Hear from Emma on how her work makes an impact on driving a more inclusive and diverse world

20 Nov 2023 Asia PacificAustraliaInclusion and diversityScotchPartnershipsMarketing
Emma ryan

Our big focus on inclusion and diversity, both within the business and also within Emma’s role as the Brand Manager on Johnnie Walker Trademark in Australia specifically, enables her to work on campaigns that are incredibly meaningful and make a tangible difference in the community. Hear from the recent campaign Emma led between Johnnie Walker and the AFLW (Australian Women’s Football League). Learn more here.

Q. Tell us how this collaboration came about and what this involves.

Our world-famous ‘Keep Walking’ philosophy has been a part of Johnnie Walker’s brand world for more than 20 years now, inspiring people around the world with a message of progress and positivity. In the latest chapter of ‘Keep Walking’, we wanted to tap into what progress means to people today – and celebrate the people, platforms and movements who are walking to push Australia forwards, to help make life richer for us all.

Locally we are a sponsor of the AFLW, a league that has only become a national league within the last 8 years (despite many earlier years of trying) and has taken many trailblazing women breaking down barriers to get the league to where it is today. Through this campaign, we wanted to celebrate these women and the positive change that they have created.

In partnership with a local Melbourne designer, we created four individually handcrafted football boots that embody the Spirit of Progress. Crafted from boots worn by 21 trailblazing players in the league’s history, these new boots were gifted to current athletes in the league, to symbolise the bold steps that have been and continue to be taken from one generation to the next.

The four individually handcrafted football boots

Q. What has been your involvement in this project and why does this matter to you?

As the Brand Manager on Johnnie Walker, I build the brand’s fame and iconicity in Australia, to help achieve our goal of becoming a contemporary, luxury icon of spirits.

I’m the project lead of the collaboration. I was responsible for bringing this idea to life, right from the initial idea through to execution. This meant working really collaboratively with our agency village (which included creative agency, media agency, PR & Earned agency), as well as the Partnerships team at the AFLW, and directing the idea to ensure that it’s delivering on our goals and objectives for the campaign, and landing well with our consumers to drive modern meaning into ‘Keep Walking’.

It also meant working at pace to ensure that everything is live in time for the launch, and responding to any speedhumps that come up along the way, of which there will always be a few – especially when working with lots of stakeholders and talent.

It’s the range of projects that I get to work on that is the most exciting thing about my role. Almost every day there is a new challenge to work through, and with an incredible legacy of fantastic marketing, the role really allows me to utilise and grow different skillsets from creative to commercial, and everything in between!

Johnnie Walker Australia Takes Bold Steps In Culture With Aflw Campaign ‘Keep Walking Boldly’

Q. What are you passionate about at Diageo and what excites you about working here?

Having come from an FMCG and Liquor background, Diageo has always been held up as a leader in brand building and its forward-thinking approach, and it’s these things (which have absolutely held true since being here!) that keep me energised, engaged, and motivated daily. Our multitudes of brands come from varying backgrounds and have taken not only resilience and grit to build them into the brands that they are today, but also incredible marketing alongside that.

Working on a 200+-year-old brand like Johnnie Walker, I follow a long line of marketeers (including John Walker and his descendants), who have adapted and innovated with and ahead of the times, to build our brands to the globally-recognised and respected brands that they are today. Doing that requires a willingness to learn, to get a bit uncomfortable, and to constantly look for new opportunities to improve. Working alongside people who also share that mindset means that you are learning from an incredible group of people. 

Meanwhile, since joining I’ve realised that we have so many progressive agendas in place that to me really resonate and mean a lot. For example, Sydney WorldPride was held in Sydney this year (the first WorldPride in the Southern Hemisphere!), and Johnnie Walker was a sponsor (and we are still a sponsor of Sydney Mardi Gras). To bring the partnership to life, we created a campaign that celebrated all identities within the LGBTQIA+ community. This means that we were able to bring voices to identities that are not commonly championed or featured within media, and celebrate the bold steps of these many people leading us all to a more inclusive world.

It’s such a privilege to work on campaigns like this, and being able to drive the agenda in what we create and see in media is so meaningful and so important. It’s opportunities like this that are so valuable and an incredible opportunity as marketers to be at the forefront of marketing and lead campaigns like this.

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