Inlight launches martech practice with Anthony Fontana

Inlight has launched a Martech, Data & Analytics practice and appointed former Wesfarmers OneDigital executive Anthony Fontana to lead it.

The new unit sits within Inlight's Strategy & Consulting function and targets organisations investing in marketing technology but struggling to get results. It will focus first on data infrastructure, analytics and martech foundations, before broader work in personalisation and artificial intelligence.

Fontana joins from Wesfarmers OneDigital, where he helped build data infrastructure for customer engagement and personalisation across major retail brands. His work included platforms such as Tealium, Amplitude, Braze and Snowflake. Earlier, he held senior analytics roles at Origin Energy.

The practice is designed to offer shorter consulting engagements with a direct path to implementation, rather than lengthy strategy exercises. It also aims to help clients build internal teams and processes instead of relying on external advisers over the long term.

The move comes as more companies reassess the value of large martech investments amid uneven returns. For many, that review has focused on whether customer data is structured well enough for measurement, segmentation and personalised communications, and whether analytics systems are reliable enough to support automation and AI tools.

Data Focus

The issue has become more prominent as organisations add new software layers to existing digital estates. Marketing teams often buy tools for customer engagement, campaign automation and experimentation, while the supporting data architecture remains fragmented across business units and legacy systems.

Inlight's expansion suggests it sees an opportunity to help clients tackle that problem earlier. Rather than starting with broad martech strategy, the practice is positioned around the operational work needed to make those systems usable, including data foundations and measurement frameworks.

Ben Howden, chief strategy officer at Inlight, outlined the rationale for the launch.

"Anthony and I strongly believe getting your data foundation right is one of the most important things an organisation can do to unlock the value of martech and AI. The businesses investing in this now will have a meaningful advantage. Anthony brings exactly the combination we needed, strategic depth and genuine hands-on capability, and we're excited to build this practice together," Howden said.

Senior Hire

Fontana's appointment gives Inlight a senior executive with experience inside a large corporate digital operation. Wesfarmers OneDigital has been central to the retail group's technology and customer data work, making the hire notable for a smaller specialist consultancy expanding its martech and analytics advisory services.

His background also reflects the growing overlap between marketing technology, analytics and product development. Companies are increasingly treating those functions as interconnected, particularly where digital channels, customer experience and first-party data are closely linked.

For agencies and consultancies, that shift has increased demand for people who can work across technical architecture and commercial outcomes. Inlight, which describes itself as a digital product agency focused on composable technology, appears to be aligning its consulting offer with that broader market trend.

Fontana is already working on client projects through the new practice. Inlight has also linked the launch to its wider direction in digital strategy and delivery, particularly work related to AI adoption and changes in customer experience systems.

Market Pressure

Across the sector, martech spending remains under scrutiny as companies seek clearer returns from software budgets. Boards and executive teams are pushing marketing, data and technology leaders to prove that investments in customer platforms and analytics are delivering measurable business outcomes rather than simply adding complexity.

That pressure has often exposed weaknesses in underlying systems. Data quality issues, integration gaps and unclear platform ownership can limit how effectively businesses use personalisation tools and campaign technology, even when the software is already in place.

Inlight's new practice is aimed squarely at that gap between investment and execution. By structuring the offer around implementation-focused work and data readiness, it is betting clients want practical support on architecture and analytics before committing to broader martech change.

Fontana's remit is likely to place him at the centre of that effort as Inlight builds out a consulting line around data, measurement and marketing systems. The goal is to help organisations establish stronger foundations for martech and analytics while building lasting internal capability.