Fiona Johnston’s senior role at dentsu ANZ, the ad holding company’s Australia and New Zealand arm, disappeared in an October 2025 restructure. Nine months later, she has resurfaced as managing director of YarnnUp, a Sydney based consultancy owned and led by First Nations Australians. The business, founded in 2018, counts Tourism Australia, McDonald’s Australia and the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games among its clients.
Her arrival lands as corporate Australia’s Indigenous procurement spending closes in on AU$6 billion a year, the exact market YarnnUp’s founders are counting on their new hire to help capture at scale.
Johnston Takes the Wheel as YarnnUp Scales Nationally
The Australian advertising trade title Campaign Brief first reported the appointment on Monday. YarnnUp said Johnston would oversee day to day management of the business alongside co-founders William Trewlynn and Ray Alam as it scales nationally.
Her mandate covers investment in new services, talent and client partnerships, aimed at growing First Nations representation across Australian companies, according to the announcement.
Johnston brings two decades of media leadership to the role. She spent four years as chief executive of UM Australia, repositioning the agency, before becoming EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) chief growth officer for IPG Mediabrands, the media arm of advertising holding company Interpublic Group.
Stints at MediaCom Australia and Havas EMEA followed. She worked with clients including The Coca-Cola Corporation, Woolworths Group, Optus and PepsiCo International before dentsu recruited her into its ANZ leadership in November 2022.
What Happened to Her Job at Dentsu?
Johnston’s exit from dentsu was not a resignation chasing a new challenge. LBBOnline and AdNews both reported that the holding company made her role redundant in October 2025, folding her position as chief executive for client and commercial and practice president for media into a flatter Australia and New Zealand structure.
Dentsu had appointed Johnston chief client officer of its media portfolio across ANZ in November 2022, working under media chief executive Danny Bass to oversee the Carat, iProspect and dentsu X brands. An earlier restructure moved her into the newly created client and commercial leadership role in April 2024, a role that lasted eighteen months before it, too, was cut.
The overhaul had been underway for some time. Trade outlet Mi3 reported in April 2024 that senior departures, what it called “big scalps,” were mounting as chief executive Patricio De Matteis pushed a new operating plan sixteen months into the job. Dentsu itself framed the changes as a shift toward a new operating model for the region.
Inside a Business Built on 60,000 Years of Knowledge
Founded in 2018 by Trewlynn and Alam, YarnnUp built its founding program blending Aboriginal philosophy with neuroscience into a business the pair now run under the banner “Blending Wisdom, Inspiring Change.”
It now operates two arms. Reconciliation Action Plan development and cultural capability training run under the YarnnUp name, while YarnnUp Collective, its creative and design studio, connects client brands with First Nations artists for commissioned work. Both operate out of a South Eveleigh, Sydney head office.
Its client list also spans Allianz, DHL, QBE, Philips Australia, Seqwater, SAS, The a2 Milk Company and Craveable Brands.
Indigenous Procurement Climbs Past AU$5.8 Billion
Supply Nation, the certification body that verifies Indigenous owned suppliers for corporate and government buyers, recorded AU$5.83 billion in procurement spend with its members in the 2024-25 financial year. That is up more than AU$1 billion on the year before, continuing a run of growth that has compounded for half a decade.
| Financial Year | Verified Procurement Spend | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | AU$3.8 billion | Up 65% on the prior year across Supply Nation member contracts |
| 2023-24 | AU$4.6 billion | Registered and certified suppliers topped 5,000 for the first time |
| 2024-25 | AU$5.83 billion | Up more than AU$1 billion year over year |
The sector’s reach goes well beyond contract values. Indigenous owned businesses contribute more than AU$16 billion to the Australian economy and employ close to 117,000 people, according to National Indigenous Australians Agency data.
Boards Are Turning Reconciliation Pledges Into Contracts
Reconciliation Action Plans are the formal documents Australian employers use to turn Indigenous employment and procurement promises into measurable targets. They sit behind most of the spending growth Supply Nation is tracking.
- Qantas – committed AU$45 million in procurement spend across more than 15 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owned businesses over three years, up from AU$29 million in the 2024 financial year.
- South32 – targeted 2.4% of influenceable spend with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses by 2025, up from 2.1% in 2023.
- Australian Prudential Regulation Authority – signed more than AU$5 million in contracts with Indigenous owned businesses in 2024.
- KPMG – has recommended major suppliers lift their own Indigenous procurement targets from 3% to 5% by 2030.
Federal policy set the floor these companies are building on. Canberra’s Indigenous Procurement Policy requires 3% of government contract spending to go to Indigenous businesses, with mandatory set asides on remote contracts and a minimum participation rule on contracts above AU$7.5 million in some industries.
Founders Eye Cabinet Rooms Next
Trewlynn framed the hire as a change in how the business operates day to day.
We’re sitting on 60,000+ years of knowledge about how to lead, how to relate to one another, how to make good decisions, and I want that in boardrooms and cabinet rooms, treated as real intelligence, not a nice to have on the side.
Trewlynn, YarnnUp’s co-founder and director of creative and culture, said in a statement announcing the appointment.
Alam, the company’s co-founder and director of commercial and strategy, said the business has “always believed our work should create lasting behavioural change, not just tick compliance boxes.” He called the ability to work across cultural differences “a genuine strategic skill, not a soft one,” pointing to more global, diverse markets as the reason it matters more now.
Johnston said she wants the partnership to be “culturally sound, client inspired and commercial success with purpose.”
YarnnUp said several new client wins and initiatives are due to be announced in the coming months.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Much Has Supply Nation Facilitated in Total?
Supply Nation has facilitated close to AU$20 billion in cumulative procurement spend to verified Indigenous owned businesses since it began tracking member contracts.
What Is a Reconciliation Action Plan?
A Reconciliation Action Plan is the framework large employers, including Qantas, South32 and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, use to turn Indigenous employment and procurement commitments into measurable targets rather than informal pledges. It is the mechanism behind most of the corporate spending growth tied to businesses like YarnnUp.
What Does YarnnUp Collective Do Beyond Consulting?
YarnnUp Collective, the business’s creative and design arm, connects client brands directly with First Nations artists for commissioned work, managing the process from early concept sessions through to final production while keeping cultural protocols intact.
When Did YarnnUp Start Working With Philips?
Philips Australia began its reconciliation journey under YarnnUp’s guidance in 2022, one of the earliest of the multinational client relationships the consultancy now counts alongside Allianz, DHL and QBE.
What Did Fiona Johnston Do Before Dentsu?
Johnston spent four years as chief executive of UM Australia repositioning the media agency, then became EMEA chief growth officer for IPG Mediabrands before dentsu recruited her into its ANZ leadership in November 2022.
