THE AUNTIES MENTORSHIP PROGRAM
Created by the wonderful women at MADC (Melbourne Art Direction and Design Club), The Aunties is a mentorship initiative designed to inspire, protect and champion women of all ages and backgrounds across the creative industry. It's a network of women, ready to mentor through one-on-one monthly catch-ups. Here to help you navigate ad land, offer career advice, and most importantly—support you.
I’m lucky enough to not only be a Certified Auntie to my own mentee, but also be part of the Aunties Creative Agency. A collective of women across Melbourne and Sydney who get together monthly to create content, plan events, and continually improve the program for the next generation. Head to @theaunties_gram to learn more.
Some pieces I’ve contributed behind the scenes
Power profile: Sharon Condy
Introducing Sharon Condy. Group Creative Director at Ogilvy Melbourne, mum to her adorable son Hugo and advertising superstar.
Sharon has over 15 years of experience creating impactful, award-winning work and mentoring Australia’s up-and-coming talent. It’s the latter that she loves most about her job. Seeing younger creatives find their feet and go on to do amazing things. And she actively encourages them not to shy away from self-promotion. She used to feel uncomfortable (or even a bit arrogant!) when celebrating career wins, but now sees it as a positive and necessary part of the job. Not just for herself, but for others, too. She’s constantly inspired by a friend’s latest side hustle, shiny award, or well-deserved promotion.
But the biggest influence in her fabulous career so far is her son, Hugo. He’s taught her to be infinitely more patient, empathetic, and disciplined with time management. He’s also taught her the importance of work/life balance. When the time came to return to work after mat leave, she’s grateful that she was given the support and flexibility she needed. And speaking up about what you need to make it work is something she encourages all new mums to do.
When it comes to what she thinks should change, “We still need more women in senior roles. The Aunties are doing their bit to achieve this through visibility and mentorship. I think flexibility for parents and carers in the industry is also key.” And she’s a firm believer that men can help by being allies; “Listening, recognising our achievements, and making space for us to be heard. Special shout out to my creative partner of 17 years, who does all these things daily.”
Thanks Auntie Sharon for inspiring the next generation of women in advertising and being a Mentor in our senior program.
Power profile: Amelia Micallef
Meet Amelia Micallef. Founder and Creative Director at @makemate.com.au.
After 10 years in the industry, millennial mum Amelia (the rarest of agency owners, under 0.1%) decided to go out on her own. Make Mate allows her to create the kind of meaningful work she’s always wanted to do, including her latest venture with Donate Life.
Eight years ago, her dad became very unwell and urgently needed a liver transplant. To help him in any way that she could, Amelia threw herself into research and learned that organ donation wasn’t entirely a medical problem, but a communication one. The experience led her to help DonateLife with their communications with the hope of improving the registration rates.
It all started with pitching an idea on Tinder and has since seen a record number of new registrations on the Australian Organ Donor Register, which means more lives are being saved. To get involved with DonateLife, all you need to do is grab your Medicare number and head to: DonateLife.gov.au
Amelia is a firm believer that it’s the smallest things that make the most impact. And for other new mums who want to start their own thing, her advice is to do it at your own pace, ask for help and look after yourself along the way.
Mentor Of The Year
All mentor and committee Aunties from the first program were entered into the B&T Women in Media Awards and WON Mentor of the Year and highly commended in Champion of Change. B&T Australia recognised all 94 women as the proud collective we are which was exciting for every Auntie.