A CLASS OF CREATIVE LEADERS
STEP INTO THE EMBA CLASSROOM
Our Executive MBA participants don’t come from a specific mold. They are a unique group of professionals from over 60 countries and a wide variety of fields brought together by a passion to develop as leaders. Bringing diverse experiences to the table, they challenge each other to unlock industry-changing potential and engage with business challenges in a whole new way.
STEP INTO THE EMBA CLASSROOM
Our Executive MBA participants don’t come from a specific mold. They are a unique group of professionals from over 60 countries and a wide variety of fields brought together by a passion to develop as leaders. Bringing diverse experiences to the table, they challenge each other to unlock industry-changing potential and engage with business challenges in a whole new way.
THIS IS WHAT BERLINERS LOOK LIKE
THIS IS WHAT BERLINERS LOOK LIKE
Industries
Position
Industries
Position
Countries
Gender & Experience
Countries
Gender & Experience
MEET OUR PARTICIPANTS & ALUMNI
A Growing Community of Creative Leaders
At the Berlin School, we’re committed to celebrating business creativity by sharing knowledge and connecting creative business leaders around the globe. We have hosted participants from over 60 countries and from a wide range of professions, brought together by their drive to take transformational steps in their careers, businesses and industries. We enable these steps through our range of programs, our curriculum taught by academic and industry experts, and our online campus – which also serves as a content platform – the Home of Creative Business Leadership.
Our participants, with their diverse experiences, skills, and backgrounds, make up the heart of our growing global community. To us, community means creating a safe and immersive environment in which to learn, take risks, connect with others, and experiment. It is the living laboratory in which Creative Business Leadership can thrive and succeed.
MEET OUR PARTICIPANTS & ALUMNI
A Growing Community of Creative Leaders
At the Berlin School, we’re committed to celebrating business creativity by sharing knowledge and connecting creative business leaders around the globe. We have hosted participants from over 60 countries and from a wide range of professions, brought together by their drive to take transformational steps in their careers, businesses and industries. We enable these steps through our range of programs, our curriculum taught by academic and industry experts, and our online campus – which also serves as a content platform – the Home of Creative Business Leadership.
Our participants, with their diverse experiences, skills, and backgrounds, make up the heart of our growing global community. To us, community means creating a safe and immersive environment in which to learn, take risks, connect with others, and experiment. It is the living laboratory in which Creative Business Leadership can thrive and succeed.
BARRY MOWSZOWSKI
Independent Strategy Director and Lecturer
BARRY MOWSZOWSKI
Independent Strategy Director and Lecturer
Barry Mowszowski is an awarded Independent Strategy Director, Consultant and Lecturer specializing in business transformation, innovation and communications strategy.
Having worked in senior strategy roles in agencies over a 20 year period in San Francisco, Sydney and New York, the most memorable of which was working alongside David Droga at Publicis NY and Droga 5 NY, Barry has built up a successful portfolio of clients around the globe.
Partnering with The Future Laboratory and Contagious as the head of Strategy for the region, Barry has also ventured into the future of work and the fourth industrial revolution, assuming the role as Marketing Director of Faethm, a Sydney-based predictive analytics platform, driving economic and social value from emerging technologies.
A proud graduate of the Berlin School Executive MBA, Barry describes his career as “built on collaborating with smart, tenacious people to build brand experiences that drive profit and ideally social purpose.”
GORAN GAVRANOVIC
Editor in Chief
GORAN GAVRANOVIC
Editor in Chief
24Sata
Goran has been Editor in Chief of Croatia’s leading media company, 24Sata since 2007.
LUCY NOVITA
Creative Director
LUCY NOVITA
Creative Director
After switching her dream from being a singer to becoming a creative adwoman, Lucy has been enjoying her career in the advertising industry and handling a variety of brands in the electronics, telecommunications and banking categories. She believes that solid team work, a positive working environment, and appreciative clients are the key to create a great campaign. Through the years, her hard work, good mentors and passion for excellence have led her and her team to many national and global prestigious advertising stages. She has served as jury in several award shows and became the first women to represent Indonesia as juror at Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity.
SURESH ERIYAT
Director
SURESH ERIYAT
Director
Studio Eeksaurus Productions
Born in India in 1973, Suresh graduated from the prestigious National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, specializing in communication design in 1997. He led teams for over two decades that have created animation films in 2D, 3D and pioneered Clay/Stop motion in advertising films in India, at a time when animation was relatively a new medium in the country as compared to the west. With his firm belief in the design process for communication solutions, Suresh has been instrumental in creating animated ad films by going beyond the traditional techniques and storytelling conventions that were popular then in India. His path breaking exploration of new visual styles to tell things differently yet effectively is perhaps the reason for an audience and a whole new industry that heralds an exciting phase of Indian animation.
INGRID GAVSHON
CEO
INGRID GAVSHON
CEO
Angel Films & Corporate Scenes
Ingrid founded Angel Films in 1996, making films about death row, torture, HIV/Aids, abortion, gender issues, the Holocaust and arts and culture. She was the Executive Producer on a number of series, and has made over 20 documentaries about Nelson Mandela, many of which aired as a tribute at the time of his death. Her films won multiple awards and were selected for a number of prestigious international film festivals in Europe, Australia and the US.
Along with a long list of filmography dating from 1989, Ingrid has been film jurist and discussion panelist, she curated and designed two exhibitions and presented her own photography work in South Africa and London.
