Publicis Groupe’s Natalie Lam and Dentsu’s Rob Gilby Appointed Heads of Jury for APAC Effie Awards 2024

Effie Asia Pacific is delighted to introduce Natalie Lam, chief creative officer of Publicis Groupe Asia Pacific, and Rob Gilby, chief executive officer of dentsu Asia Pacific, as heads of jury for the APAC Effie Awards 2024. 

Natalie Lam is chief creative officer, Publicis Groupe Asia Pacific, where she is responsible for overseeing the creative output of more than 40 agency brands, including Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi, Publicis, Razorfish, Sapient, and Digitas.

With her roots in design, a strong digital background and being a hopeless romantic for big ideas, Natalie advocates for strategic creative work that brings optimism, joy and beauty to the world, in truly media-agnostic ways. She was selected for AdWeek’s Creative 100 ranking in 2022 as an “agency leader defining a new era.”

Her work for global innovative brands such as Nike+, Spotify and Mercedes won top global awards including a Cannes Grand Prix, D&AD Black Pencil, and ADC Black Cube. She is also a frequent jury president and judge at global and regional awards shows.

On her appointment, Natalie said, “I’m very honoured to be invited as head of jury by the Asia Pacific Effie Awards. In a faster-than-ever changing world, this region leads a lot of global innovation in real time. Often great marketing here is a perfect trifecta of a brilliant creative idea, smart strategy, and true relevancy to the audience. I’m looking forward to be inspired by all the great work and the great minds of my fellow seasoned marketers.”

Rob leads dentsu’s business across the Asia Pacific region (excluding Japan), bringing together creativity, technology and consulting to drive integrated growth solutions from across creative, media and customer experience practices for a diverse portfolio of iconic global, local, and Japanese clients.

He has three decades of experience in the media and entertainment industry as a senior executive leading growth for global multinationals including The Walt Disney Company, Warnermedia, Nielsen and PwC across the Asia Pacific region. He has also held non-executive advisory and board roles with Singapore’s Ministry of Communications & Information, the InfoComm Media Development Authority and as Chairperson of the Singapore Media Festival.

On his appointment, Rob said, “The marketing landscape continues to grow more complex with the proliferation of channels and platforms vying for smaller moments of a consumer’s attention. I’m continuously delighted by the innovation born from this era of perpetual change. The Effie Awards are a beacon of inspiration for brands in these challenging times, helping to clearly articulate the relationship between a brand challenge, strategy, execution and business result no matter how the creative vehicle has evolved. I’m truly honoured to join as a head of jury.”

The first group of jurors has been announced, and subsequent jury appointments will be revealed progressively. View the current line-up at www.apaceffie.com/competition/2024-jury, and visit www.apaceffie.com to access the latest competition updates.