WARC Awards for Effectiveness: 2023 Partnerships & Sponsorships Judges

Jury Chair
VP Global media, Haleon

Simon is the Global Head of Media at Haleon. Prior to joining Haleon, Simon was the Global Head of Media at adidas for a number of years. Before that, he headed media for 20th Century Fox in EMEA. He has also worked at Mediacom, Mindshare and PHD.

Sponsorship Strategy Director, M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment

Neil is a senior sponsorship strategist with over twenty years' experience working with the biggest sponsor brands and rights holders in the world. He is responsible for creating sponsorship strategies that help clients identify, secure, activate and evaluate partnerships that meet their brand and commercial objectives. Neil is a respected commentator on the sponsorship sector, making regular contributions on the subject in both marketing trade and national news media.

CEO, UM Canada

With a proven track record of working with high-profile brands to develop award-winning campaigns that drive business outcomes, Shelley is an unstoppable force within the media space. With over twenty-five years of experience on both client and agency sides, she has the knowledge and skillset to push her team to continually innovate. Under her leadership, the agency has reached historical highs in new business wins, innovative business partnerships and industry awards.

Managing Director, Head of Integrated Media Planning, OMD

Lauren is the Managing Director, Head of Integrated Media Planning at OMD USA and is responsible for ensuring the agency’s 350+ person planning practice is using data-driven decision making throughout the media-planning process to craft plans that connect with consumers and deliver on business objectives. In her role, she is part of the product leadership team working across Omnicom to develop simple yet innovative solutions that accelerate growth. Lauren is also an active participant in OMD’s Growth Academy supporting BIPOC and Women-Owned organisations.

Chief Strategy Officer, Australia and New Zealand, WPPAUNZ

Katie Rigg-Smith is the Chief Strategy Officer for WPP in Australia and New Zealand. WPP is a creative transformation company, that uses the power of creativity to build better futures for people, planet, clients and communities. Katie delivers strategic expertise across WPP’s network of agencies in service of their clients. This includes an emphasis on how cultural, social, economic, and geographic trends influence behaviour and, in turn, how these behaviours will shape the future of marketing.

Chief Product Officer, Publicis Groupe

Khaled has over 20 years of technology, media and marketing experience in MENA and is passionate about growing the businesses he touches. Today he leads an elite team of over 392 diverse talents split into eight practices at Publicis Groupe in the Middle East and Turkey, with a focus on growth hacking and organisational architecture. He addresses clients' business-critical problems with a birds-eye view and provides them with unique solutions to help them stay relevant, differentiated and sustainable.

Founder & CEO, Native Tongue Communications

During her more than 30 years in advertising, Marissa has invested in her own very special personal quest: driving for representation in the industry’s workforce and in its work. She creates pathways for BIPOC communities to be heard and have a seat at the table. In 2019, she left a long career at Omnicom, where she ultimately become one of their first Black/Female, Managing Directors, to launch the first and only minority- and female-certified media agency, Native Tongue Communications (NTC).

Vice President, Global Sports Alliances, American Cancer Society

Sherí is a purpose-driven brand executive with a body of work spanning 20 years across some of the most recognised sports entertainment brands. As the Vice President of Global Sports Alliances for the American Cancer Society, she leads brand partnerships with professional sports leagues, brands, and talent to advance the mission. At the intersection of corporate social responsibility and cause marketing, her team manages campaigns with sports partners who are critical to leading the fight for a world without cancer.

Head of Content, GUT Agency

Patrícia has spent her career building relationship and digital experiences through social media between major brands, consumers and communities. Patrícia is currenlty Head of Content at GUT Agency in São Paulo, whose team of 17 professionals are allocated in three verticals: Content Strategists, Influencer Curators and Business Intelligence. Prior to joining at GUT, she was the lead content strategist at the world's biggest entertainment and music festival, Rock in Rio..