I’m grateful that clients and colleagues have been so generous with their comments, all of them unsolicited and given from a sense of value delivered unstintingly. Here is a selection:
‘Roger has guided the foundation of our communications.
‘Assessments Australia conducts independent assessments into the effectiveness of government programs in areas such as special education, aged care, disability, and unemployment. This requires collecting, combining and interpreting detail from a variety of sources, and re-constituting it for widespread consumption.
‘Roger has made a significant contribution to all our communications material as both writer and editor.’
Ian Bamford, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Assessments Australia, Melbourne
‘Roger and Sandy McDonald in fact became not simply a supplier of editorial concepts and services, and graphic art, but an essential, creative partner in developing a long-term growth strategy.
‘The fact that the partnership endured for almost twenty years demonstrated a profound understanding of the needs and capability of both client and service provider. This oneness of understanding, coupled with the gifts of both Roger as a writer and editor, and Sandy as a designer, was at the centre of a very successful story. Centacare is deeply indebted to ArtWords and to its quite remarkable principals, Roger and Sandy McDonald.’
John Bushell, Chief Executive Officer, Centacare Catholic Family Services, Melbourne
‘I have great news to share.
‘Yesterday Lucy Raymond the commissioning editor from Wiley rang me in Toronto to say they want to go ahead with my book!!! Yipeeee. It was an amazing series of coincidences, their meeting was brought forward, Lucy had nothing to present apart from my pitch which the amazing Roger helped me with. And the team loved it. The fact that the manuscript is already done was a huge bonus.
‘Thank you so much Roger for all your hard work, encouragement and powerful insights and brilliant editing.
‘Many, many thanks for editing my book and doing such an amazing job. A pleasure to work with you; your intellectual rigour, command of the language, and brilliant editing skills were all much appreciated. Thank you so much.’
Yamini Naidu, Chief Executive Officer, Yamini Naidu Consulting, Australia
‘Roger I have just read your words again on the learning philosophy for Slow School. I absolutely love them and think they are just perfect.’
Carolyn Tate, Founder and CEO, Slow School of Business, Melbourne
‘I just want to say how fabulous our new website looks—you all did a great job (and a big one it was too!). Thanks for all your efforts.’
Leanne Rachelski, Circadian Technologies Limited, Melbourne
‘There are a few loose ends to follow up, but in general we’re very pleased with the website. This is probably the sixth one I’ve worked on, and I think the end product is best out of all those. So good job. Much appreciated.’
Alex Szabo, Head of Business Development, Circadian Technologies Limited, Melbourne
‘This is great. I can’t wait for the final copy. The [web]site looks fabulous. Thank you.’
Ralph Bourke, Chief Executive Officer, Removal Brokers Worldwide, Melbourne
‘Roger McDonald is a wordsmith par excellence. He eschews obfuscation and espouses elucidation and prunes pointless pontification. He has an uncanny ability to weave paragraphs so supple and nuanced that the words would pirouette off the page if they were not bound by ink. With the attention of a watchmaker Roger will assemble your thoughts and transform them into literature. I highly recommend his services.’
Rachel Hill, Chief Executive Officer, Access Motion, Melbourne
‘Your constant efficiency and grasp of the whole appeals procedure and the creative communications you bring to us is a tremendous relief.’
John Bushell, Executive Director, Catholic Family Welfare Bureau, Melbourne
‘Wow, thanks, you did say your middle name was “deadline”. All the changes you made were great and we will be using it tomorrow. Look forward to speaking to you soon about the rest of the comms pack which involves follow up emails before and after the event. And then we can move straight on to the blogs which I believe will put your skills to best use.’
Tom Granter, Green Ant Marketing, Melbourne
‘…it was said at the launch of the Disability Awareness Kit that a very complex document had been laid out superbly, made easy to read, was functional and a treat to look at. We agree and would like to add that it was just brilliant to be able to hand it over to a group that could take up the design, sub-editing and production in such a thorough way.’
Terry Brennan, Deputy Manager, Library and Information Services Royal Victorian Institute for the Blind, Melbourne
‘Thanks again for your professional work, and also for managing the very tight timelines to perfection. I appreciate the efforts Roger took to keep me informed at all stages during the project.’
Vikki King, Marketing Communications Manager, Agilent Technologies Limited (formerly Hewlett-Packard), Melbourne
‘We believe that [your] creative skills and ardent inputs have greatly complemented our product and will enable us to capture a high degree of market interest.’
Brendon Clune, Director, Austral Timber, Melbourne
‘I have always believed that there is a great deal more in the creative process than just sheer flashes of genius – there has also got to be care, involvement, attention to minutiae, and total reliability. Thank you for demonstrating all those qualities also.
‘…the whole production effort appeared seamless and your calm and unflustered way of dealing with potential high drama is a great credit to your creative and organisational abilities, and deeply appreciated by all of us involved.’
Pamela Brand, MacFarlane Burnet Centre for Medical Research, Melbourne
‘…it has been a real pleasure working with a professional pair like you and Sandy in the preparation and printing of our Annual Report. The final [result] looks really great and has had a very positive response from the Board and staff. Congratulations on a great job.’
David Loutit, Chief Executive Officer, Victorian Dairy Industry Authority, Melbourne
‘After the text was ready, we approached ArtWords [our previous marketing communications business] to produce the book. My experience with them has been that, without reservation, I recommend ArtWords [our former marketing communications company] for any … project any of you may be contemplating. We are extremely proud of this book.’
