Calling Operator with Laura Nicol Ep 43. Sophie McKay on Launching Tech Brands Across Asia-Pacific—Qualtrics to Notion
**Join us at our first-ever podcast meetup in Sydney. Info below**
Today, I'm connecting with Sophie Mckay, Head of Marketing, Asia Pacific and Japan at Notion.
Sophie’s career has been all about scaling tech brands across the Asia-Pacific region (APAC). Before joining Notion six months ago, she spent almost a decade at Qualtrics—starting as the first marketing hire in APAC and growing the team to 17, launching across six regions. In her words: “Every country or region we went into felt like a startup within a startup.”
Now, she’s crafting Notion’s brand story and building her dream marketing team for APAC.
In this episode, we dial into:
- Balancing a high-growth tech career with life as a mum to two young boys (3 and 5) and a pilot husband who’s often in the sky. Sophie shares how she makes it work.
- Could Sydney become “Silicon Sands”? Sophie weighs in.
- Why she loves launching companies across APAC—and the three-part strategy that sets her up for success every time.
- Notion's Australian takeover: A front-row seat to Sophie's "launch moment" (and why community love is everything).
- Her first 30 days at Notion: How she left onboarding in San Francisco with a fully approved marketing plan, ready to roll the moment she landed back in Sydney.
- Leading cross-cultural teams and appreciating the nuances of a region's go-to-market motion.
- Building things from scratch: The signals that tell you it’s time to scale or pivot
- Hiring philosophy: Why you should always recruit someone who "scares you" (and why Sophie spent 18 months finding a first marketing hire).
- Finding Nemo wisdom: "Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming" (and remember you're not saving lives).
- Joy as a metric: "Startups are full on. Just make sure you’re always having a really good laugh every single day. If you're not, change up what you're doing."
- Operator shoutout: Carrie Ball, Talent Acquisition Lead APAC at Rippling. "What really stands out is how she brings a human element to the recruitment process. Her posts are hilarious—and honestly, I think she’d be such a fun guest to have on the podcast to talk about building teams from scratch across APAC."
Thanks to Kelly Souders and Kirsty Poynter for helping shape this interview and for your time on the pre-interview chats.
Connect with Sophie:
Resources mentioned in the ep:
- Notion {Notion is the all-in-one workspace for teams to share knowledge, manage projects, take notes, and more}
- Hello, Australia! By Andrew McCarthy
- How OpenAI turns shared knowledge into faster workflows with Notion
**📆 JOIN US: Calling Operator x Notion coffee | Apr 29, 10am**
Some of the best conversations happen off-mic. That’s why I’ve teamed up with Notion to bring the Calling Operator community together in Sydney.
The deets:
🌞 First-ever pod meetup in our most-listened city >> Sydney
🌞 Tues, Apr 29 at 10am (Surry Hills location)
🌞 Past podcast guests are coming—swap stories, ask questions
🌞 RSVP here
Guest ideas?
Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn.
A note from your host, Laura:
My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons.
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