Women of Winter - Rhylla Morgan

Rhylla Morgan is the Communications Manager and spokesperson for Mt Buller and Mt Stirling, where a core part of her job is telling the story of the resort and spreading the word about the special part of the world she works in. 

Despite not growing up in a skiing family, Rhylla found herself moving into the snow industry in Mt Buller in 2009, and although her role has evolved a lot over time, she’s loved every minute of it. 

“It’s a job for someone with curiosity and a wide range of skills,” Morgan said. “A ‘normal day’ can include directing photo shoots, giving live TV interviews in a blizzard, building website pages, answering media enquiries about adapting to climate change, writing direct marketing emails, brainstorming campaigns, writing an article about skiing with kids and then actually skiing with kids - while wearing a mascot costume. 

“But I only learned to snowboard as an adult, so the move to Mt Buller was quite a ‘pivot’ in my career.”

Before transitioning into the snow industry, Rhylla had the opportunity to cover some standout moments in world history including the death of the Princess of Wales and various US Presidential visits, and even the celebration of 100 years of skiing on Mt Buller.

“When I mentally playback the highlight reel of my career so far, and yes, I have been working for 30 years, some of the moments were incredible,” she said. 

“From a career perspective my personal highlights have been when I’ve pushed myself to learn something new or taken up a challenge such as changing industries. 

“An achievement I am proud of, and will never be finished with, is constant learning. 

“There are so many things I can do now that I’ve learned by getting in and making mistakes, from YouTube and Google and from listening to smart people.”

After being involved with the snow community for over 15 years, it is the people that Rhylla loves most about her job. 

"What I love most about my job is the people,” she said. “It’s not a cliché; I love working on a mountain, I love skiing, I love that our work is focused on sharing beautiful alpine places with people and supporting our community, but the thing I will remember in another ten years will not be the amazing media release I wrote or the clever spring campaign, it will be the people I shared it all with. 

“Everyone has something to share and a lesson to offer, especially the people you find most challenging or frustrating at the time!”

It is also the people in the industry who have had the biggest influence on her PR and Communications career in snowsports, particularly the former Marketing Manager at Buller Ski Lifts, Jacqui Diamond, and Laurie Blampied, the former General Manager at Buller. 

“Jacqui Diamond and Laurie Blampied were the people that guided and influenced me the most as I settled into the Mt Buller community and learned a whole new industry and workplace,” Morgan said. 

“I saw how they balanced a solid understanding of what was happening on the ground and then applied the lens of strategy and theory to that. 

“Marketing and business strategy was always meaningfully connected to the operational reality in the resort for our guests and our team. 

“I learned so much walking with Jacqui and Laurie around the resort and it’s a lesson I hold today. 

“I get away from the computer and meetings and get outside to see what’s really happening as often as I can.” 

With an industry full of unique and exciting career opportunities, Rhylla Morgan encourages young women to get involved and be curious. 

“Our industry offers so many different career options and in another 5 years there will be more new roles that don’t exist now,” she said. 

“When I started at Mt Buller we didn’t have social media, now it’s a massive part of our world. 

“Lift operations used to be almost exclusively mechanical and now have a huge IT component for example.

“I love that in the snow industry there are roles you could find anywhere, but with the key difference that the people drawn to our industry tend to share a passion for alpine areas, snowsports and wild places – our ‘why’ is what brings us all together. 

“But to any young women looking to begin their PR and Communications career, I say ‘start today’. 

“Anyone can now build their skills and experience in writing, speaking, presenting, arguing, persuading, podcasting, designing and more, without waiting for a job or internship. 

“The technology sitting on our phones is more than you need to start building communications ‘muscles’ and to develop your talents. Find something you are interested in and write/talk/post about it.

“Be curious. Read articles on topics you know nothing about. Go to talks and events in your community. Use your library – they are awesome and cost nothing. Subscribe to industry emails and webinars to learn from the best.

“Don’t be shy to reach out to someone you admire and ask them to mentor you.”