Laura Aldington and Jon Austin Join Client Boards to Get Closer to Marketers

As two of Supermassive’s three co-founders join their clients’ boards, Laura Aldington tells LBB getting closer to clients is a way to combat the industry’s ageism; it “keep[s] the grown ups in the room and on the tools.”

Laura recently joined the board of Anni, a digital health and wellbeing community, while co-founder Jon Austin has become an advisory board member at Musicians Making a Difference (MMAD), a charity aiming to help young people through music. 

Laura said a common complaint from clients is a lack of access to senior people, while at the same time, “more and more senior people are leaving the industry on the account of ageism.”

Laura, Jon, and third Supermassive founder, Simone Gupta, have worked across the globe “in almost every category and every channel, solving a version of almost any issue”, so the Supermassive team has faith in its ability to offer senior counsel to clients. Simone, for example, has led the comms charge on Rob Galluzzo and Michael ‘Wippa’ Wipfli’s social media citizenship initiative, 36 Months.

While agency execs taking up board positions in client businesses is unusual, Laura said it feels like a “natural extension” of how Supermassive works.

“We treat all our relationships with the same accountability and responsibility that we would if we sat on their board anyway,” Laura said.

Anna Lee-Renwick, co-founder of Anni, agreed with Laura that the pull of bringing a senior advertising exec onto the board was to embed marketing experience into the business.

“If you think senior talent makes brilliant campaigns, imagine what that talent can do when it’s applied across your entire business at a deeply embedded, organisational level,” she said. “It’s as simple as that. 

“It’s why I find it disappointing that age and experience have never been respected less and required more in the industry. The value of senior talent and experienced leaders beyond a marketing capacity is crystal clear to us.” 

Due to time pressures and lack of resources, agencies have found themselves being reactive rather than proactive, Laura argued. 

“We talk about wanting to be integrated enough in a client’s business to be able to help make the briefs, rather than wait to take them … In the time pressured and resource constricted industry we find ourselves in, I think that has become less common, and many agencies just don’t have the space to do it. 

“Often the advice is inevitably to spend more money with their agency, rather than doing what is actually in the best interests of the brand.”

Laura met Anni’s founders at SXSW in 2023, and it was “love at first sight”, she said.

“I’m in awe of their success and track record in building successful businesses. I was enthralled at the prospect of partnering with them. I love the service and believe it can fill a much needed gap in the wellness space by offering ‘right now’ qualified advice on all manner of things - from sex to sleep, to parenting, relationships and nutrition.”

Similarly to Laura, Jon was “about 17 seconds” into a conversation with MMAD founder, Dominic Brook, when he knew he was onto something special. He is now on its advisory board.  

“My background was originally in music, I want to help Dom make MMAD the world’s most culturally significant NFP. Music is one of the true universal connectors. The potential to harness it to do good is huge, but it’s not easy. A cause like MMAD is too important not to try and amplify.”

Jon was drawn to the role “because I have kids. Because we’re in a mental health crisis. Because too many young people are falling through the cracks. Because I feel like, through a relationship at an organisational level, I can actually help make more of a difference.”

Dominic added he asked Jon to join “because of his unwavering passion to create change, and his extraordinary talent for generating innovative ideas that can shape the future of musicians who want to make a difference.”

Laura took up the position with Anni after 12 months of working together. She said the invitation is an “endorsement of the value we offer from a strategic perspective.” 

“But for me, more selfishly, it is also a huge learning opportunity. 

“I am obviously comfortable in a brand/consumer space after 25 years in the job, but I’m fascinated to learn from the rest of the board, and the brilliant founders of Anni, who have had totally different careers and bring some heavy hitting knowledge and skills to the table in other arenas. I can’t wait.”