 50 courses and, with 180 leaders having taken her courses to date, there is no doubt that she is shaping the industry. 

6. Jessica Howse, National Head of People, OMD Australia

Jessica Howse is a highly respected HR leader with experience across a wide range of industries. 

As national head of people at OMD Australia, famed for its family-friendly work policies, Howse has a huge amount of impact on the industry as a whole. 

Prior to joining OMD, Howse was a human resources business partner at Nine. Before that, she was chief of people at a hedge fund in the UK. 

Many in the industry speak highly of Howse, praising her for her communication and professionalism which one fan described as “second to none”. 

The industry is certainly better for having Howse in it!

5.Ferrah Dagli, Chief People Officer, Dentsu

A leader in change, Ferrah Dagli has more than 15 years’ of experience managing transformation and change projects. 

At Dentsu, she is responsible for leading the development and implementation of ANZ’s integrated people agenda. 

Here she is focused on preparing Dentsu for the business needs of tomorrow which includes building a culture where everyone can thrive and differences are celebrated. 

Dagli’s career has spanned the entire spectrum of HR. Not content with just being successful in Australia, she also boasts international experience and has worked at businesses in London including HSBC and Willis Towers Watson.

4. Alexia Bryant, Chief Talent Officer, IPG Mediabrands

Alexia Bryant is someone quite simply who is great to have on your team.

Since joining IPG Mediabrands in 2019, her boundless enthusiasm and exceptional people skills have helped her win promotion after promotion. She became chief talent officer back in 2021 and has made her impact felt ever since. 

It isn’t always easy managing the industry’s top talent, but Bryant is someone who does so with ease. She is able to easily build rapport and a strong working relationship with the huge variety of leaders across IPG Mediabrands.

Before joining IPG Mediabrands, Bryant had roles XE.com, HiFX New Zealand, and People Logic in London.

3. Hannah Jones, Group General Manager, Sparro 

Sparro is an indie that is continuously praised for its work culture, and Hannah Jones is one of the key individuals responsible for building and maintaining it. 

A few months ago Sparro was named one of the best work places in the industry, and it has been specifically recognised as a great place to work for women. 

Anyone who has been lucky enough to meet Hannah Jones has only good things to say about her, she is someone who brings energy to everything she does and is an asset to any team. 

There is no doubt that she is going places.

Now group general manager at Sparro, she has previously held roles at APD and Webjet.com.au.

2. Pauly Grant, Chief Talent Officer, ANZ & APAC, Publicis Groupe

Good leaders get the job done and great leaders change the game. Pauly Grant is a great leader. 

She has been recognised  for multiple changemaker wards, for example, she was named the HR Management Champion in Campaign Asia’s 2022 Women Leading Change Awards.

Under her leadership, Publicis Groupe has regularly been noted as a great place to work and was listed on the  2022 & 2023 AFR Boss Best Places to Work list. 

With nearly 20 years of experience in media, she is immensely passionate about the industry and the people in it. 

The employees of Publicis Groupe are lucky to have her!

1. Scott Laird, Chief People Officer, GroupM

Scott Laird is an award-winning HR leader, who has a proven track record of being head of the curve when it comes to all things people. 

He is someone who, excuse my French, gives a f*ck. Internally at GroupM, he has been heavily involved with the Black Dog Institute, looking at how Search can be used to prevent suicide.

He was also named Chair of the MFA People Steering Committee – where he’s leading industry efforts around DEI, People, and culture.

During his four years at Initiative, Laird helped the agency win a number of people and culture accolades. He led the agency’s Pride in Diversity relationship and oversaw Initiative achieving Mental Health Skilled Workplace Gold in 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Talka bout heart-centred leadership!