Former Westpac CIO Bob McKinnon joins Sprooki

Former Westpac CIO, Bob McKinnon, has joined the board of tech start-up Sprooki as its new chairman.

McKinnon, who has more than 40 years’ experience in business, governance, finance and technology, has held roles as CIO and Group Executive, Technology for both Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac Group, Joint MD and CFO Multiplex Group and CFO of MLC and Lend Lease.

The banking heavyweight joins the board of Sprooki, a shopper engagement platform which lets retailers and shopping precincts attract customers and build revenue.

Founded in Singapore in 2011 by Australians Claire Mula and Michael Gethen, the location-based mobile engagement platform has already been rolled out in 70 shopping malls and more than 3500 retailers in South East Asia.

The shopping platform will be deployed for the first time in Australia at Sydney’s Manly Wharf precinct thanks to a partnership with Invigor Group. Manly Wharf tenants, local businesses and high-profile brands will shortly be able to engage with nearby visitors on their smartphones using the Sprooki shopper engagement platform, which includes features such as location-targeted messaging, predictive recommendations, mobile vouchers, m-commerce, and digital loyalty cards.

McKinnon said he was excited to join the company as it expanded ‘back home’ to Australia.

“Sprooki’s exciting and innovative shopper engagement platform instantly piqued my interest, and I’m excited to join the board at a time when the company is well positioned for aggressive future growth,” McKinnon said. McKinnon will be joined on the board by Jack Hanrahan, who will take on the role of non-executive director.

Hanrahan, who recently completed an eight-year role as general manager of retailer relations at Scentre Group Limited, an ASX-listed company with a portfolio of more than 40 retail shopping centres across Australia and New Zealand. Hanrahan said he was looking forward to bring a deep understanding of retail trends, technologies and strategies, honed over 30 years in the retail industry, to his independent non-executive director role at Sprooki.

He is also a former general manager of Vodafone Australia and CEO of water recycling company Aquareuse Limited.

“Sprooki’s product addresses many challenges faced by today’s retail sector and plugs straight into Asia Pacific’s growing mobile-first shopper behaviour. I’m delighted to work with the Sprooki board and management team to influence the company’s growth strategy and opportunities going forward,” Hanrahan said.