Former Telstra marketer Amanda Johnston-Pell returns to Australia with IBM role
New IBM CMO: Johnston-Pell
The appointment of Amanda Johnston-Pell as head of marketing for IBM in the Australia/New Zealand region signals the return of a marketer famed for meetings were staff were urged to dance and role play.
Her appointment comes six years after she left her role as director of brands and marketing at Telstra where she oversaw a range of initiatives including the launch of Telstra’s 4G network and the creation of the award winning Rabbits campaign by agency BWM.
All eyes will now be on whether Johnston-Pell will seek to put her own stamp on the brand’s Australian marketing and possibly even extend its agency roster.
Ogilvy has an iron grip on the IBM business worldwide but Pell had a close relationship with BWM in Australia, now part of Dentsu.
The marketer has been working on her own start-up in the US and is also understood to have built a close relationship with Ogilvy boss Shelly Lazarus.
While in Australia she cited former Saatchi & Saatchi chair Sandra Yates as a mentor.
Johnston-Pell was renowned for her unique, almost evangelical approach to meetings, often requiring staff and agency executives to perform or role-play.
In one meeting an agency executive wore a Barack Obama mask after attendees were told a famous name would attend give a presentation, while dancing was a common way to kick off agency WIPs
In another reported motivational exercise that occurred under Johnston-Pell’s management was when Telstra-leader Sol Trujillo told his management team they should “catch the vision or catch the bus” – with “catching the bus” meaning leaving Telstra. The message was miscommunicated down the line as everyone having to get on the bus and sending emails to managers confirming it.
Those confirming they were on the bus were issued a “bus ticket” which they were asked to print out and stick on their desk and on their pass. To get into scope of work meetings they had to wave their bus tickets in the air.
While Rabbits built into an award winning campaign, her decision not to return from maternity leave after the appointment of Mark Collis as director of creativity and innovation was met with relief by some.
In announcing her appointment IBM said that Pell would also join the Australia and New Zealand board.
“In this role Johnston-Pell will focus on driving collaboration across the business to deliver deep industry and innovative solutions and services to clients in the areas of cloud, cognitive, social, mobile and security,” the IBM statement said.
It said that she would remain a director of New York based start-up MOSH, which she co-founded in 2013.
“The interactive social platform enables brands, artists and causes to connect and build deep, personalised engagements with fans and customers,” the statement said.
Last year the company announced it would look to harness inspiration from startups, developing “marketing experience labs”, with one set up at its headquarters in Sydney.
The company said focus on importing startup techniques into an already established business such as IBM was driven by startups’ ability to put something into market to test and learn from that experience.
Simon Canning
Well there will be interesting times ahead for IBM’s marketing team and agencies. Wonder if she will reinstate the agency dance routine every Monday morning like she insisted on at Telstra
User ID not verified.
congratulations Amanda. Very well deserved. I’m sure there will b exciting times ahead for IBM.
User ID not verified.
Surely Amanda deserves the opportunity to return to the industry without this kind of regurgitation?
User ID not verified.
oh IBM, what wonders await you..
Johnston-Pell was not universally popular with subordinates, but given its been 6 years, she probably does deserve the chance to start again without all the bad news being dug up again.
All of us can stuff things up, but its only fair to allow people a 2nd chance and to grow and improve and its fair again to extend that opportunity to senior management like Johnston-Pell.
I am sure she has grown and I imagine the humiliaiting compulsory dancing in meetings are a thing of the past.
Live and let live – as I mentioned everyone deserves a 2nd chance
User ID not verified.
There was nothing more humiliating than dancing in front of special guests at Telstra, I guess we will be standing by for BMW to be announced on the roster at IBM – its only a matter of time. I won’t be asking for a ticket on the IBM bus, that’s for sure.
User ID not verified.
Thank you Mumbrella for publishing a small sample of the delights of working at Telstra – dancing at SOW meetings, bus tickets, hedgehog awards, sparkle quotient and elastic KPIs. When I tell people about my experience there, they say I am exaggerating, so it is good to have it in print. [Edited under Mumbrella’s comment moderation policy]
User ID not verified.
Imagine the uproar if a male executive had coerced his subordinate staff (some of them female) to dance in meetings.
User ID not verified.
Let me tell u my experience, I can only recall a couple of meetings where there was dancing, perhaps there was more but surprisingly I wasn’t scarred by the event so six years on that’s all I remember. I do remember all the amazing guests we had in those meetings who left me feeling energised and inspired for the week. I also remember the great work shared by colleagues and our agencies. I’m also proud to this day of some of the work I was able to b a part of under Amanda’s leadership. I also remember y I’m glad to have left this industry. Petty vindictiveness wrapped up in passive aggressiveness is an unattractive trait and sadly to often it’s directed at female executives and not their male counterparts. I’m sry some of these posters are so angry, and I hope one day they learn to let go rather than tear other people down. Trust me you will b a happier person when u do. Again congratulations Amanda and IBM is fortunate to have u with them
User ID not verified.
Congrats AJ.
User ID not verified.
Amanda could always see through advertising spin and she’ll always have my respect for her tenacity and marketing nous. I never had to dance, never needed a ticket, but I’ll tell you this, I’d rather someone try new ideas and fail, then be afraid of trying.
User ID not verified.
This is so wrong, but so typical for the men of mumbrella.
It’s 2016! Lets celebrate that a talented woman has broken into a notorious man club not just as CMO but also as a Board director.
User ID not verified.