About Us

Penny Burke, the Director of Essence, has worked in marketing and advertising in Melbourne, Sydney and London for all her 25 years in the workforce. Prior to starting Essence Communications, she spent 12 years at Clemenger BBDO as Strategy Planning Director, overseeing strategic developments for major communications projects. She holds a Bachelor of Business (Marketing), and has lectured and tutored at Melbourne Universities such as RMIT, Monash and Swinburne. She also sits on the board of Kennards Hire, a privately owned tool hire company, and is a full member of the Australian Market & Social Research Society (AMSRS).

Penny began the Essence consultancy after many years experience with a wide range of projects, large and small, in a range of sectors from traditional packaged goods and retail to services and social marketing. Her experience in Government in particular has given her an appreciation of the importance of stakeholders - how to identify and manage them in a positive way that adds to a communications project rather than disrupts it.

Essence combines theoretical models of marketing with practical experience and sensitivity. Penny and her consultants conduct many focus groups with various demographics each year, and are keenly aware of the drivers of segment stereotypes.

Penny also facilitates a large number of workshops and strategy meetings for a range of clients, and has a particular skill in getting agreement and forward direction from disparate members of a team.

Penny and her team are change agents, keen to explore new boundaries and horizons and find better ways to do things. They bring fresh eyes, intuition and grounded thought to a scenario. In identifying the key issues logically and debating them articulately, they'll help you develop a way forward and form a plan of action encompassing key stakeholders.