A comprehensive list of corporate credits, supported by candid comments on major challenges faced and key results achieved.

• ANZ Funds Management ‘Explore Your Financial Freedom’ investor lifecycle information brochure  (“Wealth. It means different things to each of us. We all do different things with it. We are all at different stages of generating or spending it. Yet, one way or another, it is very important to us all.” This booklet was designed to help people to make the most of the many wealth creation opportunities they will meet throughout their life – preferably using investment products and advice available from ANZ.)

• Arris Group corporate name, identity and web site (Proposed a name that reflects the fact that the company is an interface between first-class property assets and savvy tenants and investors. Created a logo that is directional and aspirational, as well as architecturally sound. Built a web site that succinctly describes Arris Group’s heritage, aspirations and resources. Made sure every visitor to the site gets the message that Arris Group is one of the most capable and forward-looking property developers in town.)

• Australian Prime Property Fund corporate video/profile (“Think global, act local”: Lend Lease Corporation chairman and CEO Stuart Hornery practised what he preached. Escorted by various Lend Lease executives from around the world, he used this video as the basis for an international road-show designed to sell this newly-created property-investment vehicle to the leading US and UK institutional investors.)

• Australian Stock Exchange ‘How to Assess a New Share Float’ course notes (Every audience, everywhere, wants the messages pitched at them to be clear, uncluttered and precise. With this in mind, the recently-privatised Australian Stock Exchange Limited asked for help and advice.)

• Australian Stock Exchange ‘How to Plan Your Investment Portfolio’ course notes 

• Australian Stock Exchange ‘How to Manage Your Own Super Fund’ course notes 

• Australian Stock Exchange ‘Investing in Interest Rate Securities’ launch brochure 

• Australian Stock Exchange ‘Developing Your Investment Portfolio’ course notes 

• Australian Stock Exchange ‘Getting Started in the Sharemarket’ course notes 

• Australian Stock Exchange ‘Tracking Your Sharemarket Investment’ course notes 

• Australian Surgical Design & Manufacture web site (Wrote, designed and built a web site that showcases ASDM’s world-leading technologies, products and capabilities. For the first time, an accessible, compelling description of ASDM’s capabilities was out there in the market. Hospitals and surgeons from Vaucluse to Vladivostok were taking note.)

• Bankers Trust Australia Annual Report 1989 (As a subsidiary of Bankers Trust of America, Bankers Trust Australia was not obliged to produce an annual report. It chose to do so, however, primarily as a self-promotional exercise. Featuring a keynote address penned by managing director, Rob Ferguson, the report included operational highlights of each division of the bank: all of which needed editing to ensure consistency, clarity and accessibility.)

• Bankers Trust Australia Annual Report 1990

• Bankers Trust Australia Annual Report 1991

• Bankers Trust Australia (Hong Kong) 1996 high net worth retail investor brochure (This document was designed to convince wealthy Chinese readers that Bankers Trust Australia’s personal investment advice and services were [at least] as good as gold.)

• Bankers Trust Life Master Superannuation Fund brochure  (Statutory requirements can make brochures like these very heavy going. This job required the key material to be rearranged to give key points the right emphasis and make them easy to understand.)

• Bankers Trust Life Personal Super Bond brochure 

• Bankers Trust Life Personal Super Bond press ad. campaign (Developed the concept, commissioned the illustrator, wrote the copy, achieved the client’s objective.)

 BT Financial Services BT Lifetime Trust prospectus (BT Financial Services was a nascent brand at this point. This product played a key role in creating the retail market awareness that the bank enjoys today.)

• BT Financial Services ‘Four Easy Steps to Retirement’ (The idea behind this series was to help the audience to reach a fuller understanding of financial issues and the options available to them by following that evergreen Aristotelian maxim: teach and delight.)

• BT Financial Services ‘Five Easy Steps to Managing Your Personal Finances’

• BT Financial Services ‘Six Easy Steps to Rollovers’

• BT Financial Services ‘Seven Easy Steps to Investment’

• BT Financial Services ‘Eight Easy Steps to Superannuation’

• BT Investment Selection prospectus (Some banks provide ‘vanilla’ products. Others aim higher than that. BT deliberately pitched its services above the mean. One of its strengths was its willingness to acknowledge its targets’ ability to make sensible decisions about the investments they required to make a success of their lives. This publication was a case in point.)

• BT Private Investment Fund prospectus (Targeted at individuals with a net worth of five million dollars plus.)

• BT Private Investment Asset Selection Fund prospectus

 BT Property Trust Annual Report 1992 (The creation and maintenance of an asset’s value is all about the management of investors’ perceptions. Get the copy right in a document like this and you’ll go a long way to getting the desired investor response.)

• BT Property Trust Annual Report 1993

• BT Split Property Trust Prospectus 

• Banks Group web site (Wrote, designed and built a web site that reflects the dynamism, commitment and enthusiasm of this Melbourne-based, mid-sized, accounting-and-business-services firm. Animated their paper-chain mascot which represents their close connection with their clients. Used that mascot to reinforce the Group’s dedication to being ‘Your link to business success’. Replaced the standard accountants’ tortured prose with crisp, informative copy. Made the site a pleasurable experience for all visitors, regardless of their browser type.)

