The Jury

CHRIS BHOWMIK
Senior Brand Manager, Corby Spirit and Wine

Bhowmik has worked in brand marketing for the past 10 years, with previous experience at Bacardi, Nestle S.A and the Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. Since 2011, he has lead all marketing initiatives for Corby Spirit and Wine’s vodka brands, including Absolut and Polar Ice vodka, and is currently spearheading Absolut’s latest campaign “Makerfest."

ARLENE DICKINSON
CEO, Venture Communications

In addition to Venture, Dickinson is also the CEO of YouInc.com, a company she founded in 2012 that invests in entrepreneurs. She is a venture capitalist on the award-winning CBC series Dragons’ Den, as well as a marketing expert on Food Network’s Recipe to Riches. She is the author of two books, Persuasion and her most recent best-selling release, All In.

JASON DOOLAN
Marketing Director, General Mills Canada

Since joining the company 22 years ago, Doolan has been instrumental in growing General Mills’ brands, including Cheerios, Pillsbury and Nature Valley. In his current role, he is responsible for managing over a dozen cereal brands, which comprise of a $290 million portfolio.

MARIE-JOSÉE GAGNON
CEO and founder, Casacom

In 2001, Gagnon founded Casacom, a Canadian consultancy firm headquartered in Montreal with an office in Toronto. An alumnus of the Harvard Business School, Gagnon was also nominated as an Exceptional Woman by the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montréal. She was also previously president of the Quebec Council of PR Firms.

LUISA GIROTTO
Director, Public Affairs, for Starbucks Coffee Canada

Girotto is responsible for external, executive and partner communications and government affairs at Starbucks. With over 20 years in the industry, her expertise spans multiple communications disciplines including internal communication, brand and corporate PR, crisis/issues management and CSR. She previously held marketing and communications roles at Cadbury.

CAROL LEVINE
CEO and Co-Founder, Energi PR

With more than 40 years of experience, Levine has won industry accolades for national PR campaigns for brands like the Canadian Red Cross Society, Teleglobe Canada and Hilton International. She is former chair of the Canadian Council of Public Relations Firms (CCPRF) and the first PR professional to be inducted into the Canadian Healthcare Marketing Hall of Fame.

TONY MATTA
CMO, Kraft Foods Canada

Matta leads the marketing organization for Kraft Canada, leading brands likeKD, Cracker Barrel Cheese and Kraft Peanut Butter. He joined the company in June 2013 and previously held roles at Frito Lay in the U.S. and PepsiCo in Canada and the U.K. He was named strategy’s Marketer of the Year in 2009 and led a turnaround of the U.S. Frito Lay Tostitos business.

RICHARD ROTMAN
Professor, Humber College

Rotman teaches Media Relations, as well as Politics and Public Affairs at Humber in Toronto. Before working as a consultant,he held positions at agencies in Canada and the U.S. Rotman was once the editor of Metropolis magazine. He is a former strategyPR columnist, and his articles have appeared in newspapers, including the Globe and Mail, National Post and Chicago Tribune.

JENNIFER SEMLEY ROBERT
Marketing Manager, Premium Brands, Nestlé Waters

Semley Robert is currently responsible for the day-to-day planning, development and implementation of Nestlé Waters Canada’s international brands in the Canadian marketplace, which includes AcquaPanna, Perrier and San Pellegrino. She joined Nestlé in January 2012, bringing more than seven years of experience to the position, having served in similar positions at Bacardi Canada.

SARAH SPENCE
General Manager, High Road Communications

With almost 20 years of experience, Spencehas worked as a senior strategist for brandssuch as Nike, American Express, Telus, Microsoft and Canada Goose. Prior to High Road, she was head of communications at Orange SA in the U.K. She also held marketing roles at two start-up software companies and at Bell Canada.