Samantha Smith and Mikayla Ellis.
Initiative Australia has appointed Mikayla Ellis managing partner, Sydney, and Samantha Smith national head of marketing.
The senior appointments follow the recent promotion of Paige Wheaton from chief investment officer to national managing director.
Ellis joins from Zenith, where she was client partner, having previously spent eight years at Omnicom including senior roles at Hearts & Science.
She will lead the Sydney market and key clients including HelloFresh, Sanitarium and Netflix, reporting to Wheaton.
Smith has been appointed national head of marketing, responsible for shaping Initiative's growth narrative and market position.
She joins from Hearts & Science, where she was head of brand, having spent more than four years within Omnicom Media.
Wheaton said both appointments were central to how the agency planned to attract new clients and deepen existing partnerships.
"Mikayla brings a disciplined approach to leadership and a strong track record of building teams that deliver, which is critical to how we lead in Sydney,” Wheaton said.
"Sam's appointment reflects our ambition to strengthen Initiative's voice in the industry — strengthening how we show up, building a more visible and differentiated brand.”
Ellis said she had long admired the agency's strategic thinking, strong culture and ambition.
"I'm looking forward to partnering closely with the Sydney team to further strengthen client relationships, build capability and support the next phase of the agency's growth," she said.
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