Ciao, I'm Mike. Internationally experienced relationship builder, people connector, thinker & doer. Creative problem solver working with leaders to innovate, grow & scale their business.
Welcome to my little corner on the web. I've gone by many titles but with over 20 years experience across five continents, I consider myself a trusted business advisor helping leaders to grow & scale their business.
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I have a passion for connecting people & brands, and helping leaders turn challenges into opportunities with a human centered approach.
A background building & scaling brands with global advertising & media agencies, as well as leading larger operational, strategic & business transformation programs with management & technology consulting firms.
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Most recently I lived in Venice Beach, California for seven years launching my own Agriculture & Cannabis brand nationwide which I earlier established the manufacturing capabilities whilst living in Vietnam. In parallel I continued helping leaders build brands & startups directly, with venture studios & creative agencies.
A human centered thinker with a very strong backbone in business, marketing & technology, I am now back in Melbourne & would love to grab a coffee, cold beer & chat about how we might work together.
Uniquely positioned with experience working across five continents spanning global advertising, media & creative agencies; technology & management consultancies; startups & brands of all shapes & sizes. Throw in a slice of journalism, photography, medicinal cannabis, celebrity partnerships & ongoing entrepreneurism for flavor.
innovation & growth
CIAO, I'm Mike
Strategy, Innovation & Growth Guy
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A trusted business advisor helping leaders to grow & scale their business.
I have a passion for connecting people and brands and helping leaders create opportunities to grow & scale their business. I've always enjoyed the human side of business—building teams, relationships, and brands along the way. With two decades of experience across five continents, I’ve helped leaders and brands scale with global advertising and experience agencies, as well as leading operational, strategy, and transformation initiatives with management and technology consulting firms.
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Most recently, I spent seven years in Venice Beach, California, launching my own agriculture and cannabis brand nationwide. During this time, I built premium cultivation partnerships, secured celebrity deals, designed innovative products and sub-brands, established a global infrastructure and supply chain, and built a high-value network of some of the most influential cannabis brands worldwide. In parallel, I advised and served as COO/CMO for multiple cannabis and agriculture startups whilst also working with various European and Cali brands on their commercial and GTM strategies, value propositions, business model validation, strategic partnerships, and international expansion.
Previous to living in the US, the majority of my work was split between the advertising space & larger transformation work with consulting practices. On the advertising side, account service, production and strategy work for clients such as Nokia, Adidas, Disney, Finnair, Nordea Bank, Qantas, AMEX, Vodafone, Samsung & Tourism Australia. On the consulting side I worked across large enterprise digital transformation & service design initiatives with brands such as Nokia, Microsoft, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, BMW Group & Service NSW. In both the Advertising & Consulting space, I played a heavy hand in new business and leading 7-8 figure client relationships.
To summarize, a business advisor who utilizes my experience & my network to help you turn challenges into opportunities with a human centered approach.
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My approach draws from experience across a wide range of environments with service design at the core & relationships. It’s about putting people first—more empathy, more ethics, and fostering a culture of innovation where your team can truly think outside the box.
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The world is accelerating at an unprecedented pace. AI, mass data, consumerism, and technology adoption are reshaping industries, often leaving many behind. To stay ahead, we need to rethink the way we work—our processes, operations, and how we connect both internally as an organization and externally with customers, both existing and future.
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With a diverse background spanning various industries & cultures across five continents, I bring a unique breadth of knowledge and experience to every project. Whether integrating into an existing team or embedding deeply within an organization, I offer a nimble, cost-effective alternative to the heavy overhead of large creative agencies or consulting firms.
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Together, we'll ask the questions others may not, explore your organization in ways you simply haven’t had time to, and challenge assumptions to rethink your business from the ground up.
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How would you launch your existing business today if you had to start over again tomorrow?
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I like to deeply understand a potential partner and their business. In the beginning, the focus is on identifying challenges, opportunities, and where you want to go. This means looking at the competitor landscape, your current position, and your future ambitions. It may involve interviews, group sessions, and even stealth competitor research. I also leverage AI and quantitative methods to gather and analyze as much relevant data as possible. The goal? Explore everything—no ideas are too big or too small. This is the Discovery Phase.
