Our Young Gun profile takes a look at some of the young talent across the advertising, adtech, marketing and media sector in Australia. It aims to shed light on the varying roles, people and companies across the buzzing industry.
Today we speak to InMobi senior manager, publisher development ANZ, Matthew McGinley.
Time in current role:
I’ve only been in my current role for a little over a month however I've recently celebrated my seven-year anniversary at InMobi as part of the ANZ team (which in adtech terms is a little like dog years). During this time, I’ve worked in multiple roles on the demand side before switching to the supply side as Senior Manager for Publisher Development in the region.
How long have you been in the industry?
Minus a few previous internships, it’s been InMobi all the way as it was my first proper job out of university. I like to say that before InMobi, my previous job was working at Subway as a ‘Sandwich Artist’, which technically is true.
How did you get here? Was this always the plan?
Kind of! The original plan was to get into the world of game development as I was studying Computer Science. But after six months of painful lectures and the weekly viewing of Gruen, I thought it'd be cool to help create some ads.
Fast track two years of further studies in Advertising, then eight months hunting for jobs and I found an internship going at InMobi. The rest is history!
Who is your right-hand person?
There are a few as I’ve been fortunate enough to have fantastic mentors and leaders in my time. I’d single out Nick Brignell and Tiffany Damm for always lending an ear and advising what to do (sometimes what not as well).
I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention our fearless leader, Richard O’Sullivan. He’s led to inspire these last two years, as we’ve redefined and transformed InMobi’s presence in ANZ. There’s been a big step change in the team, our culture, and our performance from what we were to what we are now.
What’s the best thing about the industry you work in?
It isn’t just the rapid change of pace that’s attractive, but also the endless opportunities it provides and how quickly people adapt. It’s no secret that we’ve all (in various degrees) gone through some hard times lately due to the pandemic and it continues to impress me just how empathetic our industry can be towards people and situations, both on a personal and professional front.
And the biggest challenge?
Conversely, it's the pace at which change and opportunities arise. In order to fully capitalise on these, we must have the right foundations in place to create a better educated market that can continue to intelligently evolve (and this includes senior leadership as well as junior planners). I’m seeing some fantastic updates in this direction like The Trade Desk Edge Academy and our very own InMobi University. However, it’s definitely a key challenge to address especially with ever changing working arrangements.
Whose job have you set your sights on in the future? Where do you turn for inspiration?
Speaking of change, my answer would have been different just three months ago. However, since I’ve recently moved into our Supply business, so I would say Sudhanshu Saxena who leads DSP and Supply partnerships in SEA out of Singapore. He’s offered some great advice and guidance over the last few months and is somewhere I'd strive to be. More broadly, I tend to gravitate towards like-minded people who are great at articulating something originally. I love a good soundbite, with meaning.
My favourite advert is:
This is a tough one. Some Superbowl ads for Bud Light and Toyota come to mind, as does Carlton Draught’s “Big Ad.” However, the one that takes the cake is the Optus “Anti-Ad” series with Ricky Gervais. The fact they produced some spots out of his outtakes as well is brilliant!
Tell us one thing people at work don’t know about you?
That I once took a two-day intensive film course to pursue a career in acting.
In five years’ time I will be:
Who knows? Which is the best thing about working at InMobi. One moment you’re walking through the door as an intern, with little interest in Sales, the next, you’re leading the Supply business for ANZ.
At the moment, I’m really enjoying the challenge of leading a team, so I'd love to continue that and in five years, hopefully mentoring like those that have to me.
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