Canva co-founder Melanie Perkins and Showpo founder Jane Lu are now two of the most influential Australian chief executives and founders on LinkedIn, joining the likes of e-commerce pioneers Naomi Simson and Ruslan Kogan.
Perkins, who continues to lead graphic design startup Canva through its rapid growth, has this year been included in LinkedIn’s select group of business leaders to have a ‘Power Profile’ — one of the most viewed member profiles on LinkedIn in Australia.
The entrepreneur is one of nine to be included in the list of chief executives and founders with Power Profiles, alongside RedBalloon founding director and Shark Tank judge Naomi Simson, and Ruslan Kogan, founder of the Kogan.com online retail empire.
Simson’s fellow Shark Tank judge Janine Allis is also included on the chief executive and founder list, as is Atlassian co-founder Scott Farquhar and Freelancer chief executive Matt Barrie. Also on the list is Telstra chief executive Andrew Penn, SumoSalad co-founder and chief executive Luke Baylis and Westpac Group chief executive Brian Hartzer.
This year LinkedIn has also chosen to highlight influential leaders in the fashion industry, with Showpo’s Jane Lu making the cut alongside Patrick Schmidt, chief executive of The Iconic, and Cotton On Group chief executive Peter Johnson.
Separate lists have also been compiled for the HR sector and for those in the advertising and marketing industry.
LinkedIn now has more than 9 million members in Australia and more than 500 million members globally.
Naomi Simson, founding director, RedBalloon
Andrew Penn, chief executive, Telstra
Scott Farquhar, co-founder and co-chief executive, Atlassian
Melanie Perkins, co-founder and chief executive, Canva
Matt Barrie, chief executive, Freelancer.com
Brian Hartzer, chief executive, Westpac Group
Janine Allis, founder, Boost Juice
Ruslan Kogan, founder and chief executive, Kogan.com
Luke Baylis, co-founder and chief executive, SumoSalad
Jane Lu, founder and chief executive, Showpo
Nicole Warne, founder and director, Gary Pepper Group
Patrick Schmidt, chief executive, The Iconic
Chris Beer, chief executive and managing director, George and Matilda Eyecare
Ceinwen Evans, head of e-commerce – global, Camilla Australia
Peter Johnson, chief executive Cotton On Group
Alexie O’Brien, general manager, Ozmosis (Rip Curl Group)
Nick Reynolds, chief marketing officer – Asia Pacific, Lenovo
Cavan Brady, brand manager, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Alex Kirk, head of systems and automation, MediaCom
Stephanie Tully, chief marketing officer, Qantas
Andrew Knott, chief marketing officer, National Australia Bank
Jaimes Leggett, group chief executive, M&C Saatchi
Timothy Whitfield, director of technical operations, GroupM
Vittoria Shortt, group executive, marketing and strategy, Commonwealth Bank
Michael Scott, executive general manager of brand strategy and marketing, Myer
Veronica Sargeant, human resources business partner, RB
Katie-Skye McLeod, human resources business partner, Vodafone Australia
Jayne Ward, head of remuneration and benefits, Australia Post
Anouk De Blieck, general manager, HR executive leader, ANZ
Ashley Spowart, learning lead, National Australia Bank
Cassie Sellars, head of people and culture – Oceania, TBWA Australia
Jessica Bilston-Gourley, human resources business partner, Drager.
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Editor
Eloise is an experienced business journalist and editor, who has held senior editorial roles at SmartCompany since 2014. Prior to joining SmartCompany, Eloise was news editor at Books+Publishing, the trade press for the Australian book industry. Eloise has degrees in media and communications, marketing and business management, and political science. You can follow her on LinkedIn, and Twitter at @ellykeating.
