The Jury

Eric Alper
CMO, Frank + Oak

Alper leads marketing at one of the world's fastest-growing brands in omni-channel apparel retail. He is focused on creating category-disrupting brands that address friction in the consumer experience. Previously he was EVP & partner at Sid Lee.

Alyssa Altman
VP and managing director, SapientNitro

Altman is responsible for leading the agency's presence in Canada as well as the Midwest United States (Michigan and Ohio). Over 16 years at Sapient, she has worked with clients to create omni-channel strategies and develop marketing and technology solutions across a variety of industries and brands, including GM, John Deere, CDW, and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

Hope Bagozzi
senior director of national marketing, McDonald's

Bagozzi has more than 15 years of combined agency and client-side experience. She has a passion for great work that builds brand and business value, and also makes a positive societal contribution.

Darren Clarke
CCO, McCann Canada

As a 28-year-old bartender, Clarke knew one thing: he did not want to be a 48-year-old bartender. Six months later he was the oldest junior copywriter in advertising. Today, he is the chief creative officer at McCann Canada, and his work has won everything from Cannes Gold Lions to Gold Effies.

Mary DePaoli
chief brand and communications officer, RBC

DePaoli is responsible for building RBC's global brand marketing strategy and reputation. Prior to joining the bank in 2015, she held various senior roles at Sun Life Financial, including EVP of public and corporate affairs and chief marketing officer. She was strategy's Marketer of the Year in 2012.

Andrea E. Graham
senior marketing executive, Leon's Furniture

Before joining Leon's, Graham led teams in Canada and the U.S. for brands including KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Dempster's, Laura Secord, Gatorade and Tropicana, which she led from early launch.

Sean Hazell
VP of brand and innovation strategy, Idea Couture

Hazell oversees global innovation projects that marry brand strategy and customer experience. He leads teams of strategists, anthropologists, designers and futurists to uncover new opportunities for client growth with companies such as FedEx, PepsiCo, Scotiabank, Mattel, AT&T and Whirlpool. He has two young daughters, devours Triscuits and sits on the board of Fixt Point, a charity preserving Canada's Main Street culture.

Shannon Hosford
VP of marketing and communications, MLSE

Hosford leads Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment's (MLSE) marketing and fan experience department, one of the largest and most diverse sports marketing portfolios in North America. With over 15 years of leadership experience, she oversees all communications and brand functions for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto Marlies, Toronto FC, MLSE LiVE and MLSE Foundation.

Lisa Kimmel
president and CEO, Edelman Canada

Kimmel became president and CEO of Edelman Canada after serving as general manager of the agency's Toronto office. In 2015, she was inducted into the Women's Executive Network (WXN) Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada Hall of Fame.

Diane Laberge
strategic marketing executive

Laberge has more than 13 years of brand and sales experience, most recently with Unilever, where she was director of marketing for the CPG's Dove, Dove Men + Care, and Skin Care portfolios until September of this year.

Caroline Losson
VP marketing, Keurig Canada

Losson has worked in the food industry for the past 20 years in various brand marketing and innovation roles. She worked at Coca-Cola and Molson before moving to Agropur's Natrel division in 2009, and moved to Keurig earlier this year.

David Lui
VP marketing, Mark's for Canadian Tire Corporation

Lui has over 25 years of experience in the retail industry. He has held senior executive roles with global retail brands including Nygård, The North West Company, The Daiso and Esprit, and he's supported non-profit organizations such as The United Way, Habitat For Humanity, Canadian Tire Jumpstart and the Canadian Diabetes Association.

Brian Sheppard
executive creative director, Saatchi & Saatchi Canada

Over the past 20 years, Sheppard has worked with some of the world's best-known brands, including American Express, Dove, Levi's and Toyota, and he helped rebrand an entire province, Newfoundland and Labrador. Before joining Saatchi & Saatchi, he worked at FCB and Ogilvy.

Martin Shewchuk
former creative chairman emeritus, J. Walter Thompson

Shewchuk was the creative head at both Leo Burnett and J. Walter Thompson. As an art director, copywriter, creative director and commercial director, he has won at every Canadian and international show, and his work has appeared in both Shots and Archive. His work as a creative director has been recognized at CA and The One Show and he has won multiple Lions at Cannes — including the first gold film Lion won by a Canadian-born director.

Anestis Vassiliades
ECD, Havas Worldwide Canada

Vassiliades began his career as a creative, but it wasn't long before strategy and UX made their way into his wheelhouse. Fast-forward nearly 20 years and he's still approaching creative work with a strategic eye. His integrated approach to digital has led to award-winning projects for clients at Organic, SapientNitro, CGI and Havas. He orders as "George" at Starbucks.

Milos Vranesevic
VP and head of marketing, MasterCard

Vranesevic has been with Mastercard since 2013, where he is also a member of the brand's Global Marketing & Communications Leadership Team. For the past 18 years, he has helped high-profile brands stand out in their industries with stints at Air Miles Reward Program, the National Hockey League and TBWA Chiat/Day.