Ingrid completed a Foundation Year of Art and Design and studied a variety of professional courses, including photography, photojournalism, radio production, writing for journalism and screenwriting.
“As a human rights filmmaker, writer, photographer, exhibition curator, facilitator and executive coach, I usually find myself in extraordinary circumstances, at the right place at the right time, meeting the right people like Nelson Mandela and Bill Clinton and as well as women living on the streets of New Delhi.“
Ingrid became a partner in Corporate Scenes where part of her mandate is to restructure and grow the company. She wants to learn the ‘hard’ analytical business skills and tools that will round up and complement her talents. She believes that the expertise gained from the Berlin School will expand her horizons, and she can leverage these new skills and bring them back to her company.
LUCIANA RODRIGUES DE OLIVEIRA
Internal Communications Manager
LUCIANA RODRIGUES DE OLIVEIRA
Internal Communications Manager
Luciana Rodrigues De Oliveira is a Public Relations Professional with a passion for story-telling and over 16 years of experience in communications strategic planning, change management, events organization, digital and offline campaign development, and employer branding.
She is currently Internal Communications Manager at Tereos Sugar & Energy, the second largest sugar producer in the world with more than 8,500 employees in Brazil and seven industrial units. In her role at Tereos, she is committed to injecting creative leadership and purpose into a large, longstanding and conservative industry, rooted in tradition and culture. Her mandates include leading change management processes, redesigning communication channels and developing internal and institutional campaigns to introduce new dialogue and experience formats.
Before joining Tereos, Luciana held several senior Communications roles at Johnson & Johnson. Luciana holds a B.A. in Social Communications from Faculdade Cásper Libero and a Postgraduate degree in Business Administration from FAAP – Fundação Álvares Penteado.
Luciana’s Berlin School experience began on the Cannes Creative Leaders Programme which she describes as an amazing opportunity to join a new community and to learn with “brilliant teachers and professionals.” Having unlocked her yearning to study creativity, innovation, and leadership, Luciana hopes to bring her unique Public Relations and industry perspectives to the class, but also “the curiosity, the passion and the willingness to learn” from her fellow participants.
PABLO DE ARTEAGA
CCO
PABLO DE ARTEAGA
CCO
Partner
As a founding partner of Tailor Made in Brazil, Pablo became COO when the agency merged with Leo Burnett in 2011. Since then, the company has grown by 86 percent with new clients and new disciplines, such as Sports Marketing, Digital/Social Media, Brand Consultancy, and Retail. As a leader in the organization, Pablo’s job is to implement these services as well as innovate new ideas.
Pablo has come full circle in his career, starting at Leo Burnett Brazil in 1997 and working in the Mexico office for two years. He then went on to work as an Account Manager for VIVO Telecom at Young & Rubicam. He was then invited to work for Neogama/BBH as a Client Service Director for the Unilever, Sky and Levi’s accounts, and had the mission to set up the structure and operation of the BBH hub for Latin America. In the beginning of 2008, he was transferred to London to work for BBH LONDON, where he was the Global Client Service Director for Johnnie Walker and Becel (Unilever). In 2009, he joined Africa Advertising in Brazil to lead Vivo Telecom and Itaú Bank before becoming a partner for Tailor Made.
Pablo took courses in Business Management with a focus in marketing at ESPM in Brazil.
OSSI HONKANEN
Associate Creative Director & Manager of Innovation
OSSI HONKANEN
Associate Creative Director & Manager of Innovation
Hasan & Partners
Ossi Honkanen is Associate Creative Director and Manager of Innovation at hasan & partners, Helsinki.
Ossi has over 14 years of experience in the creative industries. As a multi-disciplinary marketing and advertising professional, he has held creative positions in Helsinki and Dublin, including working for some of the leading agencies in Finland and Europe. In his dual position at hasan, he has helped the company grow over the past decade and to return to the top of the Finnish advertising scene, as well as placing in the top 5 agencies of Thenetworkone for several years in a row.
As a Creative, Ossi is involved in everything from strategy and creating campaigns to overseeing production. His background is in Art Direction and innovative digital campaigns. As an Associate Creative Director, Ossi works closely with clients on combining creativity, business and strategic thinking.
As Manager of Innovation, his aim is to bring about technological innovation throughout the agency, keeping aware of emergent technologies and business models to introduce to his teams.
In joining the Berlin School, Ossi hopes to develop “the tools to be a better leader, a better creative, and a person better equipped in bringing about change.”
MARIA MURAD
Consultant
MARIA MURAD
Consultant
IM Branding
Maria is Senior Marketing Consultant at IM Branding, Brazil.
Maria has 25 years of experience in Marketing and Sales of Consumer Goods. She currently works for IM branding, although in her years of experience, she has also served as the VP Marketing Director for Wal-Mart Brazil, as the Planning Director for the Router Group, as well as the Marketing Director for Kimberly Clark Brazil and Unilever Brazil. Additionally, Maria has won numerous awards for her Marketing and Advertising skills such as the Marketing Best Unilever Contest and the Caboré Award for the Best Marketing Professional in 2002.
ELLY PUYAT
CEO
ELLY PUYAT
CEO
A CRM practitioner at heart, Elly has spent her career helping clients grow their business by unlocking customer value for their brands. This single-minded passion has led her across South East Asia, holding key positions at Ogilvy offices in Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Philippines.
Her extensive data-driven one-to-one marketing expertise has benefited brands like Nestlé, Amex, IBM, Nokia, DHL, Nike, The Economist, BMW, Yahoo!, Diageo, Johnson & Johnson, Unilever, and Cola-Cola.
