NBN Co creates head of social strategy role

CommBank’s former head of social media strategy, Niki Epstein, has turned up as the new head of social strategy at NBN Co, the wholesale company overseeing the rollout of Australia’s National Broadband Network.

NBN Co’s executive general manager of corporate affairs, Karina Keisler, told CMO Epstein will take up the newly created role of general manager of social media from 22 October. Reporting into corporate affairs, her remit is to build the organisation’s social media strategy with a particular focus on PR, but also work in partnership with customer care and marketing.

“We are very light touch in terms of social presence currently, which we want to ramp up as a way of raising awareness and engagement with the country around the NBN,”Keisler said. “Niki will be the conduit and coordinator for all of our activity in social in terms of marketing, care and online content.”

While NBN Co has a dedicated general manager of digital and also previously published its own blog, it has not previously had anyone dedicated to social media engagement or content, Keisler continued.

Epstein will devise the best social channels of engagement for NBN given its core customer focus is ISPs, as well as look into the right strategy for end-user interaction as hundreds of thousands of Australians gain access to the NBN.

As an example, Keisler said that while most end-customer requests are the responsibility of the ISPs and telcos operating the retail side of the NBN, the wholesale operator still receives a host of questions and comments that need to be managed.

Epstein was formerly executive manager of social media and digital channels at Commonwealth Bank, a role she held for nearly 18 months up until March 2014. Prior to that, she spent three years as a social media marketing manager within the financial institution.

Her resume also include a digital marketing manager’s post at A&E Television Networks, freelance marketing consulting, as well as marketing roles at Shock Entertainment and Festival Mushroom Records.

Epstein was replaced at CommBank by Vanessa Sanford, a former client services director at Ikon Communications, in March.

More NBN Co stories from our sister publication, Computerworld

• No break-up of NBN Co – yet: Turnbull
• NBN Co chief promises ‘aggressive’ push to connect homes
• Possible Telstra competition against NBN Co could upset economic model
• NBN Co’s biggest challenge: Learning to ‘manage success’
• Telstra, NBN Co commence battle over contract dispute

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