Mi9 experiences another senior executive departure with loss of CIO Kelly Ferguson
Ferguson: leaving Mi9
Nine’s digital division Mi9 has been hit with another senior leadership departure with the loss of chief information officer, Kelly Ferguson, Mumbrella can reveal.
A spokeswoman for the company confirmed Ferguson’s departure but declined to comment further.
Ferguson’s exit is the latest in a string of departures from Mi9, which has over the past 18 months lost its most of its senior management team amid a restructure that has seen much of its sales and technology functions absorbed into the broader Nine business.
This is a huge loss to Mi9. There is trouble brewing inside that place and a complete leadership restructure is needed.
As someone who has “cheated”….. as an inhouse comms person…..
Sometimes when you have a small, “quick and dirty” job you want done..you have an internal client who needs something small, cheap and of course , last minute… So .. You know what you want and how you want it done…. But yr lil heart just sinks at the thought of all the BS yr going to have to go thru with yr agency to get what yr want….and in the end “they” won’t actually allow you to have want you want…. So you cheat.
A small one/ two/ five band group will LISTEN to the brief, THINK, offer ideas that ARE an improvement (not just about ego and showing who is in control)….
And it’s a small job…. So internally no need for procurement or oversight…. The internal client just wants something that’s gonna work, and will be delivered quickly…
And yeah, before long the small, receptive, clever, quick and EASY TO WORK with small outsider team gets more and more work. As an internal comms person you find ways to break up a big job into pieces, so it can go to the team who,will get the job done, rather than to The Agency, who are gonna give you pain, and take forever, and give you attitude all the while ……
Just sayin
The ship is sinking and the crew are abandoning ship!
Leadership, or lack-there-of issue????
This is not being filled “internally”, it’s being filled by another “Nine” person. We’ve lost our digital independence. This is a bad move. It’s a sinking ship over here.
I totally agree with last comment. A big loss to a business that can’t afford it!
Not a great place to work. But this is a big loss.
Off the back of a bunch of poor decisions this is the first smart thing NEC has done.
NEC does however need a complete leadership restructure, digital business being run by a bunch of TV business, never going to work.
Well its only a catch up TV business anyway, only needs a few TV blokes flogging spots? !
Was bound to happen and frankly needed to. There was a strategy of delivery tech without a tie in to the commercial model of the business. For everything claimed in public behind the scenes was never a reflection, paying large sums of cash to people doesn’t make them effective. Hire some external talent and listen to them, otherwise hold your breath as the ship goes under. The exodus is no surprise but its the best thing, whether it forced of voluntary. An ex market leader stuck together with bandaids and as solid as a house of cards.
Kelly is a huge loss for 9, not a surprise to see her go. She was a forthright leader who spoke her mind and knew how to get s**t done, clearly this flies in the face of the old school regime at 9! Best leader and mentor I’ve ever worked with and for. Now the big question for me…where will she go and how can I find a job working on her team?
Strewth. With so many ‘insiders’ expressing their discontent, they should be looking for a Chief Morale Officer. It’s the least they could do for the poor bastards left peddling increasingly irrelevant ‘content.’
Wow, this is a huge loss for Mi9. Since Nine took over the business, they’ve basically been undoing all the innovation they’ve done in recent years. Absolute brain drain over there — all the talent is bailing and pretty soon the only thing left will be a few empty suits.
The sooner companies like NEC realise they are a content business and unite around that singular vision, the better for them to survive in this volatile industry. Going by the ‘insider’ comments, Mi9 leadership was leading a bunch of people away from such a vision and pertuating silos.. Good change for NEC then in my book
Mmmmmm
Sorry. There is a comment about ‘delivery tech without a tie in to strategy’ obviously the person who wrote this has no idea what they are talking about. Efficient/flexible technology is what has been put in place. The concern now is that old school 9 technology leadership will struggle to continue on this path.