Opinion

Dynamic Duos: An infectious optimist meets an absolute professional

In this bonus Dynamic Duos, we hear from AKQA Australia’s engineering director Miriam Healy, and AKQA AUNZ’s chief creative officer Tara McKenty.

Matthew Leong

October 28, 2025 8:00

In Dynamic Duos, Mumbrella each week asks two colleagues with a professional and personal affiliation to share with readers the importance of workplace relationships in an increasingly hybridised world of work.

Miriam Healy:

Working with Tara feels a bit like stepping into a creative weather system – ideas swirling, energy building, and before you know it, you’re caught in a thunderstorm of possibility. It’s exhilarating, unpredictable, and somehow, she always knows exactly where the lightning will strike.

Tara’s enthusiasm for ideas – and her relentless drive to turn them into something real – is infectious. She has this uncanny ability to connect dots that weren’t even on the same page, let alone the same plane. Suddenly, something that seemed impossible five minutes ago becomes, “oh, that’s actually doable”. It’s creative problem-solving disguised as chaos theory.

Her belief that things should be done – not just could be done – generates a kind of productive pressure around her. Even the most sceptical technologist (hi, that’s me) finds themselves rummaging through their metaphorical tool belt, determined to make it work.

Tara will compromise – but only around the edges. She’ll adjust, adapt, and find clever ways through the practicalities, but she never lets go of the core of an idea. It’s what gives the work its integrity.

She’s not interested in making advertising that just fills a slot. She wants to make things that live – ideas that escape the confines of the campaign and sneak into culture, where they can surprise people in the best possible way. She’s at her happiest when a brand stops selling and starts mattering.

When I first met Tara, I had the uncanny sense that I was back in the heyday of AKQA London during the first internet boom. That same electricity was there: that mix of fear, excitement, and belief that anything was possible if you were brave enough to try.

Now, with the evolutionary spirit of AI reshaping what creativity can be – and Tara’s uncanny ability to ground those possibilities in solid, human ideas – it feels like starting over again: wide-eyed, slightly terrified, and completely energised.

We approach problems from different angles, but with the same intent – to stretch a brief until it reveals something unexpected. Tara sees the possibility; I see the puzzle. Together, we pull the work out toward the edges, where the interesting stuff happens.

Tara’s the kind of creative who makes you braver and a little sillier in all the right ways. She’s the spark that turns the sensible into the spectacular – and collaborating with her is a reminder that the best ideas aren’t the ones you plan, but the ones that sneak up on you when you’re having too much fun to notice.

Tara McKenty:

Miriam and I met shortly after I joined AKQA this year. I accepted the role to lead the AKQA creative offering under the promise of stellar clients, stellar creative opportunities, and of course great people, and then I met Miriam, and all my employment wishes came true. Miriam is our Engineering Director, who has 20 years of AKQA experience running through her veins from three different studios.

Miriam is one of the nerdiest, smartest techlords I have ever met, but what makes Miriam the true unicorn (being a female in a leadership tech role already qualifies her in the school of unicorn), is that she is a technical person that also has a love for the creative application of creativity within technology. This means when I bring to her bogus ideas, assuming she can make them – no matter how ludicrous or naive the thinking – instead of saying “the computer says no”, she will find a way to bend, combine, or build something that is technically robust. She also keeps the core of the idea throughout the process, and that’s what makes us a dangerous duo. She also loves a curse word (she is Irish) and this also bonds us.

So, what is our relationship built on? It is Miriam’s technical smarts and love for imbedding creativity into digital and innovative spaces, along with my love for embedding technology into creative thinking.

And finally, the traits we share are relentless enthusiasm and finding the paths of possibility no matter how complex the challenge. Outside of our core capabilities, personally we both enjoy being intersectional in roles that historically weren’t occupied by people like us, which gives us the added advantage of diversity of perspective, and a real appreciation for the role and the responsibility we hold for our teams, the work, and our clients.

Miriam on Tara:

Most memorable moment with Tara: A corridor moment when Tara spoke enthusiastically about three ideas she had bubbling, and I had to reach for a notebook to keep track.

Best word to describe her: Infectious optimism.

Most annoying habit or endearing behaviour she has: I’ve gotta be able to reference her hat/cap collection somewhere…

Tara on Miriam:

Most memorable moment with Miriam: The most memorable moment I have had with Miriam was when we first met. Miriam asked to do our meet-and-greet walking (weird, but okay).

We walked and talked around a park near our Melbourne studio, and it was at this moment when I unearthed Miriam’s passion for her work, her people, and for AKQA. It was a moment I would never forget because not only is it rare for me to meet someone in leadership in our industry that looks like me, acts like me, and talks like me, but she also shared the same ridiculous amount of passion for the work and what we do, and the people we do it with. It was at that moment that I knew this would be the start of a beautiful thing!

Best word to describe her: An absolute professional (Three words, sorry not sorry!)

Most annoying habit or endearing behaviour she has: Miriam’s most endearing behaviour is definitely swearing! FYI I did not use AI to generate all of the above nice things about Miriam, on the other hand, I cannot be sure Miriam did not.