Esosa Osagiede

As part of the Cannes Lions See It Be It 2024 Jury, Esosa will be creating opportunities for a new class of women and non-binary people looking to get into the industry – with the aim of achieving equal gender representation in creative leadership.

Cannes Lions champions creativity and diversity throughout the marketing industry. Learn more about the many opportunities on offer to nurture creative talent and hear Esosa's story below .

There's something we say in my organisation. We create acts, not ads. And in creating acts, it's looking at behaviour, understanding behaviour, how people think, why they think the way they think, and what informs that – that's what, you know, for me has helped shape and form, you know, my creative work and is helping me on my journey.

You have to understand people before you can create. There's the alternative culture that's on the rise, and it's just people who are beginning to think differently. These people are helping us understand the future.

Because of the See It Be It programme that's sponsored us here, my mind is blown with kind of, I mean, the kind of creative work I've seen, you know, and how culture has shown up in the pieces that have won.

I mean, we are 16 amazing women from all parts of the world. In Nigeria, there's just one Executive Creative Director, one female Executive Creative Director. It shows you how long, you know, we have to go as a country, as a people.

So when I see all these other ladies talk about, oh, they are Creative Director here, ECD there, GCD I come from a culture where you have and there's the, I mean, the expression of that success is still humble. Is still, um, accepting. Is still warm, is still healthy conversation, it's surprising.

My name is Esosa Osagiede. I am Deputy Creative Director at Leo Burnett Lagos.

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