The media industry often comes in family flavours.
Christian Zavecz is chief strategy officer at QMS. His father, Peter Zavecz, is managing director Tasmania/Victoria at News Corp Australia.
Christian Zavecz says his father's work influenced his own professional journey. He also recalls his father coming home from conferences in exotic places.
The chief strategy officer said: “It was a pretty straightforward decision, being a kid growing up in country Victoria and seeing your father often return home after attending AFL Grand Finals, TV Week Logie Awards and conferences in Cancun (Mexico).
"This, along with the great connections and relationships that Dad had built, made it a lot more appealing than any of the alternate pathways.”
He also credits his father for teaching him how to form deep connections with clients allowing him to evolve with them.
“Dad was always big on working hard and making the effort to really understand your client’s business, so that you could then tailor the right solution to their needs," he said.
“Having that deeper connection then allows you to evolve with them and work towards mutual success. He would also say that knowing your way around a wine list comes in handy as well.”
Peter Zavecz recalls feeling a little envious of his son as he entered the realms of media, due to the opportunities compared to his early days in the industry.
“I wouldn't say I have an altered perspective of the young guns, more that I was envious of the opportunities that they had compared to my early days in traditional media," he said.
“When Christian started at George Patts, digital media was in its start-up phase. He was part of the Peter Gallucci/Anne Parsons 'Collins Street kindergarten' which included the likes of Mark Pejic, Simon Ryan, Travis Day, Stephen Leeds to name but a few.
“It was Gallucci and Annie's commitment to invest in youth and training that set them up for success. Many of that cohort have gone on to run major media agencies and/or start new businesses.”
The managing director of News Corp says the timen when he entered the workforce varied in more ways than one.
“They were very different times," he said. "I started in newspapers in the mid-1970s. In those days media companies were very hierarchical and valued staff longevity and loyalty. It was the '25-year gold watch' era and consequently opportunities for new starters to advance were limited.
“The mid to late 1990s were an exciting time to be in Australian media. We had gone through the 'recession we had to have'. Media agencies had devolved from the full-service structure, advertising revenue was growing exponentially, and new (digital) media was proliferating.
“There were many more opportunities for enterprising young professionals.”
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