Learn more about the Executive MBA.
KERYN NOSSAL
Managing Director
KERYN NOSSAL
Managing Director
Keryn Nossal is the founder of Fancy Films, a women-run business working in an inclusive way to foster talent and produce creative content for corporate clients. Keryn is both challenged and motivated by the need to keep her work relevant, engaging, and aligned to her personal values.
Keryn’s pro bono work in three main areas is where she draws her energy: Cancer Research, Social Services, and Indigenous Education. She has received awards for this work which has inspired ‘From A to Me’ profile some of Australia’s most inspiring female leaders, with authentic discussion about what it means to be a woman leader today.
CHRISTOPH POROPATITS
Founder and CEO
CHRISTOPH POROPATITS
Founder and CEO
Christoph is an experienced online media professional with about ten years of experience in
online businesses, particularly online video companies. He has worked at Google/YouTube and
three online media companies in various start-up stages (boot-strapped, venture funded; 5-150
people management responsibility each). His company Assembell is an online video consulting
business. Christoph has lived and worked in Dublin, London, Cologne, Berlin, San Francisco and
is a native of Vienna, Austria. Christoph holds a B.A. degree from a University of Applied
Sciences in Austria and is an avid skier, diver and traveler. His interests further include journalism
and politics.
CARLOS EL ASMAR
Executive Director
CARLOS EL ASMAR
Executive Director
NBCUniversal
Carlos was born and raised in Venezuela but moved to Miami when he was 18, then finally settled in New York City. He has experience working in shared-services departments, producing graphics, animations, promos and designs.
Carlos is co-owner of Motionographer.com – a leading source of content for creatives, sharing work from studios, freelancers and students. He also created the F5 festival, a cutting-edge symposium of designers, artists and thinkers from around the world.
MALTE SUDENDORF
Founder Partner
MALTE SUDENDORF
Founder Partner
KauneSudendorf
As Managing Partner of his own company, Malte manages a workforce of 30 people who engage in co-creativity through creative branding (agency), creative content (publishing), and creative dialogue (gallery). The company develops digital solutions and campaigns, publishes and international fashion magazine and run a gallery for contemporary photography. He concentrates on leadership as a systems coach and team developer, and also takes these skills outside his own company and acts as a consultant for other organizations in how to achieve mutually respectful, solution-oriented collaboration.
Before starting his own organization, Malte previously worked for Euro RSCG, BBDO, DDB and Scholz & Friends Berlin, focussing on integrated campaign development and digital strategy. His clients have included companies such as Volkswagen, Audi, Henkel, Deutsche Post, Telekom, UPS and TNT Express.
On his choice to come to the Berlin School, Malte said “My experience within my own company has shown me that I have valuable business instincts. Nevertheless, I have the strong feeling that these skills require the refinement and development that the Executive MBA in Creative Leadership can provide, I am sure that this decision will propel me to new, inspiring perspectives.”
IQBAL NANDRA
Head of Communications
IQBAL NANDRA
Head of Communications
Iqbal Nandra is an expert in strategic communications, PR, media relations, multimedia/film production and international campaigns. He has over 15 years of experience working on global campaigns in both developed and developing country settings. As Head of Communications at International Labour Organization (ILO), he can put all of his areas of expertise into creative practice.
Iqbal often found himself in conversations where the terms ‘equity valuation’, ‘e-commerce’ and ‘entrepreneurship’ cropped up with increased frequency – conversations in which he would have liked to be more articulate, more assured and more adept. Hence, his desire for a more formal business education, with a special focus on effective leadership in the creative industries, is what led him to the Berlin School.
Iqbal’s background includes working as a PR Consultant in strategic communications, where he advised numerous Indian and international clients on a wide range of strategic communication activities, including branding, media relations, corporate communications and business development. A couple of his clients include Dyson and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He even founded his own company, Moonshot Missions to help companies and startups identify and achieve their branding dreams. Before that, he worked as a Communications Advisor as well as a Global Campaign Manager for the World Health Organization in Switzerland. Prior to joining WHO, he worked in various capacities for the BBC, including as a Senior Project Consultant (India, Nigeria and Tanzania) and Senior Producer for BBC Radio 1 (UK). Over the years, his teams picked up a clutch of media and campaign awards in India, Nigeria and the UK. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Media and Communications at the University of Westminster in London.
GIDEON AMICHAY
CEO
GIDEON AMICHAY
CEO
Founder
Gideon is the Founder and Chief Creative Officer of “NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, YES”, a creative boutique in New York. He was formerly Chief Creative Officer & Joint Managing Partner of Shalmor Avnon Amichay / Y&R, Israel (1994-2011), where he led the agency to become a market leader in creativity and innovation (7 times Agency of the year), and one of the 3 biggest agencies in the country. In 2011, Shalmor Avnon Amichay was sold to WPP’s Y&R network.
Gideon ranked among The 100 Most Influential People in Israel by Haaretz / The Marker, 2007, 2008. He published his first book in 2011– No, No, No, No, No, No, No, Yes, about innovation and creativity.
Gideon’s achievements include international awards, such as 19 Lions at Cannes festival (2008-2012); 2nd Media Agency of the Year, Cannes Lions 2009 and 2nd PR Agency of the Year, Cannes Lions 2011. He served as the President of the Direct Jury at the 2012 Cannes Lions. Other awards include: 9 Clio awards for Innovation and Content & Contact; the United Nations Special Award (UN); the London International Awards Grand LIA; the New York Festival Grand Prix and many more.
