| Nira
DeSai, Strategic Planner, Jack
Morton Worldwide
AWNY’s “Changing the Game” Luncheon, on April
30, 2008, held at the Hilton New York, and sponsored by NBC Universal,
Yahoo! and AdweekMedia, celebrated nineteen women who are leading industry
in change agents. Hoda Kotb, co-anchor of the Today Show and Dateline
NBC, was Mistress of Ceremonies at the event, which awarded marketers
ranging from ad agencies to Fortune 100 companies for their accomplishments
and their desire to change the game. (See full list of honorees below.)
The event emphasized the importance for embracing change and being flexible
to what may appear on the horizon next.
Hoda Kotb kicked off the luncheon with her personal account of the challenges
she encountered when she first began her career. She told harrowing tales
of covering both the tsunami in Southeast Asia and Hurricane Katrina,
emphasizing the lessons she learned from each. Importantly, she charged
the audience with remembering not to take life for granted by saying “Life
has margins and it’s not meant to be wasted.” Kotb drove home
the need for everyone to make changes in their lives and careers when
the chance arose.
Kotb then led the honorees on the dais in a question and answer session,
leading with topics such as mentors, work-life balance and key pieces
of advice. A majority said that they had been equally mentored by both
men and women along the way. Najoh Tita-Reid, Director, Multicultural
Marketing, Procter & Gamble said that although she doesn’t feel
that work-life balance exists, there is a way to find work-life harmony
instead. Jen Drexler, Founding Partner and Co-Director, Just Ask a Woman
encouraged everyone to seek the job that terrifies them and to choose
the people that one works with, rather than the job. The session closed
with a key insight from Audrey Siegel, Co-Founder and EVP Director of
Client Services, TargetCast, who, when asked about retirement said that
people are no longer retiring; rather they are “rewiring”
to new things and starting their second careers.
The message for women to step up as strong leaders was overwhelmingly
heard at the Changing the Game Luncheon, as audience members left inspired
and motivated to implement change in their own organizations. The women
honored at the luncheon are trailblazers who are showing us how to break
the rules and to make a difference in our own organizations.
The Honorees:
Brainwave:
Women behind the innovative promotion or positioning of a brand,
category or company.
Sue Brush,
SVP, Westin Hotels & Resorts for Starwood
Emma Cookson, CEO, BBH
Mary Dillon, Global Chief Marketing Officer,
McDonald’s
Judy Hu, Global Executive Director, Advertising
& Branding, General Electric
Andrea Luhtanen, President, Haworth Marketing +
Media
Kathy Paddor, Director of Marketing, Crate &
Barrel
No
Apologies:
Women behind a new product, brand or idea that has made the lives of other
women more fun,
interesting, easier or better in some way.
Beth Brenner,
Vice President, Publisher Domino Magazine
Jen Drexler, Founder, Just Ask a Woman
Helen Greiner, Entrepreneur, Co-Founder,
iRobot Corp
Najoh Tita-Reid, Director, Multi-cultural Marketing,
Procter & Gamble
Quantum
Leap:
The women who have spurred change in the way we view or think about something.
Marissa
Mayer, Vice President, Director of Consumer Web Products,
Google
Cynthia Park, President, Y&R's K&L
Donna Sturgess, Global Head of Innovation,
Glaxo SmithKline
Pamela Zucker, EVP, Marketplace Ignition, MediaVest
Paradigm Shift: Women who reinvent themselves by either
adding adrenaline to their careers or moved their careers
into an exciting new direction.
Sheryl Draizen
Daija, Founder and CEO, Power of Peace
Esther Lee, CEO, North America and President,
Global Brands, Euro RSCG
Nancy Mullahy, EVP, Managing Director, Starcom
MediaVest Group
Audrey Siegel, Co-Founder & EVP Director of
Client Services, TargetCast
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