Meet Our Judges

Richard Bélanger
VP, branding & design
Cossette

Richard brings a unique sense of style and unerring aesthetic design ethics to each project. For the last 20 years, he’s been coming up with ideas that make a statement—both visually and communicatively—and encapsulates all the signature qualities of the brand identity. He has worked on a diverse array of accounts ranging from museums to startups, NGOs and large Canadian and international corporations, easily moving between the worlds of art and design, as well as business and branding. His work has garnered local and international industry recognition, including design’s highest honours.

Suman Chahal
associate director, brand & marketing
Art Gallery of Ontario

Suman Chahal is a marketing and brand leader with more than 14 years of experience helping cultural and publishing organizations grow their audiences, strengthen their brands, and achieve meaningful business results. Having led marketing and brand initiatives at the Art Gallery of Ontario and HarperCollins Canada, she specializes in developing integrated marketing strategies that connect organizations with their audiences in relevant and impactful ways. Throughout her career, she has led brand transformations, launched high-profile campaigns for blockbuster exhibitions and bestselling authors, and built collaborative teams that turn audience insights into measurable growth.

Ryan Crouchman
partner, ECD & VP, design
LG2

Victoria Di Valerio
creative director, design
Edelman

Jaylone Lee
marketing and customer experience leader
Independent

Maude Lescarbeau
founder, head of design
maubau

Blending creative vision with strategic insight, her design approach is defined by a keen attention to detail and an exceptional ability to synthesize complex ideas. In 2020, she left her role as Creative Director at a major agency to launch her own brand identity studio, maubau. Beyond her entrepreneurial pursuits, she serves on the Board of Directors of the Société des designers graphiques du Québec and periodically teaches at the École de design at the Université du Québec à Montréal. In 2025, she served on the jury for the Canadian Young Lions Competition.

Driven by her passion for typography and architecture, maubau specializes in lettering and spatial design. As a female entrepreneur, she leads her team with a focus on strategic thinking and problem-solving, bringing creative, personal, and engaging visions to life. Throughout her career, she has strived to inspire those around her and make a positive impact on the world, cultivating expertise in co-creation and 360-degree branding.

Since its inception, maubau has consistently attracted attention. Early projects received awards from the ADCC, ADC, and Communication Arts, and the studio has since made its mark on the global stage, being featured on platforms such as Pentawards, Dieline, and Dezeen. This growth reflects her passion for pushing the boundaries of design toward universality.

Lisa Mok
creative director
Sephora

Toni Shelton
VP, brand & strategy
Collective Arts

Teresa Tam
creative director, design
Independent

Hans Thiessen
partner, ECD of design
Rethink

Jess Willis
chief brand officer
Saje Natural Wellness

As far as creatives go, Jess is a little bit different. She started her career twenty years ago in digital & design and has since worked at ground-breaking agencies like john st, Ogilvy, Cossette & TAXI. As the VP, ECD of Mosaic, she transformed the agency into a top 25 showing on Strategy's Creative Report Card - a jump of almost eighty spots and ushered the agency to its first Agency of the Year shortlist.

This unique combination of skills, as well as an appetite for learning new disciplines has allowed her to transition easily between clients, departments and projects. Moreover, it has shaped her into a channel agnostic creative who thinks in problems and solutions over words and pictures.

She’s been recognized at Cannes, ADC, One Show, Clios and Effies, and has been honoured in Canada at the ADCC, Marketing, Atomics and SIAs. With features in Lüzers Archive, Fast Company, Wired and Devour her portfolio of work has consistently blurred the lines between culture and commerce.

Genevieve Beharry
group creative director
Marks

Mareike Greve
head of marketing
LG

Mareike Greve is a dynamic marketing and strategy executive with experience leading business transformations, building brand equity in multi-brand ecosystems, and driving sustainable revenue growth across the consumer goods, electronics and household appliance sectors. 

As the Head of Marketing at LG Canada, Mareike leads the comprehensive marketing strategies across both B2C and B2B sectors for the company's diverse portfolio of products. She excels at balancing core business growth with innovative brand transformation, leveraging digital evolution, high-impact campaigns, and sports sponsorships to connect with Canadian audiences. 

With prior leadership roles at Whirlpool Canada and experience across the consulting and retail sectors, she brings a deep understanding of turning consumer insights into market-leading growth and aligning global corporate objectives with local execution. Mareike is known for her strong cross-functional collaboration, building trusted partner relationships and she has a passion for building effective teams, and fostering a high-performance team culture. 