Brother Ron Stewart, former headmaster of St Joseph’s College, North Melbourne, and author of The Spirit of North
‘When I showed the (Diocesan Extension and Management Fund) brochure to the committee, they jumped out of their skins; they were very impressed.’
Fr Paul Kane, DEMF committee, Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne
‘It’s (Heritage Trust fundraising brochure) so warm and gentle. It captures exactly the essence of Heritage. I’m absolutely staggered by it.’
John Bushell, CEO, Centacare Catholic Family Services, Melbourne
‘I’ve never experienced such a concentrated, focused, positive response to any document that I have worked on before.’
Ross Kennedy, Company Secretary, New Hampton Goldfields Limited, Melbourne
‘Thanks for the CDs just received. These go straight to our agency in the UK, so I am glad to have the head start and be able to leverage from your great work.’
Tim Thresh, European Product Line Manager, Agilent Technologies Limited (formerly Hewlett-Packard)
‘They look rather good, which is really what we have come to expect over recent years. Well done … on another great job.’
Rod Williams, Company Secretary, Victorian Dairy Industry Authority, Melbourne
‘My colleagues and I valued your input and, in particular, your efforts to understand what the Faculty is about. We were impressed with the personalised process you offered to us, especially the opportunity to work closely with you both from the outset and in the design process.’
Lorri Cahill, Manager (Corporate Relations), Faculty of Engineering, The University of Melbourne
‘We are only doing the posters and publicity, and donations are going through the roof. One of my colleagues said blood levels are higher than he has seen them since he’s been here and that’s two and a half years.’
Tamara Logan, Public Relations Manager, Australian Red Cross Blood Bank, Melbourne
‘We’re extremely happy with Chiron [magazine of the University of Melbourne Medical Society] and look forward to working with you again in the future.’
Tamara Humphries, University of Melbourne Medical Society
‘You deserve bouquets. People are beginning to notice the difference and they are saying so.’
Peter Kolliner, Vice President Institute of Materials Engineering Australasia, and Materials Australia magazine, Melbourne
‘That’s a brilliant presentation and I am very, very pleased.’
Graeme Johnstone, State Coroner, Victoria
‘We called on you because you were the logical choice – we were so thrilled with the work you did on the Dean’s awards ceremony booklet and invitation.’
Dr Ross Coller, Head of Development, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne
‘I really like this; it’s exactly what I wanted. It’s got some style and it sums up what we stand for.’
Nic Limb, Executive Chairman, Gravity Capital Limited, Melbourne
‘More compliments re the Quick Reference Guide, they are coming in fast now. I think people are really impressed with the overall look of the publication, well done!’
Vikki King, Marketing Communications Manager, Agilent Technologies Limited (formerly Hewlett-Packard), Melbourne
‘I just received my Quick Reference Guide. Thanks for sending it. It is a great document! I am very impressed, and have also received several very positive comments about it from passers-by in the office. Congratulations!’
Peter Hoberg, Agilent Technologies Limited (formerly Hewlett-Packard), USA
‘Yes I think the Quick Reference Guides look great. Initial feedback is positive, I’m confident that trend will continue!’
Vikki King, Agilent Technologies Limited (formerly Hewlett-Packard), Melbourne
‘… it gave me an opportunity to hand out the rest of your Quick Reference Guides to the HW F(ield) E(ngineer)s. They love it!! They are already pulling my arms and legs for more!’
Anne Lundberg, Agilent Technologies Limited (formerly Hewlett-Packard), Sweden
‘Thank you again to you and Sandy for all your assistance with the Faculty of Science Dean’s Award Ceremony booklet … it looked great and the night was a huge success.’
‘It has been a pleasure working with everyone at ArtWords [our previous marketing communications business] over the past two years and I hope that we can work on projects again in the future, be it with the Science Faculty or other projects I have planned on the side.’
Marie Kellett, Events Officer, Faculty of Science, The University of Melbourne
‘Reaching a new … identity after the change of name [from Schizophrenia Fellowship of Victoria) was always going to be a journey. Artwords [our previous marketing communications business] made it simple, effective and enjoyable. The results speak for themselves.’
Liz Crowther, Chief Executive, Mental Illness Fellowship Victoria, Melbourne
‘I don’t know how you’ve done it, but all the builders think we’re huge; much bigger than we actually are. Everyone seems to know about us, even the national hardware chains. Looks like the power of positioning at work.’
Linton Wright, Construction Director, Walls and All, Melbourne
‘Also, pass on to Roger and the team that I got a copy of our ‘On a roll’ back cover advertisement for What’s New in Food [magazine] and it looks fantastic—extremely happy! Will send you guys a copy when I get more.’
Suzie Young, Manager Lead Generation, New Business Development, insignia Labels, Brisbane
‘Everyone is standing around holding the review and feeling really proud of it. It has set a new standard and I bet others will copy us.
Nic Limb Chairman and CEO Mineral Deposits Limited, Melbourne
‘Again a special thanks for your work on our wonderful brochure. We are very happy.
Orlando Bernardi, Manager, Hotel Tolarno, Melbourne
‘Thanks very much for producing the brochure that has turned out to be extremely presentable especially in the timeframe available. I will provide you with some feedback after we have met with Senator Fielding.’
David Eynon, Chief Executive Officer, Air Conditioning and Mechanical Contractors Association of Australia, Melbourne
‘We continue to regard Artwords [our previous marketing communications business] as bordering on superheroes.’
Nic Limb, Chairman, Mineral Deposits Limited, Melbourne