JUDGES * CREATIVE * PANEL

Cynthia Fleming, EVP, Carat Canada, Toronto

It’s been over 20 years since Cynthia Fleming came on the media scene. She cut her teeth at JWT Direct in 1982, moving up to associate media director by age 25. She shifted to Media Buying Services, now The Media Company, in 1986 for a short stint before moving on to ChiatDay in 1988. In 1996, Fleming was asked to head up Media Experts’ Toronto office. She’s been EVP at Carat since 2004.

Shawn King, partner/VP/CD, Extreme Group, Dartmouth, N.S.

Shawn King has been in advertising for 16 years. He has judged numerous award shows and won awards regionally, nationally and internationally including the Ice Awards, Cannes, Bessies, One Show, Applied Arts and London International. King joined Extreme Group in 2002 as a senior AD. Prior to that he was a senior AD at MT&L in Halifax, and previous to that an AD at the Bristol Group.

Brett Marchand, SVP/MD, Cossette Communication-Marketing, Toronto

Brett Marchand joined Cossette in 2005 as SVP/MD. Previously, he was president/CEO of Lowe Roche. He has also enjoyed a career client side, most notably as VP, marketing on Molson Canadian, where he oversaw the team that developed the now famous ‘I Am Canadian’ campaign. ‘The Rant’ won numerous awards, including a Cannes Lion. Marchand also spent several years with the Campbell Soup Company in brand marketing and advertising. He began his career at P&G.

Gaëtan Namouric, CD, Bleublancrouge, Montreal

Gaëtan Namouric began his marketing career in France in media planning at Eurasset at age 19. Four years later, he moved to the creative side. In 2000, he arrived in Quebec, worked in web strategy for a year, then freelanced at Bos then Taxi Montreal on some of its key accounts, including Mini, Viagra, Telus and Nike before joining Bleublancrouge in 2004 as CD. His work has won Cannes Lions and Cassies. He has served on the jury of the Publicité Club de Montréal and was president of the CREA jury last year.

Andrea Southcott, president, TBWAVancouver

After 20 years in advertising, Andrea Southcott still has a passion for branding, which she injects into her role as president, a position she’s held since 2001. She started her career with IBM in sales, eventually joining Grey Vancouver as director of strategic planning. In 1992 she signed on with Scali McCabe Sloves, now TBWAVancouver. Active in the broader community, she sits on the Board of Governors of B.C.’s Children’s Hospital and on the Faculty Advisory Board for the Sauder School of Business at UBC, among other posts.

JUDGES * STRATEGIC PANEL

Jeff Cooper, director, marketing communications, Adidas, Toronto

Jeff Cooper has amassed 18 years of marketing experience with a concentration on sports and events. Today, he oversees all marketing programs for Adidas Canada. Previously, Cooper was with Insight Sports and Entertainment, Cossette Communications, Molson Sports and Entertainment and MacLaren Momentum. He was also president/owner of Hollis Communications, a sports and entertainment marketing firm which he ran for over seven years.

Jeff Jackett, marketing manager, Gatorade, Pepsi-QTG Canada, Toronto

For the past three years, Jeff Jackett has worked on marketing campaigns with every major professional sports league and their Canadian teams, as well as a number of great Canadian athletes. He began his career with nine years at Unilever, most notably on the Sunlight Laundry business. In 2001, Jackett traded soapsuds for beer suds when he moved to The Beer Store, where he was tasked to redefine and help launch a new retail brand.

Laurel Lindsay, VP, consumer marketing, Toronto Blue Jays, Toronto

Laurel Lindsay started her career in sports communications managing programs and events for the National Hockey League Players Association in 1993. In 1996, she joined the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts overseeing game entertainment and community relations. Later that year, Lindsay moved to the Blue Jays’ marketing department where she enjoyed increasing responsibility – including aiding the creation of the Jays Care Foundation – before becoming VP, consumer marketing in 2004.

Susan McVey, VP, marketing planning, TD Bank, Toronto

Susan McVey joined TD Bank’s financial marketing group just over a year ago to lead the marketing activities on the wealth business, including TD Waterhouse. Prior to TD, she spent six years at CIBC where she eventually headed the marketing strategy, planning and brand management for the bank. She also spent eight years on the ad side at BBDO, TBWAChiatDay and Y&R working on such accounts as Bell, Apple, Microsoft, TD, and AT&T.

Dean Tesser, director, sales & marketing, Kia Canada, Toronto

Since joining Kia earlier this year, Dean Tesser has been responsible for driving the automotive brand’s tactical and strategic sales and marketing efforts. Previous to that, he spent 24 years at Ford Canada, most recently as director, marketing communications, providing strategic leadership for positioning, mass advertising, sponsorships, research, promotions, customer relationship management and e-business for the automotive giant.