Francis Guindon
VP, brand
Quartz Co. & Want Les Essentiels

Francis Guindon is a brand strategist and marketing executive with more than 15 years of experience building and elevating premium and luxury brands. As Vice President, Brand at WANT Les Essentiels and Quartz Co., he oversees global brand strategy, marketing and communications, creative direction, and omnichannel growth initiatives for two of Montreal’s leading fashion and lifestyle brands.

His career has been shaped by a passion for storytelling, design, and brand experience. From early roles in fashion marketing at Printemps in Paris to positions in visual merchandising at Holt Renfrew Ogilvy and marketing at m0851, Francis developed a deep understanding of how brands create meaningful connections with consumers. He later held senior leadership roles in public relations at Maison Birks, helping strengthen the reputation and visibility of one of Canada’s most established luxury brands.

Beyond his professional responsibilities, Francis is actively engaged in Montreal’s cultural community. After serving as Co-Chair of Les Printemps du MAC, a flagship fundraising event supporting the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, he joined the Board of the Fondation du MAC and serves on the Bal du MAC committee.

John Hotts
Sr. design director
OneMethod

John spearheads transformational change through design, while fostering a culture of curiosity & experimentation. He packs a smorgasbord of experience crafting brand identity and digital experience, with a side of everything else. His work as a designer & artist span almost 2 decades resulting in various awards & accolades including Marketing Mag’s top 30 under 30.

 His category experience includes Food & Beverage, Sports, Healthcare, Finance, Fashion, Tech, Retail & Hospitality. 

Howard Poon
VP, design director
FKA

Howard is known for frank feedback and a low tolerance for complexity. He feeds his curiosity with a Sunday New York Times subscription and stays hydrated with espresso. Deeply committed to nurturing emerging talent, he is an active volunteer with RGD, Canada’s largest professional association for graphic designers. As VP Design Director at FKA, Howard collaborates with cross-disciplinary strategists, creatives, and designers to turn insights into exceptional brands. In prior leadership roles at DDB Canada and TBWA\Canada, his teams earned international, national, and regional recognition with work featured in One Show, ADCC, Strategy Marketing Awards, Communication Arts, and Applied Arts.

Angela Scardillo MacInnis
CMO
Kits

Angela MacInnis is a senior brand and growth executive with experience across both agency and in-house leadership roles.

Known for building customer-centric brands in complex, fast-moving environments, she brings a sharp commercial lens and a track record of connecting brand, customer experience, and
performance marketing to drive sustainable growth.

As CMO of KITS, Canada’s fastest-growing online eyewear brand, Angela leads the company’s marketing strategy across digital and physical channels. She joined KITS with a mandate to scale a brand as sharp on performance as it is on customer experience.

Prior to KITS, Angela served as Senior Vice President at Best Buy Canada, overseeing Marketing, Store Design, Customer Experience, and Geek Squad Remote Services. She was instrumental in consolidating the Future Shop and Best Buy brands into a single unified identity, modernizing how millions of Canadians experienced the brand across retail, digital, and service.

Her work included building cross-functional agile marketing teams, launching immersive Experience Stores, and spearheading the launch of Best Buy Ads in Canada.

Earlier in her career, Angela built her foundation in agency environments, developing expertise
across integrated marketing, brand storytelling, creative leadership, and multi-channel strategy
before moving into senior in-house roles.

Laura Stein
chief creative officer
Bruce Mau Design

Laura is a strategically minded design leader and culture builder who has extensive
experience in branding, leading global rebrands of organizations such as Sonos,
ASICS, and Linksys. She has collaborated with a diversity of known clients from
lululemon to Hutchins Center at Harvard University to Abu Dhabi Department of Culture
and Tourism. Her work crosses fields of culture, fashion, architecture, technology,
education, and place across brand, print, motion, digital, and environmental.

Laura's long-term partnership with Sonos saw her team through the design of multiple facets of
the wireless audio brand experience — digital, retail, social, packaging, and content.
Her work has been featured in books such as Designing Brand Identity, Dynamic
Identities and recently in The Elements of Brand Design, as well as publications like
Fast Company, Communication Arts, It’s Nice That, Print and Creative Review. She has
been recognized by Cannes Lions and D&AD, among others. She has served as a
member of the Board of Directors for the Advertising and Design Club of Canada. She
enjoys talking about vision and process at conferences like Brand New, DesignThinkers,
FITC and has chaired Young Lions, juried ADC, Communications Arts, and Marketing
Awards.