• Billabong International Limited “Blue Horizon” surf movie, winner of the worldwide Fédération Internationale Cinéma Télévision Sportifs’ Best Sports Documentary Award 2004, and Best Film and Best Documentary at the X-Dance Sports Film Festival in Utah USA in 2005 (Wrote the script for this 90-minute film about the trials and tribulations experienced by defending first-time world champion, Andy Irons [Hawaii], throughout the World Championship Tour 2003. Contrasted Irons’ character, experiences and value as a role model with those of Billabong-sponsored free-surfer, Australia’s David ‘Rasta’ Rastovitch.)

• Capital Corporation project management intranet (Designed and built a powerful web-based system for this major Sydney-based property developer that enabled agents to check register sales in multiple developments via the net, and Capital directors to check the progress of sales around the clock, from anywhere in the world.)

• Coca-Cola Amatil Annual Report 1988 (Like a boxer, CCA’s finance director – who managed this job from the client side – was always careful not to telegraph the company’s punches. As a result, CCA annual reports trod a fine line between keeping CCA investors up to speed with the company’s achievements and prospects, and keeping its competitors in the dark about its intentions.)

• Coca-Cola Amatil Annual Report 1989

• Coca-Cola Amatil Annual Report 1990

• Coca-Cola Amatil Annual Report 1991

• Commonwealth Bank of Australia public share offer prospectus (Producing a document like this, for an institution like this, is a massive undertaking. Edited the copy, liaised with the client, briefed the illustrator, directed the graphic designer. Eventually checked the 1.5 million-copy print-run on the press at 3am.)

• Financial Institutions Commission of NSW 1996 Annual Report

• Financial Institutions Commission of NSW 1997 Annual Report

• General Property Trust Annual Report 1988 (GPT, the first listed property trust in Australia, was the brainchild of Dick Dusseldorp and Lend Lease Corporation. This report’s primary job was to keep unitholders informed about management’s decision to diversify the Trust’s portfolio of predominantly super-prime commercial assets by moving further into dominant regional retail centres.)

• General Property Trust Annual Report 1989

• General Property Trust Annual Report 1990

• General Property Trust Annual Report 1991

• John Fairfax Holdings Public Share Offer Prospectus (While the copy flies back and forth between corporate advisers, bevies of lawyers, executives, directors and numerous others, someone has to make sure that the designers, art directors and every other member of the production team keep their minds sharply focused on the product and meeting the non-negotiable delivery date.)

• Just Group Annual Report 2004 (When they talk about growth at Just Group, they do so from a number of different perspectives: sales growth, profit growth, same-store growth, gross-margin growth and growth in absolute numbers of new stores. But equally importantly, they also talk about in terms of increased opportunity for their people, each of whom has the opportunity to develop a challenging and rewarding career within this diverse and expanding company.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Annual Report 1988 (With founding chairman Dick Dusseldorp retiring, and chairman-designate Stuart Hornery taking over, this report emphasised the counter-cyclical compatibility of Lend Lease’s financial and property services groups, the consistency of Lend Lease’s profit growth, and the youth, breadth and depth of the Lend Lease team.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Annual Report 1989 (Having achieved an excellent balance as an integrated property and financial services group, Lend Lease was now well placed to produce sustained growth throughout all stages of the economic cycle.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Annual Report 1990 (The secure income guaranteed by a broad range of property, life insurance and financial services agreements provided Lend Lease with an excellent platform from which to expand over the next decade.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Annual Report 1991 (1991 was a challenging year for all Australian companies, no less so for Lend Lease. However, despite the recession and a downturn in the property markets, the Group’s record for steadily increasing profits was maintained.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Annual Report 1992 (By 1992, Lend Lease had grown into a fully-integrated property and financial services group. This year, 66 per cent of after tax profits came from financial services. Lend Lease had clearly travelled a long way since its inception as a property company in the early 1950s.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Annual Report 2004 (In a successful attempt to win a competitive pitch for their fourth consecutive Lend Lease annual report, Billy Blue Creative asked me to draw on my knowledge of the corporation and annual reports to write cover themes and opening/positioning statements for the next three years.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Managing Director’s Report to Shareholders at 1988 Annual General Meeting (Working closely with the managing director on the design and content of the annual report provided a solid basis for writing his oral summary.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Managing Director’s Report to Shareholders at 1989 Annual General Meeting (Having achieved an excellent balance as an integrated property and financial services group, Lend Lease was now well placed to produce sustained growth throughout all stages of the economic cycle.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Managing Director’s Report to Shareholders at 1990 Annual General Meeting (The secure income guaranteed by a broad range of property, life insurance and financial services agreements provided Lend Lease with an excellent platform from which to expand over the next decade.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Managing Director’s Report to Shareholders at 1991 Annual General Meeting (1991 was a challenging year for all Australian companies, no less so for Lend Lease. However, despite the recession and a downturn in the property markets, the Group’s record for steadily increasing profits was maintained.)