Gideon received a BA (Honors) in Graphic Design and Visual Communication from the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in 1990.
JAN HUMBERT
Creative Director
JAN HUMBERT
Creative Director
United Design Group (UDG)
As Design Director of UDG, an architecture and planning company that has a staff of 1,000 people, Jan’s responsibilities range from extensive branded commercial spaces to individual brand retail spaces within UDG developments, which include top-range themed hotel destinations to automotive showcases. His goal is to use digital media to coordinate and synchronize exchange between the company’s branches and run online visual content management system to fuse inspiration in the design process fostering creative excellence.
Jan served as Senior Designer at HELLER MANUS, Int., where he initalized and managed an independent design center in Shanghai. He has also worked as a Project Architect, an Architectural Design Manager for various architecture companies, as well as taught architectural design methods at the Technical University in Dresden, Germany. He received his degree in Architectural Design at the Technische Universitaet Berlin.
In deciding to come to the Berlin School of Creative Leadership, Jan believes the both the education and the networking opportunities will help him achieve his creative leadership goals. “Working and learning close with media related creative professionals will inspire my future activity as Executive Creative Director or Design Principal.”
BART DAEMS
Creative Director
BART DAEMS
Creative Director
Pink Entropy
Bart began his career in the creative industries in 1992 as a young graphic designer. His long professional background in digital design and multimedia includes working as web/interactive designer and web director in Belgium, Portugal and the United Arab Emirates, and co-founding several start-ups.
He is currently the Creative Director of Pink Entropy, an agency that delivers innovative marketing strategies and engaging interactive experiences. His main interest focuses on how to create outside the norm, to disrupt but to do so with deliberate and careful thought and deliver results, which brands and businesses can measure. His drive encompasses leading a team of creative artists, finding their strengths and nurturing their talent so they can also create and deliver compelling design and art that resonates with people. “How can I best inspire creative people as a leader? I believe that, although deadlines need to be reached, as a creative leader it is more important to be a mentor or a coach than a commander.”
A Belgian native, Bart was Head of Creative Team at HGW Media, the publisher and brand promoter for Rolling Stone Magazine Middle East. Before this, he spent 5 years as digital media specialist with The Petroleum Institute in Abu Dhabi.
Bart obtained a Certificate Figure Drawing and Printing Techniques from the Academy of Fine Arts in Belgium, as well as a BA in Graphic Design from the St. Lukas University College of Art and Design (LUCA) in Brussels.
MIKA MATIKAINEN
Co-founder, Design
MIKA MATIKAINEN
Co-founder, Design
Wolt
Mika is a multidisciplinary and awarded design generalist with extensive and combined experience covering e.g. digital product design, brand development and creative marketing concepts. He started his career as a hobby by learning how the web works, how services are built, how they attracted visitors and what kind of content got attention. Since then, he’s founded three companies, including digital agency, design consultancy and a scaling tech startup. He believes great things happen if creativity and business are combined in a way that’s valuable and delightful for the customer. He has also won many awards for his design work.
ASMA ALI
Creative Director
ASMA ALI
Creative Director
Freelance
Trinidad and Tobago
Hailing from Trinidad & Tobago in the Caribbean, Asma has spent the last 16 years in Advertising wearing a ‘Creative professional’ hat. Although based in a small market, she has worked on campaigns throughout the entire Caribbean across several categories in both English and Spanish. Additionally, she is involved in her local industry, holding a seat for the second year in the Advertising Agencies’ Association of T&T Creative Awards Planning and Event Committee.
A Management Studies Graduate, Asma enjoys the challenge of ensuring that her creative also meets business goals. After leaving her full-time agency job, she has entered a new chapter in her professional career as a freelance professional.
XENIA FEDOROVA
President & CEO
XENIA FEDOROVA
President & CEO
RT France
As Head of Russia, CIS and Baltic states broadcast for RT, Xenia is working on the launch of new broadcast projects and is in charge of several departments responsible for content production, promotion and distribution, cross-media platforms, as well as launching and managing several news websites for RT.
Previously Xenia was in charge of media projects at RT and was responsible for distribution of Spanish language RT in Latin America as well as news content distribution for media professionals via online video portal Freevideo.RT.com. She reports directly to the Editor-in-Chief and leads a team of 130 professional editors, technical staff and managers. RT is a group of 24/7 news channels broadcasting in English, Arabic and Spanish to global audience. RT has studios based in Moscow and Washington DC and bureaus in London, Paris, New York and Berlin. It is the most-viewed news channel on YouTube with over 700,000 million views and is available to more than 400 million viewers around the world.
Xenia has worked her way up through several departments at RT, starting out as a producer on the international desk, then becoming an executive producer, and she now leads a team of 130 people in her current role as Director of Russia, CIS and Baltic states broadcast. Her work has taken her to several international hotspots and she has interviewed leaders, like former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and European Commission President Jose Manuel Borroso.
PIT GOTTSCHALK
Publisher
PIT GOTTSCHALK
Publisher
Fever Pit’ch
Pit is a Publisher at Fever Pit’ch.
Before Fever Pit’ch, Pit Gottschalk is the Editor in Chief at the Funke Mediengruppe. Prior to this role, Pit was the “Managing Director of Content Management” and before that “Head of CEO’s Newspaper Office” at Axel Springer, Europe’s biggest newspaper company.