Laura had an unconventional start to her design career, dipping her toes in the music
world riding the wave of the Seattle grunge scene in the ‘90s with her all-female band,
Jale, as a singer and bass guitarist. Signed to notable Sub Pop Records and touring the
world, this was when Laura found her gateway to design. Though she studied fine art, it
wasn’t until she began designing album covers and posters that she took interest in
design and branding. Laura’s musical background has given her a unique perspective
into branding and a testament to her established career, expertise and perspective as
CCO for the award-winning firm.

Jennifer Taback
Co-CEO
Design De Plume

Jennifer Taback is a member of Shawanaga First Nation and Co-CEO at Design de Plume. She sees herself as a visual translator, helping to bridge connections and use emerging technology to facilitate dialogue, increase understanding, and make some cool stuff along the way. Jennifer currently serves the role of listener, advisor, and strategist on projects that venture into new and unknown territories, while acknowledging the experiences and stories of the past.

Current accreditations and governance experience include: Registered Graphic Designer of Canada, Cambrian College Board of Governors – Chair of the Board, Chair of the Indigenous Education Circle; and Nickel Basin Federal Development Corporation – Board Member. 

Dave Watson
head of design
BHLA

If it seems like Dave has a feel for the rhythms of visual communication, it comes naturally to him.

A born lover of music, his dreams of playing drums for the Rolling Stones were crushed at an
early age. He quickly rebounded, however, and turned his attention to design.

For over 25 years, Dave has honed his craft at some of Canada’s top agencies, including Broken
Heart Love Affair, TAXI and Mosaic. His work for brands such as Anheuser-Busch, MINI, Nike,
and TELUS has earned more than 200 accolades at design award shows from around the globe.

Dave is a true idea man. He believes that while visual and technology trends may come and go,
emotive ideas are timeless. At BHLA, he continues to bring this philosophy to life, helping clients transform their businesses through design. At least, that is until he gets a call from the Stones.

Urania Agas
chief operating officer
WPP Media

With over 14 years of dedicated service to WPP Media, Urania has distinguished herself across
various senior leadership roles.

Most recently, as Chief Operating Officer in Canada, she is instrumental in driving operational excellence, enhancing efficiency, and achieving ambitious organizational goals. Leveraging over 25 years of extensive industry expertise, Urania has consistently powered transformative growth for a diverse portfolio of notable local and global businesses across sectors including travel, finance, CPG, and retail.

Beyond her executive responsibilities, Urania is recognized as an industry thought leader, championing empathetic leadership and actively furthering the next generation of women in leadership.

Jennifer Bidwell
VP, business solutions
Horizon Media

I am a senior media executive with over 20 years of experience bridging the gap between strategic media planning, sales leadership, and high-impact business solutions. Currently, as the Vice President of Business Solutions at Horizon Media Canada, I specialize in driving data-led, integrated marketing strategies that deliver measurable growth and connect brands with their target audiences.

Throughout my career, I've had the privilege of holding key leadership roles across both the vendor and agency sides of the business. Prior to Horizon Media, I served as EVP of Sales & Marketing at ALLVISION Digital Out-of-Home, and previously held leadership positions including National Sales Manager at Astral OOH (Bell Media), Managing Director of Television Systems at Media Experts, and National Sales Manager at Corus Entertainment.

My core expertise lies in the digitization of traditional media—including DOOH, CTV, and connected audio—and leveraging emerging technologies to build advanced, cross-channel campaigns. Most recently, my focus has been on designing comprehensive media and marketing frameworks for major clients like Calgary Airports (YYC) and pioneering advanced mobile advertising strategies in the Canadian market for brands like SharkNinja. I also stay deeply immersed in market analysis, evaluating ownership dynamics and the competitive landscape of Canadian media to better guide strategic advertiser investments.

Beyond my day-to-day role, I am passionate about driving industry standards forward. I serve as a co-chair of the IAB DOOH Committee and am an active judge for the Effie Awards Canada, championing the alchemy of marketing effectiveness.

Monique Brosseau
former president Group M, Quebec
Independent

Monique Brosseau is an accomplished executive leader with more than 25 years of experience
spanning marketing, communications, media, digital transformation, and general management.
Most recently, she served as President, Québec at GroupM Canada (WPP Media), where she
transformed the Québec operation into a profitable, award-winning business and strengthened its competitive position in the market.

Throughout her career, Monique has held senior leadership positions with some of Canada's
most recognized organizations, including GroupM, Mediacom, Reitmans, DDB, ZenithOptimedia, Nurun and L’Oréal Canada. Her expertise spans brand strategy, media innovation, customer experience, organizational transformation, business development and executive leadership.

