In this series, AdNews takes a look at some of the professionals working across the advertising, adtech, marketing and media sector in Australia. This time it's Bazaarvoice managing director APAC Kate Musgrove.
Time in current role:
Eight years.
How would you describe what the company does?
Bazaarvoice is a global technology company headquartered in Austin, Texas, that connects thousands of the world’s leading brands and retailers to the authentic voice of their customers. Each month, billions of shoppers view and share user-generated content, including reviews and curated social content, across the 12,000+ brands and retailers we partner with. Our solutions support brands and retailers in building smarter shopping experiences across the entire customer journey by harnessing the power of authentic user generated content. We have the most comprehensive influencer marketing, UGC, social media, social commerce and retail distribution offering that leverages the authentic customer voice across most consumer touchpoints.
What do you do day to day?
I lead the APAC business, ensuring our customers' partnerships and business growth thrive across the region. As a U.S. headquartered company, my day starts early. Fortunately, I'm an early riser who kicks off with a gym session or a walk, fuelled by plenty of coffee. My calls with U.S. counterparts begin from 7 am onwards. Balancing work with motherhood, I value the flexibility to schedule morning calls around school drop-offs. The chats with my sons during the school run are priceless moments I cherish a few times a week.
A typical day involves numerous internal meetings with our teams in Australia and India, as well as meetings with clients, prospects, and partners.
Define your job in one word:
Fast-paced (yes, I think that counts as one word).
I got into my industry because:
I started in the MarTech space in sales/account management roles 20 years ago. In hiring salespeople for many years, I would say it’s rare that anyone who graduates from university starts out planning to have a career in tech sales. This was the case for me, and in my early career, I was a secondary school teacher. Whilst having a passion for teaching, which I gladly still get to leverage today in how I mentor and coach, I found the MarTech space to be incredibly exciting. The innovation, pace, and impact technology can have were big draw cards for me, and today, I continue to value this along with the continuous learning journey you get to be on. I look at the transformation potential AI drives and remain incredibly excited to be in this industry.
What’s the biggest challenge you face in your role?
Adapting to and optimising the shift we have made in implementing remote and hybrid work models. I’m a great believer that bringing people together in person for “moments that matter” is critical in maintaining company culture and aligning employees around our vision and goals. Rationalising the significant cost and ROI of doing so is an ongoing challenge but one I continue to fight for and invest in. On a personal level, I get fatigued from a day of virtual meetings that I simply don’t feel when the meetings are face-to-face – I think this is the extrovert in me coming out!
What’s the biggest industry wide challenge you’d like to see tackled?
Authenticity. Ensuring authenticity is crucial amidst the abundance of counterfeit reviews and user-generated content (UGC), coupled with insufficient transparency regarding content origins. Across industries, establishing a gold standard for verifying the authenticity and reliability of reviews and UGC displayed by brands and retailers is essential. This standard is vital to prevent brands from undermining customer trust and to enable shoppers to depend on genuine insights shared by others about brands and products.
Who has been a great mentor to you and why?
I have been fortunate to have many formal and informal mentors throughout my career. My most significant and longest-serving mentor has been my partner. Though he works in corporate communications rather than in tech, his experience with numerous CEOs on PR and communication strategies allows him to provide valuable coaching and suggestions for the challenges I've encountered. He knows me well and despite being my biggest supporter, has an exceptional (and sometimes frustrating) ability to play devil's advocate and challenge my ideas.
Words of advice for someone wanting a job like yours?
Develop a top-level understanding of technology and embrace continuous learning. Seek leadership experience (this can happen outside of managing people). Build resilience by learning from failures and staying curious always. It’s tough, and being able to adapt and change direction in the face of adversity or changing market conditions is critical.
Finally (and critically), build a strong network. Connect (and stay connected) with mentors and with your network in the industry.
If I wasn’t doing this for a living, I'd be:
I love what I’m doing, but if I wasn’t doing this, I would spend more time with my kids, likely get bored staying at home and then investigate a likely short-lived return to teaching, perhaps.
My philosophy is:
Do what you say you will, and don’t sweat the small stuff.
My favourite advert is:
I don’t watch commercial TV, but going back to my time living in the U.K. I loved the John Lewis (UK Department store) Christmas adverts. They have become somewhat of a cultural phenomenon in the UK and usually tell an emotive and heartwarming story that connects the viewer to the festive season. I now seek their advert out each Christmas and it’s been interesting to see other brands invest in trying to replicate this kind of emotional holiday season advert.
Music and TV streaming habits: what do you subscribe to?
I limit my TV streaming. If I start a series and I’m hooked, I can’t stop. I therefore typically save my watching for long-haul flights where I can binge guilt-free. One of the upsides of flying a lot. The last series I watched was Baby Reindeer. Rather disturbing!
Tell us one thing people at work don’t know about you?
During my university days, I worked part-time at a nursing home in Melbourne. One morning, there was a bit of confusion while distributing false teeth to residents and to my surprise, I later discovered that I had mistakenly given a set to someone who already had a full set of natural teeth!
In five years time, I'll be:
Leading the charge on all thing’s authenticity across the region, qualified as a Les Mills Body Pump instructor and running a best-in-class Junior Basketball Club that I’m keen to start.
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