Preceding this, he was Chief Editor for Sport-Bild magazine in Hamburg (approx. 4 million readership) for six years. Gottschalk joined Sport-Bild in 1994 as Reporter and quickly rose to Chief Reporter. In 1998, he joined Die Welt & Welt am Sonntag in Berlin, as Chief Sports Editor before returning to Sport-Bild as Deputy Editor in 2002.
VICO SHARABANI
CEO
VICO SHARABANI
CEO
Vico is one of the most notable Flame artists in the world and winner of the first ever Autodesk Flame Award recognizing his vast contributions to the visual effects industry over the past 20 years. Vico¹s portfolio includes a wide range of commercials for fortune 500 companies such as Mercedes-Benz, Nike, and AT&T; music videos for Beyoncé, Niki Minaj, KanYe West; and work on dozens of films such as Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel, Tower Heist, and Sex & The City to name a few.
Servicing the advertising and entertainment industries for over 25 years, as Creative Entrepreneur, award-winning Creative Director and Producer, Vico is heavily involved in the management of projects across creative, production and technical endeavors. He is also involved with TED community’s ‘Ads Worth Spreading’ and TEDxEast. Vico is currently completing the EMBA program at the Berlin School Of Creative Leadership.
JULIANE ECKSTEIN
Manager
JULIANE ECKSTEIN
Manager
Beyerdynamic GmbH
Juliane is Head of Product Design at Beyerdynamic GmbH in Heilbronn, one of the leading suppliers of headphones, microphones and conference systems.
After working for well-known designers such as Marc Newson, Studio Alain Mikli Paris and also companies like Suzuki Europe, Juliane became the Product Design Manager at Beyerdynamic in 2008. By directing product design, she is heavily involved in the development of the new and innovative audio products of the company. Her works have been exhibited at fares worldwide, reviewed in the international press and awarded.
Juliane studied product design at Braunschweig University of Arts and at Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design.
LAUREN REILLY
Senior Integrated Producer
LAUREN REILLY
Senior Integrated Producer
Lauren is a firm believer that you never stop learning and you can never have enough knowledge for every campaign in the world, but the people you meet along the way, have the keys for the next door to open, they are the most cherished.
Lauren began in Wilson Everard as a Financial Assistant in 2007 and moved up to Account executive and then Account manager in 2011. She then went on to a role as Production Manager with the Quattro Group and then a Producer at the Grey Group before finding her current position as Senio Integrated Producer at TBWA Australia.
MINDAUGAS SAVICKAS
CMO
MINDAUGAS SAVICKAS
CMO
Mindaugas has worked in various marketing positions in the areas of strategic management, branding, and product creation. He has diverse experiences in a wide range of companies – from market leaders to start-ups and different geographical regions. The highlight in his career has been his role at Tele2, which grew out of a small green field mobile operator into a market leader. He was recognized as ‘CMO of the Year’ by the Lithuanian Marketing Association in 2018.
Mindaugas has a strong belief in the human potential, which manifests itself in his passion for endurance sports like marathon and swim-run, and results in him being a co-founder of an NGO, which organizes the largest marathon in Lithuania.
SEBASTIAN LOUDON
Representative
SEBASTIAN LOUDON
Representative
Die ZEIT
Sebastian is a representative for DIE ZEIT in Austria and Publisher of DATUM, a monthly magazine for politics and society. Before this he served as Publisher and Editor in Chief of “Horizont” (Austria’s leading weekly Newspaper for the Communications industry), “Bestseller” (magazine for the Communications industry) and “Horizont Online” (a Web-Portal for the Communications industry). Within this role, he leads an editorial department of fifteen individuals.Preceding this, from August 2002 to December 2007, Sebastian worked for the Austrian Regulatory Authority for Broadcasting & Telecommunications (RTR) as Manager of CEO’s office, Press Officer and Project Coordinator for the digitization plan of broadcasting in Austria. Prior to this, from April 1996 until August 2002, he worked as an Editor for ‘Horizont’, ‘Bestseller’ and Horizont Online’.Learn more about our Executive MBA.
JULIA BOLTERSDORF-GÜNTER
CMO, Founder
JULIA BOLTERSDORF-GÜNTER
CMO, Founder
JBG Lovelybrands
Julia is the Founder and CMO of JBG Lovelybrands, a Marketing and PR Consultancy.
Prior to this appointment, Julia held positions at Gabor Footwear, Birkenstock, KreativKonzept SolarWorld.
ALEKSEJ SCHÖN
CEO President
ALEKSEJ SCHÖN
CEO President
Circus of Now Productions
Aleksej’s company, Circus of Now Productions, is a show production visionary think-tank, helping clients in the cinematic, music, and advertising industries conceptualize and stage productions, exhibitions, and various events. Aleksej’s main role consists of Conception, art direction and realisation – from the idea via the technological experiment to on site-operating, especially visual media and stage design. He leads creative groups of up to 50 people – conceptualising and implementing hundreds of complex projects in collaboration with agencies and direct customers, authorities and institutions. He has worked with major corporations, international festivals, global NGO’s and won dozens of awards, including 2 silver medals the New York Festivals, 2 Globe Gold awards at the World Media Festival.
With more than 15 years in the event planning and design industry, Aleksej has worked on major productions with multi-million euro budgets around the world. One of his recent projects was stage design and media production for the highly successful YMA show at Friedrichstadtpalast in Berlin, with a budget of more than 8 million euro. He has also worked on projects with dozens of major global companies. Aleksej received his Bachelors in Pyschology, Philosophy, and Politics at Freie Universität Berlin.
