Renee Murray, independent media agency Half Dome’s new head of people and culture, doesn't come from an agency background.
But she told AdNews the change “wasn't scary and, if anything, has given me the confidence to implement the things that I know are foundationally right".
Tom Frazer, managing director at Half Dome, told AdNews the agency wasn't specifically targeting outside of the industry for a new head.
“But we saw Renee’s experience outside of agency land as a massive strength and her background from an operational perspective would really benefit our organisation,” Frazer said.
Murray’s focus has been on reviewing and enhancing Half Dome’s current people and culture offering to ensure sustainability and continual improvement for the agency.
“You can't put the cart before the horse,” Murray said, “you can have brilliant initiatives and ideas, but they need to be sustainable to take a business to the next level.”
Murray started with unlimited leave, now a permanent offering with enhanced operational effort, to ensure the initiative’s long-term success.
“We will have lots of conversations with staff about using the unlimited leave within reason. Making it clear they can’t disappear for three months, as we all need to consider the business,” Murray said.
Murray has also redone the agency’s pulse survey, making them more regular and coupled with focus groups.
“One of the things I've learned over my career is that you cannot underestimate active listening because your team will tell you what's working or not if you're prepared to hear the answers,” Murray said.
Learning and development is another massive focus for Murray internally, specifically looking at career paths and succession planning.
“One of the most important things to me is continual learning - regardless of what role you're in or what level of the organisation you are part of,” Murray said.
Since the first time Tom Frazer spoke to Murray he instantly knew she was the right person.
“Renee has been with us for a relatively short time but all of those things that we saw in our initial meetings have already translated seamlessly into our organisation,” Frazer said.
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