Home loan and mortgage broker's new GM of customer replaces former GM of marketing and product but gains technology leadership as well
Aussie Home Loans has appointed a new general manager of customer with responsibility across marketing, digital and IT.
Richard Burns has spent the last seven years with Commonwealth Bank’s CommSec division, where he is currently general manager of customer experience and responsible for overseeing end-to-end customer engagement. His 20-year career includes marketing, product and strategy roles with CommSec, ETrade Australia and McKechnie Consumer Products.
He takes up his new post with Aussie on 9 February and will have responsibility for brand, marketing, digital presence, customer retention and data and IT architecture and operations, leading a team of 40 staff.
Burns replaces former general manager of marketing and product, Stuart Tucker, who left Aussie a year ago to become GM of brand, sponsorship and marketing operations at CommBank.
However, the expanded and renamed role now includes IT, which was previously overseen by Aussie’s general manager of finance and technology, John McDonald.
As a result, Burns will have three direct reports: Head of marketing and digital, Alex Crompton; acting senior manager of customer retention, Tim Whyld; and CIO, James O’Donnell.
Aussie’s founder and executive chairman, John Symond, said Burns will be a key contributor to the company’s executive management team.
“General manager customer is a critical and unique role within our business, and we have been searching across industries and markets to find the right person for the job,” he said in a statement. “I am delighted that this search led us to Richard and that he accepted my offer to join the Aussie team.”
Symond added Burns will be responsible for protecting and growing the Aussie brand while strengthening its digital prowess and presence by tapping into innovative technology.
“Richard is an impressive senior executive and without doubt has the right cultural fit, vision, experience and drive to lead our marketing, digital and IT teams,” Symond said.
Burns said he was delighted to be joining such an iconic Australian brand.
“Leading the IT, digital and marketing teams will be a great challenge, and one that will allow me to draw upon my experience in each of these three areas,” he said. “I have heard great things about the team and am looking forward to meeting and working with them all.”
Follow CMO on Twitter: @CMOAustralia, take part in the CMO Australia conversation on LinkedIn: CMO Australia, or join us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CMOAustralia
Read more: CMO50 #8: Richard Burns, Aussie Home Loans
In the third and final episode of our 3-part CMO50 video series exploring modern marketing and why it’s become a matter of trust, we’re delighted to be joined by Telstra’s former CMO and now digital services and sales executive, Jeremy Nicholas, and Adobe VP Marketing Asia-Pacific and Japan, Duncan Egan.
Flash back to the classic film, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Television-obsessed Mike insists on becoming the first person to be ‘sent by Wonkavision’, dematerialising on one end, pixel by pixel, and materialising in another space. His cinematic dreams are realised thanks to rash decisions as he is shrunken down to fit the digital universe, followed by a trip to the taffy puller to return to normal size.
Why is it there is no shortage of leadership development materials, yet outstanding leadership is so rare? Despite having access to so many leadership principles, tools, systems and processes, why is it so hard to develop and improve as a leader?
As a nation united by sport, brands are beginning to learn money alone won’t talk without aligned values and action. If recent events with major leagues and their players have shown us anything, it’s the next generation of athletes are standing by what they believe in – and they won’t let their values be superseded by money.
