Our Industry Profile takes a look at some of the professionals working across the advertising, adtech, marketing and media sector in Australia. It aims to shed light on the varying roles and companies across the buzzing industry.
Julie Anne Longano: Founder of Peeps Consulting
Time in current role/time at the company:
Six Years.
How would you describe what the company does?
Peeps Consulting leads the media and advertising industry in matching great talent with companies that value the human asset above all. Peeps prides itself on offering people solutions embedded in our deep knowledge of the sector and its intricacies, trusted human connections and data-supported matching. This has always been primarily an intuitively led approach that also uses technology and data smarts to de-risk the fit and potential of candidates to roles.
What do you do day-to-day?
Personally, I operate like a marketplace with a big heart, working with all sides of the talent process.
I take every connection seriously and appreciate the trust that is placed in me and Peeps Consulting on both sides of the value exchange. Coaching is a valuable and significant part of each day, asking the right questions and getting to know the human drivers behind the JD and CV.
Define your job in one word:
People-ing.
I got into marketing/advertising/media/tech because:
Of all the industries you could enter at the time, it looked the one with a pulse. I had just finished Uni and was contemplating moving up the chain at my Woolies job when my check-out-chick supervisor said: “No no, you belong in advertising” and got me an interview with her sister in-law Sara Lappage at EyeCorp (oOh!media). The rest is the rest…Thanks Sars.
What’s the biggest challenge you face in your role?
Three things currently:
- Fear of the unknown or the presumed downside around AI pushing people towards roles they are not passionate about.
- Media talent wanting to move client side due to the systemic changes in agency world. I’d love to be seeing more people driven the other way, toward agency work, while also understanding the drivers behind current trends.
- Lack of robust and credible training on the upskilling side - be that people looking at future-proofing their careers, contemplating a side-hustle or exploring the gig-economy due to a lack of opportunity in their primary field.
What’s the biggest industry-wide challenge you’d like to see tackled?
The challenges and opportunities within and across holdcos. Yes, there are systemic headwinds and consolidation does make sense... But, talent burnout and despondency are huge risks as well as being an opportunity for progressive leaders who are designing the business model for tomorrow.
Notable campaigns you have worked on:
A campaign for me is a great placement and of course we have many of those. Placing Philippa Lamb at Mamamia was rewarding; she originally briefed me on wanting a marketing/partnerships role, but I saw huge potential in her as a media sales professional. Philippa is still there three years on and was just recently promoted again.
Who has been a great mentor to you and why?
Sarah Mazur. She’s not only the kind of mentor you look up to and want to emulate, but she’s also the kind of mentor who believes in you more than you believe in yourself… that can be very powerful to draw on in moments of uncertainty or doubt. Also, Kerry McCabe because he not only read this for me and provided advice, but also because he has been instrumental in guiding my business growth in new markets.
Words of advice for someone wanting a job like yours?
Where we stand out, as is the case in any business, is around our integrity, our treatment of people and our focus on the long game vs. the quick win.
Invest in your reputation - act consciously in every single interaction you have in this industry. Your reputation always walks through the door before you do, so make sure it’s a good one.
Advice I recall from a late and great friend, Andrew Sidwell, was to just keep taking steps forward. Even very small steps, he would say, over a long time, are progress (never stop). He explained to me that a common trait of ultimately successful people was simply that they never give up.
If I wasn’t doing this for a living, I’d be:
Using the people skills for “greater good” in society; maybe a police detective or paramedic. Either that or a casting director in Hollywood…recruiting the right talent for roles in film would be an insanely cool use of my skills!
My mantra is:
Bring lightness to every engagement, leave things better than how you found them.
My favourite advert is:
Currently the Allianz Avril Lavigne “I’m With You” ad, because it’s creating DEEP moments of song and performance within my family and it makes me feel something about the importance of support in the exact moment you need it. Howatson+Company on the up and up.
Music and TV streaming habits. What do you subscribe to?
I’m loving Royel Otis at the moment; such a raw Aussie sound.
There’s a great Podcast called Gen Z Explained by Daniel Cash whom I’m increasingly impressed by. A Life of Greatness podcast with Sarah Grynberg. Sucker for Masterchef still.
.... and BOOKS! Am I allowed to share books? "The Dreaming Path: How Indigenous Thinking Can Change Your Life" by Paul Callaghan with Uncle Paul Gordon was a significant shape-shifter for me, and I also can't wait to get stuck into Lael Stone's new book "Own Your Story"; her insights and wisdom are always simple and incredibly powerful.
Tell us one thing people at work don’t know about you?
Is this the part where I talk about doing a naked yoga class at Burning Man? Or the time I peed in a cubicle next to Lady Gaga (singing scales) whilst at Austereo? Or maybe it’s about the time I ate hummus with Ryan Gosling in New York. Actually, I think people in our industry probably do know those things because I’m an avid over-sharer-er.
On a serious note, it’s not a coincidence that my business has experienced its greatest growth when I genuinely prioritise my holistic health and wellbeing.
I staunchly prioritise boundaries and investment in "Self "as a fundamental business driver. Being self-made and successful in business, I feel it's my responsibility to share the learning that when I reinvest business (and time) profit into my Self via my wellbeing and community, it comes back in further business success tenfold.
In five years I’ll be:
A mother to two mentally and physically well young people and hopefully lucky enough to (still) be serving this industry and its people as we continue to navigate massive change. Thank you, friends, from the bottom of my heart, for having me.
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