Aleksej comes to the Berlin School to develop business skills that will allow him to work within any corporation and business as he further develops his company. “My career has been marked by strong achievements and notable successes, but these partly reflect serendipity, which does not provide a systematic basis for a sustainable career in the creative industries. Therefore, I have to acquire stable knowledge structures through a recognized formal qualification like the EMBA in Creative Leadership, and in the future not rely only on experience-based principles of decision-making.”
EDGARDO OLAIZOLA
Director
EDGARDO OLAIZOLA
Director
Lapiz
Edgardo is a Strategy Director at Lapiz, a leading multicultural ad agency offering creative development services for TV, print, radio, and digital ads that focus on reaching the Hispanic community. Lapiz is a unit of Leo Burnett, which also offers campaign planning as well as brand consulting services. The agency has performed work for such clients as Allstate, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, and BlackBerry. Lapiz is a unit of Leo Burnett.
Edgardo was previously Marketing Research Manager of NII Holdings, a leading provider of mobile communications in Latin America, where he orchestrated regional marketing research projects and brand strategies in order to strengthen the Nextel brand.
Edgardo’s career in Brand Strategy and Research started in Venezuela, where he graduated with a B.A. in Communication and began working as a copywriter for JWT. He then moved on to become Advertising Research Project Manager for Ipsos Venezuela coordinating regional efforts for Procter & Gamble and later he moved to Puerto Rico to be the Director of Advertising Research for Ipsos ASI. Before moving to NII, he was the Strategic Planning Director for BBDO Puerto Rico, where we developed strategic brand initiatives for a multi-brand portfolio, including Mars, Pepsi, Scotiabank & Visa.
YACINE AZZOUZ
Strategic Planner
YACINE AZZOUZ
Strategic Planner
Goldbach Interactive
Yacine is a Strategic Planner who has worked for different network agencies such as TBWA, Publicis, McCann and DDB in Switzerland, Germany, Algeria and Namibia. He graduated in Sociology and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Basel in 2008 and in 2013 he completed an Account Planning Boot Camp at the Miami Ad School in New York. He has experience in creating advertising concepts, cooperating with clients, and coordinating and implementing creative projects.
Yacine is also a former lecturer and a sergeant in the Swiss army.
LINE GROVE HERMANSEN
Director of Communications and Advocacy
LINE GROVE HERMANSEN
Director of Communications and Advocacy
UNICEF Denmark
Line is a Danish communications specialist who has experience as an advisor for both the private and public sectors. She graduated in Journalism and worked as a journalist and press officer before becoming a communications advisor for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and press secretary for the Ministry of Social Affairs and Gender Equality. From 2014 to 2016, Line worked for the international NGO SOS Children’s Villages in different positions, covering a vast number of countries. Today, she is Director of Communications and Advocacy at UNICEF Denmark and continues her work responsibilities at Danmarks Medie, where she has served as an appointed external examiner for over 15 years.
EMIN GULUZADE
CCO Partner
EMIN GULUZADE
CCO Partner
PeopleBrand
Emin Guluzade is Chief Creative Officer and Managing Partner at PeopleBrand Azerbaijan.
Guluzade’s experience in marketing and sales includes working as Marketing Advisor at Real Holding, Marketing Specialist at Nurgun Motors and Sales Director at Nipro Allied. Guluzade has worked on campaigns for major international brands including Johnson & Johnson, Gillette, BIC, Ford, Nissan and Peugeot.
JOÃO GABRIEL FERNANDES
Vice-President, Strategic Planning
JOÃO GABRIEL FERNANDES
Vice-President, Strategic Planning
Almap BBDO
João is an experienced and awarded communications professional, with a demonstrated history of working as strategist in the Brazilian advertising industry.
João is passionate about how communications generate value for companies, people and society and ways of measuring it. Rising in the ranks in Advertising and Publicity, João holds a VP position at the 2017’s most awarded advertising agencies in the world.
FRANCES LUCKIN
Chief Creative Officer
FRANCES LUCKIN
Chief Creative Officer
Grey Advertising Africa
Fran Luckin is the Chief Creative Officer of Grey Africa. From 2013 to 2015 she was Executive Creative Director of Quirk Johannesburg, a digital agency and part of the Mirum group. Formerly, she served as the Executive Creative Director of Ogilvy Johannesburg, where she worked on a range of global accounts such as Unilever (Ponds, Dove), P & G (Clearasil, Always), Kraft, Cadbury, Kimberly-Clark, Avis, Audi, BMW, SAB Miller, Coca-Cola, Fanta, KFC and Diners’ Club International.
Her achievement in the industry has been recognized in many ways, including being a judge on the Film Jury at Cannes Lions 2010, making the SA Creative Ranking List and being listed at one of the top 50 Creative Directors internationall by PIAFYS.
MARION KUPPER
Junior Key Account Manager
MARION KUPPER
Junior Key Account Manager
Reckitt Benckiser
Marion is Junior Key Account Manager at Reckitt Benckiser in Switzerland, responsible for retail clients in the country. She is an experienced manager focused on marketing, having worked in companies like Nestlé and Heineken.
Marion also worked as Marketing Manager at adpad AG, building the start-up and focusing on connecting stationary trade with the possibilities of the online world in a smart way to achieve an increase in service and turnover. At her previous position at Aldi Suisse as Area Manager, Marion acquired leadership experience through managing the sales staff, its recruitment and training.
With a skill set that includes Digital Marketing, Data Analysis and E-Commerce, she obtained a BSc and MSc in Management, Business Administration and General Management from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland.
