Our Industry Profile takes a look at some of the professionals working across the advertising, adtech, marketing and media sector in Australia. It aims to shed light on the varying roles and companies across the buzzing industry.
Jules Brahe: General manager at The Pistol
Time in current role/time at the company:
Six years
How would you describe what the company does?
The Pistol is a full-service digital agency specialising in the end-to-end optimisation of the customer path to purchase and a focus on delivering tangible business outcomes for our clients.
What do you do day-to-day?
My role is to ensure that The Pistol runs smoothly and at its best. That includes recruitment, performance and development, operations and compliance. I also look after the Creative team - just to keep me on my toes. Much of the day to day is spent coaching and mentoring the team to solve problems and ensuring we are all using our time effectively.
Define your job in one word:
Problem-solver
I got into marketing/advertising/media/tech because:
I really enjoy bringing ideas to life and seeing how they land. I love having lots of things on the go at once and the energy and fun that comes from working in agencies
What’s the biggest challenge you face in your role?
Coaching our teams to maximise their days and ensure sufficient time for learning and development.
What’s the biggest industry-wide challenge you’d like to see tackled?
Free pitching. It has always astounded me the amount of work agencies do for free. We don’t expect any other service industries to do hours of work without payment. We recently pitched for a piece of work and were paid a pitch fee which made the work feel so much more collaborative and that the client really values and understands the work involved.
Notable campaigns you have worked on:
I led the launch of The Australian app when Apple introduced the first iPad. As one of the first in Australia to get an iPad, I helped build a media-driven campaign around four foundation advertisers who boldly sponsored content for a then-unreleased device. The launch was a major success, positioning these advertisers as forward-thinking, tech-savvy companies.
Who has been a great mentor to you and why?
My first manager at St George Bank was incredible. She hustled and did not stand for any crap. Then at News Corp I was very lucky to have Ed Smith as my mentor. Ed is a very smart and thoughtful leader and pushed me to undertake an MBA which exposed me to some new skills I didn't even know I needed. This led to some great opportunities and a long lasting friendship.
Words of advice for someone wanting a job like yours?
Take whatever opportunity you are presented with as you never know where it will lead. I was working as a bank teller when the Branch Manager asked if I would work at the Royal Melbourne Show and take shifts being in the Happy Dragon mascot costume. This led to me meeting all of the state managers and the CEO. I was offered a new role, with a relocation to Sydney, and within a year of that move I was running the retention call centre in head office.
If I wasn't doing this for a living, I'd be:
A roadie for a band - if they let me do back up vocals, even better.
My mantra is:
Have fun!
My favourite advert is:
When I was at St George we did the "BBQ ad". It was so successful that if we weren’t meeting targets we would roll it out again and sales would spike immediately.
Music and TV streaming habits. What do you subscribe to?
All of them - I worked on the paid content project at News and truly believe in supporting and paying for as much content as you can. I have most streaming channels, Spotify and a few paid content subscriptions. The one I can't live without is Netflix. Old school, but it has a wide variety of content for every mood! I can't stop watching any political drama. I'm still an avid West Wing addict. My Spotify wrap for the year will be all Teddy Swims and a spot of Taylor to ensure I knew every word at the concert.
Tell us one thing people at work don’t know about you?
I spent a year in Guatemala in 2012 volunteering, spent some time in orphanages, coffee picking and building a school using very primitive tools. It was so rewarding and gave me a lot of perspective.
In five years time I'll be:
I will have been in the industry for over 30 years, so I would love to be doing some coaching and mentoring for the next generation of creative and media specialists. Personally I have another 27 countries on my list to visit.
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