Monique has worked with leading Canadian and global brands across consumer goods, retail,
financial services, healthcare, technology, government, and professional services. She is widely recognized for her ability to align business strategy with marketing effectiveness, build high-  performing multidisciplinary teams and deliver sustainable growth.

A respected industry contributor, Monique has served on multiple judging panels, including the
Effie Canada Awards, Media Innovation Awards, Prix IDEA and the Marketing Hall of Legends
selection committee, bringing a broad perspective on strategic excellence, creativity, and
business impact.

Greg Dermer
director, enterprise brand marketing
OLG

Laura Heck
EVP of media
ChangeMakers

Laura Lewandowski is EVP, Media at ChangeMakers, where she leads integrated media strategy and performance across a diverse portfolio of clients in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. With more than 20 years in the industry, including eight years leading major client portfolios at OMD, Laura is known for leading with curiosity and a passion for innovation, combining data, technology and creativity to solve complex marketing challenges and deliver measurable business outcomes.

Melanie Johnston
CMO
The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation

Melanie is the Chief Marketing Officer of The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation, where she
leads marketing strategy across all revenue channels in support of one of the world’s leading cancer centres.

Previously, she was CEO of the Canadian operations of global agency Forsman &; Bodenfors, and before that, President of DDB Canada. In these roles, she led large, multidisciplinary teams and was instrumental in transforming agency models to deliver integrated marketing solutions spanning advertising, digital, direct, social, and PR.

Earlier, Melanie held a senior marketing role at TD, where she was responsible for the strategic
direction of the bank’s brand advertising and sponsorship portfolio.

She brings extensive leadership experience across multiple sectors, including financial services,
technology, telecommunications, retail, and consumer goods, and is a strong advocate for the role of marketing in driving organizational growth and financial impact.

Quincy Kelman
VP, marketing
Disney

Quincy Kelman, VP of Marketing for Walt Disney Studios Canada. I began my career at OMNI Television before moving into film working for Cineplex Entertainment and joining Walt Disney Studios in 2008. In my current role, I oversee all content and brand marketing for Walt Disney in Canada including theatrical, and streaming titles. In my time at Disney, I have led successful campaigns for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Avengers: End Game, Frozen 2, the launch of Disney+ and most recently Lilo & Stitch, Avatar: Fire and Ash, the Hulu brand launch, Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessetteand Devil Wears Prada 2. In addition to my role at Walt Disney Studios, I’m also a board member of the Canadian Picture Pioneers and BSO.

Bruce Neve
president
True Media

As president at True Media Canada, Bruce brings with him more than thirty years’ experience leading major media agencies. He champions media innovation, the smart use of data, and collaboration while driving strategy, planning and buying across all platforms for both English and French Canada. He believes that talent,  creativity, agility and an entrepreneurial spirit are keys to ignite positive business results. His curiosity and passion for media, technology, and cultural shifts is only matched by his forays in travel, artistic endeavors and all things family.

Meera Patel
director of marketing
Taco Bell

British-born and Canada-based, Meera Patel is a growth-minded marketing leader known for turning consumer insight, brand strategy, and bold creative thinking into measurable business impact. As Director of Marketing for Taco Bell, she has helped fuel double-digit same-store sales growth in Canada while strengthening the brand’s relevance in one of the country’s most competitive QSR markets. Known for connecting data with creativity, Meera brings a disciplined and commercially focused approach to brand-building; sharpening positioning, identifying growth opportunities, and leading cross-functional teams to deliver work that resonates with Canadians and drives results. A calculated risk taker, she is drawn to ideas that challenge convention while staying grounded in business outcomes. Meera brings a thoughtful, strategic lens to evaluating creative work, with a deep appreciation for ideas that move both culture and commerce.

Wes Wolch
marketing & advertising executive consultant
Independent

As an Award-Winning Brand and Advertising Leader at organizations such as Holt Renfrew & Cosette Media, Wes is an expert in crafting integrated Brand, Communications, Content, Experiential, and Growth strategies across Retail, Alcohol, CPG, Automotive, and Telco for top Canadian corporations. Driven by a deep passion for cultural trends and communication innovation, he is known for delivering transformative brand campaigns with the likes of Beyonce and reinventing the approach to culturally influenced media and growth strategies. His work has earned multiple industry awards including CMAs, MIAs, Effies, Cassies, Strategy Awards, Agency of the Year, and a Cannes Lion for delivering effective and efficient impact across diverse client portfolios.