PRISCILLA PESCI
Founder
PRISCILLA PESCI
Founder
As a global marketing executive, producer, and entrepreneur, Priscilla has over 15 years of experience working in digital social media, television, film and music initiatives for some of the most renown studios, broadcast networks and agencies, including Lionsgate Entertainment, MGM Studios, CBS Broadcast and FOX Studios.
In 2011 she created Elumines, which she describes as a socially-conscious, global, integrated media and content solutions company, committed to positively impacting, improving, and transforming the media landscape.
Priscilla believes creatives must develop a network of likeminded leaders to promote innovation, while influencing young leaders to guide future media to higher standards. “We find ourselves amidst a unique, historic time and unprecedented media revolution that is progressing our ability to communicate in immediate, innovative ways and at groundbreaking speeds. The architecture of traditional media is collapsing rapidly. We will never have the opportunity to experience such a global media revolution again in our lifetimes.“
A native of Massachusetts, Priscilla attended the University of San Francisco where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts, Independent Major in Foreign Literature and Languages. She built a successful career working for some of the biggest and most prominent TV and Entertainment Studios before founding her own company in 2011. Most recently, she has produced an award-winning and critically acclaimed documentary film and is currently in development with two television series.
DANIEL RIOS
General Planning Director
DANIEL RIOS
General Planning Director
Daniel is a Brazilian creative director with experience in advertising and developing branding communication strategies. Projects he has worked on include building brands for different industries, developing integrated communication campaigns and leading teams through a creative process in local and global projects.
Daniel holds a BA in Advertising & Marketing and has specialised in Communication Planning at the Miami Ad School.
IZABELLA WILEY
General Manager A+E Networks
IZABELLA WILEY
General Manager A+E Networks
As SVP of Viacom International Media Networks, Izabella launched an HD channel for MTV Networks international. The channel is currently distributed in over 30 countries worldwide. She also launched the Nickelodeon HD channel for Russia and Poland, was responsible for leading MTV’s international efforts in developing 3D projects, and has increased profitability of her regional unit tenfold. Under her leadership, the Polish media industry recognized Viacom International Media Networks Poland with many awards as by assigning them a status of experts in the field of successful execution of the global television trends in the local markets.
Izabella came to the Berlin School of Creative Leadership to build a strategy for television of the future and how to balance the elements of business with creativity. “Transformation has brought a lot of challenges to the industry and how we handle them will decide the future of the business. I would like to focus on some of these challenges while a the Berlin School of Creative Leadership.”
Izabella has 16 years of experience in the television industry, working with Viacom and MTV throughout most of her career in the roles of spokesperson, general manager, marketing, vice-president, and now senior vice-president. She was named one of the 50 most influential women in Poland by “Home & Market” magazine and was a finalist for the Businesswoman of the Year by BRE Bank and Radio PIN. She was also the winner of the “Keep Walking” award by Newsweekreaders and is a member of the Emmy Awards Academy.
Learn more about our Executive MBA.
ELENA KALININA
Executive Creative Director
ELENA KALININA
Executive Creative Director
RCG
Elena is a multifield creative professional with more than 11 years of experience in advertising. She was born in Russia, but lived in Europe for many years, acquiring her school and university Diplomas in Portugal and The Netherlands. Today, Elena lives and works in the US and is now deeply passionate about Asian market.
Elena has been working for big international accounts like Philip Morris, Bacardi, Unilever and PepsiCo, and now works for one of the biggest Media Agencies in Russia. She has been actively sharing knowledge at British Academy of Design and BBDO Wordshop in Moscow. Elena is also the founder of ASK: Advertising School for Kids – ROOM485 JUNIOR, and participates as jury in local and international events such as MAA Globes 2017, Silver Mercury 2015, Dragons of ASIA 2017.
MONICA ATHAYDE
Senior Digital Media and Entertainment Executive Consultant
MONICA ATHAYDE
Senior Digital Media and Entertainment Executive Consultant
Executive Consultant
Monica is a Senior Digital Media and Entertainment Executive Consultant with expertise in the entertainment industry. Previously, Monika worked for Endemol Globo for 11 years, starting as Production Manager and before serving as Managing Director. Having worked in television and entertainment for her entire adult life, Monica has worked on a variety of shows and projects. She is also actively involved in the entertainment and television scene globally, serving as a moderator for the Rio Film Festival in 2012, acting as an Emmy Award Juror member since 2010, and participating annually in MIPCOM.Before joining Endemol Globo, Monica was an Executive Producer for TVE, has worked as Director and Executive Producer for documentaries, and was the Executive Producer for FOX/SBT’s ‘Temptation Island.’ She did a post-graduate degree in Film and Television Business – Executive Training for Film and TV at Fundação Getúlio Vargas.Monica came to the Berlin School of Creative Leadership to help achieve important career goals that require additional education from a leading institution for creative executives. “In the short-term, my aim is to study in-depth, business management around the globe and learn creativity in different ways. My long-term objective is to be one of the foremost experts in the TV formats business in Brazil and internationally, and be known as a professional who can bring together business and creativity to better perform my work in the industry.”
EDUARDO SERFATY GABBAY
Sports Planning Director
EDUARDO SERFATY GABBAY
Sports Planning Director
Eduardo is a production Engineer (PUC-Rio) with an MBA in Finance and a Master’s Degree in Economics. His professional experience is based on strategic planning, financial planning, marketing/pricing, consumer intelligence, and mostly focused on the media industry.He has attended o key international media events and conferences and is fluent in English.
