Why the Master of Commerce at RMIT?
Economics has long held Hamish’s interest, so when he graduated from a degree in journalism he felt like something was missing.
“Coming out of school, I originally got into a Bachelor of Commerce and switched it at the last minute to journalism,” he said.
“I'm not sure why I did that, but I have always been super interested in economics. I read the AFR (Australian Financial Review) every morning. I just find business and entrepreneurs really interesting.
“I wanted to hone my strategic and critical thinking skills.”
RMIT appealed to Hamish because of the opportunities to connect with industry and to study overseas. He said these two factors proved to be crucial to his career.
“I liked [that] it has a great reputation, it's world class,” he said.
“For me, a big selling point was that there were industry connections and more real-world exposure. I'd also spoken to colleagues and friends who had done their postgrad at RMIT and it felt like it was the right fit for me because I could shape it to what I wanted it to be.”
Career leaps and bounds
After working as a marketing coordinator at Rocket Internet in Shanghai for a few months, Hamish returned home to build his career in marketing. He landed a sales role at Channel Nine for four years and then switched to the REA Group and spent another four years there as an account partner and senior account partner.
In April, Hamish moved to TikTok in the role of client partner, specialising in food, beverage and catering. Joining one of the world’s most popular social media platforms has been a career high for Hamish.
“I'm a big lover of the app, which I got onto in the early stages of COVID when it was a very different platform to what it is now,” he said.
“I knew people that were already at TikTok in the Sydney office. It's a platform I believe in and the element of creativity and entertainment was a big drawcard for me.
“All days are different because we work across different parts of the business, including with creators, clients, advertisers, strategy teams and across market teams in different regions of the world.
“The culture is super agile, fast-paced, but above all things, it's very supportive. I work with some really incredibly smart people and I learn a lot from them.”
Set up for a limitless future
Studying the Master of Commerce gave Hamish a specialised knowledge of local and international markets. The networking opportunities have been the icing on the cake, he said.
“I’m across the alumni channels, which are on LinkedIn, people I've kept in contact with from my master’s and the study tour who have gone off into different directions,” he said.
“It actually taught me the power of networking. It's something that I felt I, now, looking back, I undervalued. Pretty much every role I've had since finishing my master’s has been based on my network.”
With an impressive resume working in start-ups and fast-paced growth companies, Hamish is looking to further establish his skills within sales and the media landscape.
At the same time, he’s aiming to add some meaningful community work into his career.
“I would like to give back more to communities, whether that's within my role or outside of my role,” he said.
“My dad had cancer probably two years ago and he had a very quick kind of battle with it and he died last year. It kind of just sparked something in me where I feel like I can be doing more, being less of an individual contributor.”
“So within the next five years I'd love to be in a position where I can actually give back and not in a tokenistic way.”
Story: Kate Jones
