Our Industry Profile takes a look at some of the professionals working across the advertising, ad tech, marketing and media sector in Australia. It aims to shed light on the varying roles and companies across the buzzing industry.
This week we speak to Dataxu country manager ANZ Shane Hanby.
Time in current role/time at the company:
Four months.
How would you describe what the company does?
Dataxu is a software company offering data products to help marketing professionals improve their advertising across all channels, including Connected TV.
What do you do day-to-day?
Support and empower a group of highly skilled individuals to work as a team and achieve positive business outcomes, whilst having fun.
Define your job in one word:
Accelerated.
I got into adtech because:
One of my first jobs out of high school was at Fairfax in an entry level accounts receivable role. At the time, Sydney was
hosting the 2000 Olympics and was absolutely buzzing. I started to dislike the office bound aspect of my role and noticed the newspaper reps at Fairfax at the time socialising with clients, enjoying long lunches and spending little time tied to the desk. I thought “I want in”, applied for a media sales exec role and the rest is history.
What’s the biggest challenge you face in your role?
In prior years, agencies and marketers were quite open to onboarding multiple tech vendors that provided a slightly varied offering. Nowadays stakeholders are more focused on consolidation and scaling back on partners in an attempt to cut through a very cluttered adtech ecosystem. This makes communicating a point of difference to a very time poor industry quite difficult.
What’s the biggest industry-wide challenge you’d like to see tackled?
I’d like to see the wider media industry do more to tackle mental health issues. As I grew up, depression and anxiety where generally not acknowledged and comments such as “cheer up mate” or “you’ll be right” were the norm. The media industry is the perfect platform for education and to promote positive change, so I’d love to see an increased effort in this area. UnLtd amongst others are doing great things in this area and should be commended for their efforts.
Previous industry related companies you have worked at:
Fairfax, Sensis, two stints at Salmat 15 years apart then more recently, GumGum.
Who has been a great mentor to you and why?
Not one clear mentor comes to mind however I have worked with some very inspirational leaders during my multiple stints at
Salmat, all of which had an uncanny ability to understand how to motivate staff at an individual level. Salmat built a winning culture that would challenge most high performing sports teams which had a huge impact on me at the time.
Words of advice for someone wanting a job like yours?
Treat people at any level with respect and listen more than you talk. You can learn a new skill or gain a new perspective from anyone if you give them the opportunity to be heard.
If I wasn't doing this for a living, I'd be:
Trying to find a way to rid the world of plastic. I grew up spending as much time as possible in the ocean and it’s really disheartening to see the negative impact plastic has on our environment and more specifically our lakes, rivers and oceans. Or a high-level sports agent, think Jerry Maguire or the TV series ‘Ballers’.
My mantra is:
“Leave your ego at the door” - I try not to take myself too seriously and promote collaboration over ego every time.
My favourite advert is:
Telstra BigPond
I like this ad because it reminds me of a response I would have gotten from my parents when I was growing up and doing my homework. I also like the fact that the dad casted for this ad went to his first acting audition after being a postie and a cab driver, got the role and went on to become a household name.
Music and TV streaming habits. What do you subscribe to?
I’m a crazy sports fan so Kayo is a must. I also subscribe to Netflix, Stan and watch my fair share of catch-up. That’s the benefit of living in an era that allows users to watch content pretty much anywhere and at any time. My wife is the muso of the family so her Spotify account dictates what I listen to.
Tell us one thing people at work don’t know about you?
I’m absolutely petrified of heights. I can’t think of anything worse than climbing the Harbour Bridge or bungee jumping.
In five years' time I'll be:
Being the best father I can possibly be.
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