Simon Mortlock

About

Growing up, I wanted to become a lawyer. But while working towards my law degree, I realised that writing was my true calling and decided to shift towards a more creative career path. But how? Start blogging and hope for the best? No – as keen as I was to get started, I wanted to learn the ropes first. With an LLB and BA under my belt, I joined a fantastic postgraduate journalism programme in my hometown of Auckland to learn the fundamentals of storytelling. Looking back, I’m glad I got that solid grounding. It’s helped me literally go places in my career. I was lucky enough to spend several years in Singapore (still my favourite city!) as APAC editor of eFinancialCareers, travelling regularly to Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Sydney to interview fascinating people in the financial services and recruitment industries. While covering Asian markets, I wrote an article featuring senior banker Eric Sim. This sparked a writing partnership that eventually led to our collaboration on a career advice book. Co-authoring Small Actions was a true test of my storytelling skills, from chapter 1 all the way to chapter 66. Seeing our hard work pay off has been incredible, as Small Actions found a large readership across Asia and was translated into Chinese and Indonesian. Writing a career book with Eric and absorbing his advice made me reflect on my own path – it was time for my own career reinvention, from business journalism to content marketing and copywriting. While this change has come with challenges, it’s allowed me to apply my writing skills across a much broader range of content, from website to white papers. Most importantly, the transition brought me to where I am today: leading the amazing content team at K2 Partnering Solutions. It’s also widened my skill set, giving me the ability to fuse strategic thinking with storytelling, driving brand growth, deeper engagement, and increased sales. I’m grateful to work for an organisation as innovative and supportive as K2, where I have opportunities to learn new skills and collaborate with exceptionally talented colleagues from around the world.