Our Team

Grant Baldock

managing director & Co-founder

With over 25 years in sports administration, Grant brings strategic insight and practical know-how to every project. He’s held senior roles at Swimming Australia and Surf Life Saving Australia, and served as CEO of Equestrian Australia, leading one of the country’s major national sporting organisations.

Grant’s experience spans sponsorship, broadcast and revenue diversification for iconic events like the Kellogg’s Nutri-Grain Ironman Series and FINA World Championships. Grant’s communication style is both precise and persuasive, earning trust across the full spectrum of sport and business.

Lauren Ryan

managing director & Co-founder

Lauren is a trusted advisor in strategic communications, known for her ability to translate complex challenges into practical plans. With deep expertise in media strategy, stakeholder engagement, and crisis communications, Lauren supports clients in navigating high-pressure environments with precision and calm. Lauren’s background across high-profile brands and emergency service organisations, including Surf Life Saving Australia has equipped her with extensive experience in issues management and crisis response planning. Additionally, she has served as a media liaison officer for the Australian Olympic Committee across five Olympic Games and Australian Paralympic Committee at two Paralympic Games, managing global media relations on sport’s biggest stage.

Phoebe Makin

Senior account manager

Phoebe brings valuable sport insight from both personal and professional experience. With a Bachelor in Public Relations and Communication from Griffith University, she’s passionate about sport PR and digital media. At Beyond the Break, Phoebe supports client media plans, grows digital footprints, creates content, and manages PR for key campaigns. She worked for the Australian Olympic Team as a media liaison officer at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and Australian Commonwealth Games Team at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Stacey Mair

Senior Communications manager

Stacey brings deep experience across both sides of the media and communications landscape, starting as a sport and news journalist before leading media for the English Institute of Sport in the UK. She’s built a long career in media relations and issues management across major sporting organisations including AFL, Rugby, Swimming Australia, NBL, PGA Australia, and the Queensland Academy of Sport, with roles at multiple Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games. Beyond sport, Stacey has led communications and crisis response for Victoria Police, Queensland and Victorian Governments, and industries spanning hospitality, tourism and education.

Michelle Cook

Senior account manager

Michelle has over 15 years’ experience in sport, spanning national and international events. She’s led marketing and communications activities for the National Sporting Organisations of tennis, rowing, equestrian, and the Olympic Winter Institute, and served as a media liaison officer for the Australian Olympic Team at three Olympic Games. Michelle was senior marketing manager for Invictus Games Sydney 2018 and ran PR for the inaugural ATP Cup in 2020. She’s now an established leader in sport communications, known for her strategic insight and creative approach. More recently, Michelle completed a graduate diploma in education, specialising in digital technology.

Andrew Bryan

Senior Account Manager

Andrew is a highly skilled digital marketing and media professional with almost two decades of experience working across high level brands including the National Rugby League, Telstra, Commonwealth Games, Australian Kangaroos, NSW Blues, Bond University, Brisbane Broncos and Gold Coast Suns.  

He has travelled the globe working in sport and specialises in communication and engagement strategy, creating long-term digital and marketing strategies, leading content creation, social media strategy, story-telling and analysing performance.

beth newman

Senior Account Manager

Beth is a journalist, editor and social media strategist with more than a decade of experience in the digital news and sports landscape. She brings a breadth of knowledge from her time working for sporting organisations including Rugby Australia and AFL Queensland as well as with major news outlets such as the Sydney Morning Herald, News Corp Australia and the ABC.

Beth is highly skilled in content production and strategy, helping organisations grow their engagement and brand recognition on owned and third party channels, with an audience-first approach to storytelling.

zanna christian

Client Services Manager

With nearly two decades of diverse experience spanning Surf Life Saving Australia, Government, corporate, and not-for-profit sectors. Zanna brings a unique lens to her role as Client Services Manager. Throughout her career, she has masterfully bridged the gaps between marketing, stakeholder engagement, and complex operations to deliver seamless, impactful results.

Known for her ability to build trust and navigate fast paced, multi-layered environments, Zanna is dedicated to ensuring our clients receive exceptional, strategic support. Her multidisciplinary background allows her to understand the unique pressures our clients face and deliver tailored solutions that drive success from grass roots to the executive level.

Olivia Silk

marketing & digital media executive

Olivia is a versatile marketer with experience across the Australian and UK media landscape. With a Journalism degree and five years in marketing, she’s passionate about storytelling and excited to contribute to sport and community media. At Beyond the Break, Olivia supports day-to-day marketing operations, coordinates content and campaign delivery, collaborates with suppliers, and engages in major events and promotions. She’s previously worked in franchise marketing in both countries and was a Marketing & Communications intern for the Sydney Sixers during the 2017–2018 Big Bash League season.

emily arthur

Pr & Content Coordinator

Emily joins the Beyond the Break team after recently retiring from her Olympic career, where she represented Australia in snowboard halfpipe at PyeongChang 2018, Beijing 2022 and Milano Cortina 2026. She was also Australia’s flag bearer at the Lillehammer 2016 Youth Olympic Games, where she won silver. 

She brings to the team first hand knowledge of the Olympic sporting environment, and what it takes to tap into the hidden stories within the sporting world. 

Over the years she has been an ambassador for brands including Subaru Australia, ROXY Global, Oakley Australia and Hydro Flask, and an avid content creator in her own right. 

Emily’s years competing on the world stage sparked a passion for storytelling, media and broadcast and a desire to help share sporting stories. At Beyond the Break, she brings an athlete’s perspective to every project and has already helped deliver major campaigns including the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup Finals in Sydney across content creation, media relations and campaign management. 

harry wedgwood

video and content coodrinator

Harry is a filmmaker with a passion for sport and a bachelor degree in film. With experience across drama, documentary, experimental and client-based production, he brings a versatile skill set from production through to post. At Beyond the Break, Harry combines his love of sport and storytelling to create high-quality digital video content that engages audiences and champions sporting communities. His multifaceted approach and technical expertise ensure each project is crafted with purpose, creativity and impact.

Tamara Badenoch

Projects administrator

Tamara is a skilled projects administrator with a strong track record in successful delivery. She joined Beyond the Break after years in government and not-for-profit roles focused on policy analysis and strategy development. At BTB, Tamara supports the team across all clients and business areas, assisting with project delivery, events, commercial operations and audits. She’s passionate about finding solutions and maximising value for clients and stakeholders, drawing on her broad experience across multiple industries to help shape effective strategies and recommendations.