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To keep things structured, I lean on the Double Diamond innovation process. You’ve likely seen or used it before with a design team or agency, but don’t worry—it’s just a framework to keep us aligned.
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We use divergent thinking during Discover & Develop phases, where we play, test, ideate, explore, and push boundaries. No idea is off-limits. Then, we shift to convergent thinking in the Define phase, where we filter, refine, and structure solutions into a clear strategic roadmap to be tested.
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Finally, in the Delivery Phase, we continue that convergent thinking whilst we work with your existing design and development teams OR, with a collective of specialists I can bring to the table, to execute on the roadmap we've built together. I will be with you throughout all stages and beyond.
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THE PROCESS
How we will work together creatively...
Double Diamond framework was originally designed by the
British Design Council in 2005. Not used by leading designers & strategists all over the world
MY APPROACH
Human centered with a strong background in business, marketing & technology.
A LITTLE BACKGROUND
SKILLS & STRENGTHS
What you get when we work together...
Innovation, design, marketing & strategy
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Collaborate with leaders to inspire fresh perspectives and drive innovative thinking.​
Facilitate workshops, brainstorming sessions, and educational programs to unlock creativity and solve complex challenges.
Craft strategies that span brand, marketing, design, business, and technology.
Extensive experience in both design, innovation & marketing disciplines working with some of the largest brands in the majority of verticals worldwide.​
Apply multidisciplinary frameworks like design thinking (double diamond) and lean startup, qualitative and quantitative research & insights gathering, business modeling, value proposition design, and solution concept development.
Educated in digital, design, photography and journalism in Melbourne, Sydney & London.
Relationship builder & commercially astute
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Team player & thrive in an environment of collaboration
New business aficionado - a natural relationship builder, enjoy being on the road & excel in performance related environments.​
​Commercially driven with deep expertise in business operations, the economy, global markets, financial planning, and market positioning.
Proven track record of managing and growing 7-9 figure client relationships across a variety of industries and clients delivering value, growth & transformation.
Established strategic partnerships at various levels & across the majority of industries I have worked in. As a relationship builder, I understand the commercial & brand benefit to any given partnership.
Industry-agnostic, adept at understanding & aligning complex stakeholder organizations and requirements across various sectors to ensure project success. Able to bring clarity in deep waters to secure trust.
Program delivery, operations & transformation.
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Led and delivered enterprise technology, marketing and cultural transformation programs from concept to execution, driving large-scale change.
Extensive experience across 75+ markets and 47 languages, impacting billions of users globally.
Built and scaled new capabilities and teams in design, strategy, advertising and technology within global creative agencies and management consultancies.
Expertise in DesignOps, DevOps, integration strategies, M&A, and employee training programs, ensuring smooth transitions and long-term growth.
Delivered agile programs across strategic design, customer experience, AI, MDM, CMS, CRM, cloud, and programming, aligning business goals with cutting-edge technology solutions.
Built operations cross-industry from cultivation operations to corporate operations for multinationals - deep understanding of the complexities of business, compliance & everything in between.
Entrepreneur, thinker, maker & do'er.
Entrepreneurial mindset: Founded and scaled businesses of my own whilst mentoring many other founders & leaders to global success.
Hands-on problem solver with the ability to see the big picture while managing operational details and moving the pieces around a chess board. ​
Experience across advertising & creative agencies, design, management & technology consultancies, global brands, and startups across five continents which brings a unique eye to any project.​
Industry agnostic with extensive experience in Agriculture, Energy, Mobility, Financial Services, Fintech, Big Tech, Aviation & Tourism, Luxury & Consumer Goods, Media, Communications & Entertainment.
A "doer", "hustler" & "getting my hands dirty" type of guy. Always ready to put the extra mile in, no matter what the need.
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EXAMPLES
Both specific case studies of a handful of projects out of 100's that I have delivered, examples of roles where I have built new capabilities for global brands & several of my own projects.
