Human on the Inside Purpose Impact Agency’s Matt Bywater
Human on the Inside. We’re big believers in the power of human skills. But don’t just take our word for it - the evidence for excellence powered by human (‘soft’) skills is everywhere! In this engaging, ever-enlightening series, we speak with industry leaders, innovators and game-changers to learn a little about their personal career journeys, and how human-led strategies, philosophies and cultures are proving a force for good in their working worlds …
Maxme: Welcome Matt, and thanks for stepping into the #SuccessIsHuman Spotlight!
You’re the Co-Founder of Purpose Impact Agency, a purpose-led sponsorship agency designed to help brands and rightsholders increase the affinity and engagement value of their partnerships using your ROI² philosophy. The purpose of ROI² is to provide a robust, transparent, and adaptable sponsorship philosophy and framework that meets the needs of both commercial and social objectives at once.
In 1 sentence (ok, we’ll give you 3), what does your role entail?
Matt Bywater: On paper, I oversee the management and operations of our Purpose-Led Sponsorship Agency. But in reality, my role is to simply help our people maximise their potential, and our clients maximise their partnerships.
M: Whilst you founded Purpose Impact Agency just over 2 years ago, your career is of course much deeper than this. You started out as a Travel Consultant before moving into Corporate Accounts & Partnerships at Etihad Stadium. From here you found a home with AFL taking on a variety of roles across sales and partnerships. Most recently you were the Head of Commercial for North Melbourne Football Club - building up sponsorships, partnerships and community impact.
How does all this work speak to your personal purpose and what drives you as an individual?
MB: Even from the beginning of my career, I got immense joy and personal pride from helping people, and making a positive impact (however big or small) to society.
The thing which became apparent to me first working in Travel, then Sport and Entertainment was how emotionally charged and captivating these industries were.
No matter where you are in the world, people are very passionate and are drawn to these amazing affinity platforms.They connect communities and cultures in a way that not many other things can.
This provided a unique opportunity for me to harness this passion for purpose. Combining my personal goal of making a positive impact whilst at the same time as delivering strong commercial and business outcomes.
M: Tell us a little about your personal education pathway/s - what led you to where you are now? How closely do your formal qualifications match your current career?
MB: It's a really great question and one that is hard to confidently answer.
I did complete a business degree in Sport and Leisure Management at LaTrobe Uni back in the early 2000’s so from a macro perspective, that would make sense.
But I think the experiences and people I met over the journey ultimately led to my growth and the person I am now. This had no connection or correlation to any formal qualifications.
A little off question but what I would say is that I have been unashamedly and authentically “me” which has had a more direct correlation to my career.
I’m very passionate, try to be honest, and often enthusiastically talk too much 😉, but it has allowed others to connect to me and as such have been very generous and helped me over the years. I try to pass this on to everyone I work with.
M: If you could share one piece of career advice to your 21 year old self it would be ...
MB:
1. Cut yourself some slack!! You don’t have to have it all figured out, and even if you think you do, the world is moving so fast you will have to learn and adapt to something new anyway. Be OK with not having all the answers and have an insatiable appetite for growth and learning.
You said one, but I have to say two (sorry).
2. Do what brings you joy, period!! As long as you are kind to yourself and kind to others, chasing a career which brings you joy, keeps you motivated and enthusiastic will ultimately end up in success.
M: Maximising the potential of individuals, communities and businesses through the power of human skills is the reason Maxme exists. Can you tell us a little about the role and / or value of human skills in your workplace right now?
MB: Human skills are critical to our workplace in many ways. Our job is to solve problems using sponsorship. But whether they are business problems or societal problems, understanding the emotional context and personal motivations are so important to how we deliver our work.
We have a motto in our agency about being “passionate, not preachy”. We need to listen, understand, have empathy to ultimately understand the needs of our clients who often require very different things.
Building trust and creating personal connections is paramount to achieving collective objectives.
M: Self Awareness sets the critical foundation for all Maxme learning experiences. With that said … what’s your strongest trait / personal super power?
MB: I care deeply and problem solve confidently.
By this I mean I care deeply about people (not just as colleagues or stakeholders but as humans), care deeply about clients and their goals (not just because it’s good for business but because it meaningfully helps them).
And problem solve confidently in the way that once I know or understand the problem and am emotionally invested, I can often see things in a way that others can’t. The result is generally innovative, creative or “out there” ideas combined with pragmatic and focussed solutions. In my humble opinion, a pretty fun and powerful combo.
M: And on the flip side, what’s one human / ‘soft’ skill you’ve had to really work on improving over the course of your career?
MB: Not sure how much I’ve improved even now (probably a question for others), but one thing in particular has always been a work in progress. It is slowing down and bringing more people on the process and logic flow journey.
What I mean by this (speaking honestly) is that even if I’ve solved a problem or have an idea or I’m listening to someone else solve a problem or idea, I’ll sometimes then jump 3 steps ahead (if you haven’t guessed yet, my super power is also my area of improvement) because I can see the logic flow.
Unfortunately this can sometimes drive others around me a little bonkers (tip of the hat to my incredibly patient and wonderful team) if I’ve not stepped out or slowed the process flow down enough and have jumped into solution before articulating rationale etc.
I too often assume everyone sees what I see or hear.
M: If you could share one piece of career advice with recent Uni graduates or candidates keen to work in Human Resources, what would it be?
MB: Whilst I haven’t worked in a Human Resources role, I’ve hired lots of people and a piece of advice I’ve tried to live by is:
Whilst it’s important to read the resume, it’s very important to read the person. I’ve found the best hires and colleagues are the ones who are just really good people. Technical skills are great but human skills critical to culture and success.
M: You’ve been granted approval to add one University graduate to your team, but have 100 applicants, all with outstanding academic results. How do you find your perfect candidate - what are you looking for?
MB: I’m looking for someone who has the character and emotional intelligence to adapt, work in different environments. Ultimately skills and theory are great but from a graduate perspective my job is to help develop that new team member to achieve all they are looking for.
So I will look to try and find out:
Is this person dependable?
Is this person honest?
Does this person have a willingness and drive to learn and get better?
If I can find a great person, more often than not they turn into a great hire.
M: In the words of John Dewey, “education is not preparation for life, education is life itself.”
What’s next on your #learning agenda?
MB: Two things are high on my learning agenda at the moment (both which correlate to each other):
The future of work, technology and teams. Everything from AI to agile workflow systems and what “outstanding flexible teams” look like. The world is evolving faster than ever I’m really enjoying challenging my own preconceived notions of what future state looks like.
Thriving in uncertainty. Learning how resilience and perspective helps to thrive in less predictable futures whether that be climate, business, education or technology. Uncertainty can sometimes cause anxiety and stress but there is also something magical and opportunistic in the uncertain if you’re willing and open to it.
Matt Bywater
Co-Founder of Purpose Impact Agency
Matt Bywater is a Melbourne-based sponsorship expert with extensive commercial experience across a variety of elite Australian sports and venues. Now as Co-Founder & CEO of Purpose Impact Agency, he helps brands, athletes, rights holders, and governments create impactful, purpose-driven partnerships. Matthew has previously held Senior Commercial roles at North Melbourne Football Club, Australian Football League and Marvel Stadium, specialising in sponsorship, digital and talent growth within the Sport and Entertainment sector.
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