Technology PR company Third Hemisphere has appointed renowned investment and te Alan will continue as co-founder and partner at venture capital firm M8 Ventures, splitting his focus equally between M8 Ventures and Third Hemisphere’s growing portfolio of Australia’s most impactful deep tech and finance companies, fund managers, incubators, accelerators, and tech industry leaders.
He will do so alongside Third Hemisphere founder, Managing Director, and social justice advocate, Hannah Moreno, and impact investor, startup advisor, and Third Hemisphere Executive Director, Jeremy Liddle.
(L-R): Alan Jones, Hannah Moreno, and Jeremy Liddle
The value of the appointment goes far beyond the immense skills and experiences Alan brings to the team, which was already unique in the PR industry given its broader range of expertise in advising and investing in its clients.
Hannah, Jeremy, and Alan are also strongly aligned in their passion for issues such as social justice, climate action, equality, using entrepreneurship and technology to change the world for the better – and the power of storytelling and news media influence to accelerate these pursuits.
Hannah Moreno, founder & MD of Third Hemisphere, said: “Alan is held in incredibly high esteem across the entire tech and investment community, for both his generosity and kind-heartedness, and for his prolific track record in helping to build the Australian tech ecosystem.
“What is lesser known is that he cut his teeth in the media and tech industries back in the 80’s and 90’s as a media relations professional, media firm founder, tech reporter and editor, and senior executive at the likes of Hill & Knowlton, ninemsn, Yahoo!, and IDG Communications.
“Having that breadth and decades of experience is critical to efficiently understanding and then communicating complex technical businesses to media, investors, industry, and the broader public.
“We had already 4x’ed the business since Jeremy brought his financial and business-building expertise to the team four years ago. We believe Alan will help us continue this rate of growth in line with the growth of the tech sector, and as the IPO market picks up again later this year.”
Alan Jones, Tech & Investments Director at Third Hemisphere, said: “Being exposed to so many early- and mid-stage tech startups through my work with M8 Ventures, as a long-time angel investor, and as a mentor in Australia’s best accelerator programs, means I can bring the most current, frontline experience to my advisory work with Third Hemisphere’s clients.
“I’m excited to be joining such an impassioned, talented, and compassionate team, and look forward to elevating and showcasing the work of Third Hemisphere’s rapidly growing portfolio and the broader tech ecosystem even further.”
Third Hemisphere offers public relations, investor communications, investment, and strategic advice for scaleup, pre-IPO, and publicly-listed tech and finance companies.
Its client list has included the likes of MONEYME (ASX:MME), Australian Ethical (ASX:AEF), Cicada Innovations, Volt Bank, SocietyOne, Xref (ASX:XF1), Gelion, HB11 Energy, OMG (OpenMarkets Group), Fishburners, Stone & Chalk, Sydney Angels, Super Fierce, Play Today, and many more.
Alan Jones (the good one)
Alan Jones is Tech & Investments Director at tech & finance specialist PR firm Third Hemisphere, and Partner at venture capital firm, M8 Ventures. He is a renowned Australian tech startup investor, coach, mentor, and founder, with 30+ investments in his personal portfolio including the likes of Canva, Pollenizer, Startmate, and Blackbird Ventures.
He originally cut his teeth in the tech industry in the ’80s and ‘90s as a media relations company founder, media professional, and technology reporter. This included roles at Hill & Knowlton, TEDx, CarsGuide, WordPerfect, and Blackie McDonald managing Australian and international clients including IBM, Austrade, Intel, MSN Australia, Telstra On Australia, Macromedia Asia Pacific, Bay Networks, Macromedia, and Avid Technology.
Alan was the editor of Australian Macworld Magazine, co-founder of digital agency The New Agency, and founder of consultancy Doing Words. He worked at News Digital Media, was Yahoo!’s first product hire in Australia, and produced online editorial at Microsoft Australia for early MSN products in what became ninemsn.
Alan sees 200+ tech investment deals each year as a lifetime ecosystem entrepreneur-in-residence, and boasts a prolific profile among tech startup accelerator programs, incubators, communities, and venture funds. This has included significant involvement in programs such as Startmate, BlueChilli, Catalysr (where he is acting Chair), Remarkable, Moonshot, muruD, Collider, University of Technology Sydney, Monash University, and the Sydney School of Entrepreneurship. Most recently he acted as interim CEO of Australia’s original startup hub, Fishburners.
Alan is a sought-after conference speaker, panelist, and contributor to the Australian Financial Review, The Australian, the ABC, Smart Company, InnovationAus, and Startup Daily. You can argue with him on Twitter at @bigyahu.
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Third Hemisphere: Elevating Innovators and Leaders in Tech and Finance PR
Third Hemisphere is a tech and finance PR company for innovators and leaders who are breaking new ground, and changing the world for the better. We specialise in showcasing the Australian technology, finance, investment, and innovation ecosystem in tier-1 news media. Our vast media network and writing expertise helps create and amplify brand exposure, goodwill, credibility, leadership, and trust for our clients. This helps them to drive results with their investors, customers, partners, and government, allowing them to attract and convert customers, raise funding, win grants, attract quality talent, and secure strategic partnerships for growth.
We invest in our clients and build sustainable value from Seed to IPO and beyond.