ABOUT
ME.
c'est la vie..
pura vida
be bold & try everything!
I’ve always chosen to be inspired - and I thrive on inspiring greatness in others.
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I believe in equality & inclusivity, giving everyone a fair chance. Simple. Be cool & open the doors for others.
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I've set out to explore life through as many lenses as possible. Experience everything. I am a natural observer and an explorer, dedicated to experiencing the world, immersing myself in diverse cultures, and venturing to places that others might hesitate to go.
I studied design, photography, and journalism in Melbourne, Sydney, and London, which laid my creative foundation from the get go. My passion for observing human behaviour & documenting life began in earlier years. As a photographer, I've work in & published stories on conflict and humanitarian issues in Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Somalia, featured in Al Jazeera, USAID, and Kenya Nation. Whilst living in Nairobi, I also trained journalists across East Africa. Whilst I am not active these days in any journalistic capacity, this passion & knowledge follows me in everything I do.
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I've explored many creative industries - from illustration to advertising, photography to film, and in various areas of the digital space. For seven years, I ran an editorial column on the digital and design space in Scandinavia for Campaign Magazine UK’s Brand Republic, drawing on my experiences working in creative and advertising agencies across the region.
I’m a bit of a thrill seeker or adrenalin junkie one might say... always chasing the edge in both my career and my personal life. I grew up skateboarding and you might still catch me at a skatepark or cruising the boardwalk. I’m passionate about the water, whether it’s sailing, surfing, scuba diving, or simply walking my awesome dog, Sonny, along the beach every morning. I also love the mountains, whether I’m snowboarding, hiking, or riding my motorcycle through the canyons. And the skies are no exception. I’m halfway through my PPL (private pilot’s license) which I began at Santa Monica Airport and I’ve jumped out of a few planes along the way.
I am a creative technologist but equally, I believe in unplugging. The best ideas and creativity often come from beyond the boardroom so I do my best to live a life both online & offline. I encourage you to do so also.
I’m a foodie, drawn to authentic street food and those little unique lane way gems. I love cooking and often use food as a way to connect with teams and clients - breaking down barriers over a shared meal instead of sticking to rigid roles and hierarchies. While it’s harder to do these days with people working remotely, I still make a big effort to build personal connections when I can over beers, coffee or food. Some of my best relationships & projects have come as a result from sharing a meal &/or a few drinks.
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I speak a little Spanish, a little Finnish & bits and pieces from all corners of the world. I've lived and worked on all four corners but I've traveled even more. I grew up in the airlines so some might say I was born with wings... before Redbull!
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And then there’s Sonny, my very spoilt French Bulldog and sidekick of 13 years. She has traveled the world with me, living across Europe, APAC, and North America, and she’s a constant reminder of what’s important in life.
Thats enough about me. Get in touch - lets grab a coffee, a cold beer &/or break some bread over dinner & chat about how we can work together.
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SERVICES
Consulting
I outsource consulting services to larger consulting companies, I work with creative agencies & I work directly with brands helping them to turn problems into challenges, innovate & transform their company across brand, technology, marketing organization & culture.
Advisory / Partnerships
I work with startups, scale ups, founders, accelerators, venture studios & corporate venture capital in a similar capacity to consulting but open to sweat equity, shared revenue & commission models. Whatever fits the idea & partnership. Commercial & go-to market strategies, business model & value proposition design, international growth & investor introductions.
Workshops
Why not give back to your teams and facilitate workshops and training sessions around agile, design & building a culture of innovation. Run workshops to brainstorm new ideas or for a new client pitch. Up skill your teams to help carve a culture of innovation. Affordable & scalable.
Product Development
Beyond consulting, we can utilize my network of awesome & specialists designers and developers to follow through on any strategy and prototype, design your website, build an app, create print materials or marketing assets. I will produce & direct so no strangers.
PARTNERS
"I acknowledge the Traditional Owners & people of the land where we work, live & play. I pay my respects to the Elders past, present and emerging.
I celebrate the stories, cultures and traditions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders in all communities who also work, live & play on this land we all call home. I'd love it if you did also".