BotD: OMG junior pay is worst in market, new data suggests; Oops, AI Did It Again; Tarsh Belling exits Triple M after just six weeks
Welcome to Best of the Day. Today: Somebody had to come out the worst in the data on agency pay, and it turned out to be Omnicom Media Group; Triple M offered an implausible reason for why its Sydney breakfast host is leaving after just six weeks; and why we’ll be talking agentic AI at HumAIn.
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HumAIn’s first session to hear from Microsoft CTO on how agentic AI is changing the game for marketing
Cat McGinn, curator of humAIn, writes:
We can today unveil the first session for humAIn, our upcoming conference on AI for media and marketing - and it’s a big one. Sarah Carney, national chief technology officer at Microsoft ANZ, will take the stage to explore one of AI’s most transformative frontiers: agentic AI.
Titled Navigating the Future: Agentic AI for Marketers, the session will focus on how AI is shifting from a tool to an autonomous agent—making decisions, adapting in real time, and fundamentally reshaping consumer interactions. But with these new capabilities come a host of ethical and practical challenges.
Carney, who leads technical strategy, advises enterprise and government clients on emerging technologies, and spearheads responsible AI initiatives at the technology giant, will break down the nuances of agentic AI, as distinct from generative AI and traditional automation, and lay out a framework for responsible implementation. Topics will range from risk mitigation strategies—addressing bias, misinformation, and trust erosion—to real-world applications like hyper-personalisation, AI-driven campaign management, and predictive engagement.
Marketers will also gain actionable insights into how to position their brands within AI ecosystems, ensuring relevance and discoverability as AI-driven agents become central to consumer decision-making.
With AI continuing to evolve at breakneck speed, humAIn’s first session sets the tone for a conference that promises to be an indispensable event for creative industry professionals.
Early bird tickets are available until 25 March.
The day today: OMG kids on skid row; Tarsh’s sudden Triple M exit; Kia’s horse power
Tim Burrowes writes:
Pay packets of the men of McCann and 2GB in the spotlight, while OMG comes bottom for pay
A trove of data from Workplace Gender Equality Agency laid bare not just gender disparities in pay across the media and marketing industry, but also the gulf between entry level salaries and those at the top.
Analysis of the numbers published by Mumbrella this afternoon revealed that the best paid agency staff work at Publicis Sapient, where they earn an average of $168,000. Howatson & Co was a close second. Wellcom paid worst.
Meanwhile, Foxtel is the best paying media owner to work for. Staff at QMS, Domain and Nine’s publishing arm are also all earning north of $150,000 on average.
Among the lowest paid workers, Omnicom Media Group is the most parsimonious, the data suggests, with its bottom quartile of staff earning below $60,000.
Within media, Nine’s 2GB has the biggest skew towards men, with male staff earning 51% more than women. Mamamia, with a 15.7% skew towards women was a rare exception
Within agencies, the IPG-aligned McCann saw salaries skew 30.6% better to men, while fellow IPG agency Initiative had the lowest skew of 3.4%.
Triple M breakfast co-host exits after just six weeks
Triple M’s allergy to luck worsened with Sydney breakfast co-host Natarsha Belling announcing that she is quitting the show after just six weeks on air.
Triple M Breakfast with Beau, Tarsh & Woodsy - which also featured former NRL players Beau Ryan and Aaron Woods - has only been on air since January 20.
In a statement today, Belling said she had suddenly realised she preferred to do journalism and will instead host the afternoon edition of The Briefing.
Last week, Marty Sheargold, who hosted Triple M Drive in Sydney and Brisbane, lost his job after offensive jokes about women’s football and endometriosis.
Kia goes west
Kia launched a western-themed brand ad to promote the launch of its Tasman Ute.
Featuring ex-AFL player Lance Franklin, MMA fighter Alexander Volkanovski, and Paralympian Dylan Alcott, the Innocean ad features the trio teaming up to track an escaped horse.
Vinyl Group has the worst of it on the Unmade Index
Vinyl Group, owner of Mediaweek, Concrete Playground and Variety Australia, took a tumble on the Unmade Index today
The company lost 12% of its market capitalisation to land on $134m on a generally bad day for the Unmade Index.
Seven West Media lost another 3% after dipping by nearly 6% yesterday. Nine lost 1.8%.
With the ASX All Ords losing 0.7% thanks to Donald Trump’s tariff antics, the Index followed the market down. The Unmade Index closed on 553.2, down by 1.06% for the day.
Time to leave you to your evening. We’ll be back with more tomorrow.
Have a great night.
Toodlepip…
Tim Burrowes
Publisher - Unmade + Mumbrella
tim@unmade.media