• Lend Lease Corporation Managing Director’s Report to Shareholders at 1992 Annual General Meeting (By 1992, Lend Lease had grown into a fully integrated property and financial services group. This year, 66 per cent of after tax profits came from financial services. Lend Lease had clearly travelled a long way since its inception as a property company in the early 1950s.)

• Lend Lease Corporation CEO’s address to Securities Institute of Australia ‘Lend Lease: Two Interlinked Businesses’ (Managing director John Morschel wanted the investment community to understand why Lend Lease, a property services company, was so pleased to have purchased a relatively stable source of income in the form of the MLC Life and MLC Insurance companies.)

• Lend Lease International plc corporate profile (This publication was designed to prompt the investor support Lend Lease required to realise its international property investment management aspirations.)

• Mercantile Mutual 1996 Annual Report

• Mercantile Mutual 1997 Annual Report

• Murlan Group corporate identity (The brief was to create a name and identity for a property development company founded by internationally-renowned yachtsman Iain Murray. The solution involved inventing a word that plays on Murray’s high-profile name. And designing a logo that suggests a series of rooftops and a pair of racing yachts.)

• Price Waterhouse ‘Positioning Handbook’ (Prior to its merger with Coopers & Lybrand, Price Waterhouse was determined to distinguish itself from the rest of The Big Five international accounting firms by becoming The Big One. This handbook encouraged partners and staff to adopt the thoughts and practices that were believed to be required.)

• Price Waterhouse Sydney Olympics 2000 fact sheet

• Price Waterhouse ‘Position’ quarterly internal magazine – creator, researcher, copywriter, creative director, project manager 1994 (At this point, Price Waterhouse was determined to distinguish itself from the rest of The Big Five international accounting firms by becoming The Big One. This publication celebrated the thoughts and practices that were believed to be required.)

• SG Australia corporate press advertising campaign (A national double-page/single-page press campaign describing the breadth and depth of SG’s multiple strengths: trust [Advisory], composure [Risk Management], innovation [Financial Markets], pioneers [Structured Finance].)

• SG Australia Warrants initial ASX-listing press advertising campaign (This campaign helped SG Australia to establish a very firm foothold in an emerging market in which it subsequently became one of the dominant players.)

• SG Australia Electricity Markets capability document 

• SG Australia Greenhouse Emissions Credits Trading capability document 

• SG Australia Minerals and Mining industry services capability document 

• SG Hambros corporate profile 

• State Bank of NSW ‘Viridian’ product launch brochures (Viridian was the first of the flexible mortgage overdraft redraw and interest charge off-set accounts now promoted actively by many financial institutions.)

• St.George Bank Annual Report 1992

• St.George Bank Annual Report 1996

• Sydney Airports Corporation Limited Annual Report 2001 (In addition to meeting SACL’s reporting requirements, this document was written and designed to entice the highest possible bids from the consortia vying to buy this company from the Australian Government prior to September 11. Unfortunately, the privatisation process collapsed almost as quickly as the World Trade Centre towers in the wake of the infamous terrorist attack.)

• Sydney Airports Corporation Limited Annual Report 2002 (After September 11, SACL acted quickly to improve its operating procedures and overall cost structure, building a firm foundation for sustained profit and business growth. On 25 June 2002, the Commonwealth Government announced the sale of Sydney Airport to the Southern Cross Airports Corporation consortium for $5.588 billion.)

• Sydney 2000 Olympics Bid official submission to International Olympic Committee (If this bid failed, these volumes would sink without a trace. If it succeeded, however, this writer reasoned it could confer a degree of legitimacy on its authors. Thankfully, the latter seems to have been the case.)

• Time Magazine Australia White Hot in LilleHammer (Researched and wrote the editorial for this 16-page special advertising section on the XVII Winter Olympics published in the issue dated 23 August 1993.)

• Time Magazine Australia – One Month to Go (Researched and wrote the editorial for this 18-page special advertising section on the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics published in the issue dated 14 February 1994.)

• Virgin Blue Annual Report 2004 (To celebrate its achievements since its recent ASX listing, this young and ambitious airline was looking to produce a report that reflected its personality and clearly distinguished itself from its major rival. The solution was an informal, tabloid-format, magazine-style publication that informed institutional, investors, entertained retail shareholders and put the airline firmly on the Australian aviation map.)

• Westpac Banking Corporation Sydney 2000 Olympics Sponsorship Proposal (Banking Category)

• Westpac Banking Corporation Institutional and International Banking Group recruitment brochure 

• Westpac Banking Corporation Institutional and International Banking Group corporate profile 

• Woolworths Limited 1996 Annual Report

• Woolworths Limited 1997 Annual Report

• Woolworths Limited 1998 Annual Report

A long list of corporate credits – features candid comments on major challenges faced and key results achieved.