FLAVIO FABBRI
CCO
FLAVIO FABBRI
CCO
Independent
Flavio Fabbri is an award-winning Chief Creative Officer with a background in advertising, digital, art direction, and photography.
Flavio has served as Digital Chief Creative Officer at Young & Rubicam, Oglivy, IBM and Armando Testa, leading the digital teams across the Milan, Turin and Los Angeles and working with clients such as Facebook, Vodafone, Red Bull and the UN. Before this, he was Creative Director at Y&R / VML who were the winners of “Best Italian Digital Agency” NC Award from 2015 – 2017.
Throughout his career, Flavio has received over 70 awards for his creative work including six Cannes Lions, two Gold Epica Awards, three Clio awards and a feature in the 2017 GUNN Report.
Away from client work, Flavio also teaches Digital Advertising, Photography and Web Design at Istituto Europeo di Design, Milan.
In joining the Berlin School, Flavio hopes to enrich his sense of purpose in his work by looking inwards as a creative and as a creative leader.
ALEXANDER JAGGY
Co-Founder/CCO
ALEXANDER JAGGY
Co-Founder/CCO
thjnk Zurich
Alexander Jaggy is the Co-Founder and CCO of thjnk Zurich. He has been in the advertising industry for almost 20 years. After completing his diploma in business administration, in 1990 he immediately joined BBDO Zurich as a copywriter, before moving to the legendary GGK. In 1994 his career path led him to Germany, first to Springer & Jacoby, then to Jung von Matt. In 1999 he was hired by Springer & Jacoby to help set up the agency’s international office in London. After seven years abroad he returned to Zurich in 2001 to join the newly founded Jung von Matt/Limmat. In 2004 he was appointed Executive Creative Director, and in 2006 he became joint partner in the agency.
Alexander Jaggy has been honoured with a number of sought-after international awards. In 2006 he received a Gold Lion for client MINI, and on the same day Jung von Matt/Limmat was awarded second place in the competition for “Media Agency of the Year” in recognition of its innovative advertising – a first for a Swiss agency. In 2008 Jung von Matt/Limmat achieved its best result ever from the Art Directors Club Switzerland since the agency was founded and was named “Agency of the Year”. After winning the prestigious Migros account at the beginning of 2009, within just 100 days the agency topped of its run of success by bringing home a Cannes Lion.
Alexander Jaggy has a Bachelor’s and a Master’s in Creative Leadership. He is a Member of the Board of ADC Switzerland, as well as a member of ADC Germany and D&AD in the UK.
Alexander Jaggy is married with three children. He lives in Zurich.
ROLAND KELLER
Head of Innovation Culture
ROLAND KELLER
Head of Innovation Culture
Swiss Post
Roland is the Head of Strategic Projects at Swiss Post in Bern.
In his former role as Project Manager in the team of Corporate Development at Swiss Post in Bern, he was focusing on trend identification and new business development, ensuring the future of this large organization by bridging the gap between future trends and current business.
Prior to Swiss Post, Roland worked at BenQ Mobile for a year as an Innovations Manager for the Product Definition Team, as well as a Design Manager of the Innovations Team Center User Interface at Siemens for three years.
CATHRIN LOOSE
Creative Director
CATHRIN LOOSE
Creative Director
Franklen Architekten GmbH
Cathrin Loose is Senior Project Manager at Schmidhuber, the #1 Agency in Germany for Spatial Communication and Design.
Prior to this, Cathrin was Creative Director at Franklen Architekten GmbH in Frankfurt, where she was responsible for art direction, project management, implementation planning and construction site management of trade fair stands for major brands including BMW and Siemens.
Loose has won several awards for her work, including the DDC-Award (Gold) in 2008 the DP3D Golden Flame Award in 2007 and the 2007 ADAM Award for her work for MINI.
VINCENT GRAHL
Manager
VINCENT GRAHL
Manager
Axel Springer
One of our youngest participants to date, Vincent is the Head of Project Management at Zuio GmbH in Berlin.
He started his career in digital video in companies such as “Mi Web” and “Divimove” before heading to this original Axel Springer initiative, training young talents in journalism, moderation and production, relying on their talent and allowing them to develop and produce their own formats, publishing them on YouTube.
One of their key issues in this initiative is online advertising and branded entertainment, working together with brands and creating productions and formats that bring advertisers closer to the viewer, something which in his eyes, needs to be further developed in Germany.
“Having a leading role in a company working with creative people can be as rewarding as it can be frustrating. On the one hand you can work with wonderful people that have amazing ideas, on the other hand, it can be very hard to lead creative individuals. I quickly realized that it would take a lot of time and dedication to acquire the skills that are necessary to work with creative people. I would love to get a chance to be inspired by others who are also successfully managing these kind of companies while further developing my leadership skills.“
Vincent started studying Corporate Management and Economics at the Zeppelin University Friedrichshafen before joining the Berlin School’s Alumni Thomas Elstner at Axel Springer.
VICENTE GARCIA
Marketing Director
VICENTE GARCIA
Marketing Director
Cinepolis
Vicente Garcia currently is Director of Marketing at Cinepolis in Mexico. He also recently founded a new Interactive Agency called Kardumen Digital Sympathy in Barcelona, where he oversees creative direction and planning.
Garcia’s extensive international marketing experience includes working with top consumer brands in France, Spain, Portugal and Brazil most notably for BIC and Henkel.