Sales executive Cathy O’Connor will step into the role of chief executive at oOh!media early next year.
Brendon Cook, founder and current chief executive, will step down after more than 30 years running the business. He will stay on as a consultant until at least the end of 2021.
O’Connor has 35 years’ experience in media organisations. She spent the last 12 years as chief executive of Nova Entertainment Group. Tony Faure, oOh!media board chairman, says, “The Board was pleased to be able to attract a high-quality field of candidates. After significant consideration, we felt Cathy was the ideal person to lead oOh! in its next stage of growth.
“We would also like to place on record our thanks to Brendon for his continued commitment and professionalism in navigating through the pandemic, and for agreeing to stay on until the end of this year.
“Cathy, who is highly regarded by the industry, brings extensive experience as a leader of successful media organisations. In her most recent role at Nova, she has created significant value.
“She brings a range of qualities which we felt were suited to taking the business through its next stage of growth. In particular her proven success in steering a media sales organisation; leading the technology strategy; and driving organic growth initiatives, even in the most challenging of environments.
“Cathy has a balanced and engaging leadership style and brings a number of other qualities that we felt were important for the business. She has a demonstrated ability to drive efficiencies, develop great teams, and build strong networks in both the corporate and agency environments.”
Strong prospects
O’Connor looks forward to taking up the role. She says, “Despite the challenges of 2020, the Out of Home sector is an exciting place to be in. It offers strong prospects and increasing prominence in a digital future.
“oOh!media is a great business with an extensive national reach. It is backed by leading data smarts and a fantastic team of professionals that are the best in their field.
“I look forward to joining the team and building on oOh!’s success and guiding its next phase of growth.”
