Michelle Guthrie comes to the ABC as Managing Director after a global career as a leading executive in the media industry in Australia, the UK, Asia and the US. She brings to the ABC an impressive range of skills, knowledge and leadership across business management and content development.
Educated in Sydney, Michelle started her career as a lawyer in the media group at Allen Allen and Hemsley advising and acting for clients including Consolidated Press and News Limited. In the early 1990s Michelle worked in Singapore on several corporate assignments before joining News International in London to develop global pay TV businesses, including BSkyB. Her role saw her develop content streams and business plans for a wide range of channels in Europe, Asia and North America and she was instrumental in this period in developing the National Geographic Television brand.
She returned to Sydney in 1998 as Director of Legal and Business Development at the fledgling Foxtel network before relocating to Hong Kong in 2000 for a series of senior roles with Star TV in Asia, developing brands in China, India and Indonesia.
In 2003 Michelle was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Star, replacing James Murdoch, and was responsible for pay TV platforms across the region while overseeing revenues of US$400m.
Michelle left News Corp in 2007 after 17 years with the company and having cemented her reputation as one of its leading media executives.
She spent several years as an equity adviser and investor based in Hong Kong before being lured to Google Asia in 2011, enticed by the opportunity to work in digital media at one of the fastest growing and innovative companies in the sector. In her role at Google as Managing Director for Agencies, Michelle developed business partnerships with key stakeholders and has been instrumental in transitioning Google’s corporate image from a disrupting force in the industry to a highly valued partner for media companies around the world.
Michelle Guthrie comes to the role of ABC Managing Director in May 2016 with a unique vision to lead the broadcaster into the next chapter of its history. She has inherited from her predecessor Mark Scott an organisation renowned for innovation and quality content and is perfectly placed to continue its finest traditions as a public broadcaster while leading it into new directions as a digital media company.
Michelle is based in the ABC’s Ultimo headquarters in Sydney where she lives with her chef and restaurateur husband and youngest daughter.
Check out Michelle on the panel “Australia –Are We Innovating or Stagnating?” at the 2016 Advance Global Australian Summit.
