Cannes Lions names two new Deans to head up its Roger Hatchuel Creative Academy and Media Academy at this year’s Festival of Creativity.

Two new Deans have been appointed to head up the Lions Academies and shape this important part of the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity. The two appointments represent both brand and agency viewpoints, with global and local perspectives, and will deliver a world-class learning experience for creative professionals and marketers.

The Dean for the Creative Academy has been named as Serfi Altun, who has over 25 years’ experience including working in brand strategy and communications, including for Procter & Gamble Turkey. She has been running her own global brand building consultancy and training company in Atlanta, Idea Bakery for 13 years. Her global clients include Google, Coca-Cola Company, Bayer, MAF Group of UAE, Vodafone of Turkey and the Saudia Group of Saudi Arabia.

Serfi has a wealth of experience in designing and delivering training programmes. She was the first Training Head for Central Eastern Europe Middle East Africa for P&G and later became Training Head for North America, where she led training curriculum, content and delivery for over six years. Serfi has previously worked as a Tutor for the Young Marketers Academy at Cannes Lions and as a regular speaker at some of the world’s most respected brand-strategy forums, universities and events.

Serfi said of the appointment: “I am thrilled and honoured to be appointed as Dean of the Roger Hatchuel Creative Academy. I look forward to meeting a diverse group of brilliant young creative minds from all around the world; they are tomorrow’s creative leaders and I want to inspire them and instill confidence in them, so that they can use creativity to impact sustainable positive change in the world. The class of 2022 will make lifelong friends to support each other on their career journeys and my aim is to make this week an unforgettable experience for all, full of funspiration!”

Rosie Kropp has been named as Dean of the Media Academy. Currently she is the VP Head of Global Brand Marketing at Ericsson, based in Sweden. Rosie is a global marketing leader and recognised branding expert with over 25 years of international management experience. She has held various executive roles at blue chip companies and consulting firms such as Vodafone, Starbucks, Accenture, Kraft/Mondelez, Lavandel and Landor Associates. Throughout her career she has acted as a change agent with a proven track record of building and transforming successful brands and businesses across a wide range of industries in more than 70 markets.

Rosie is an established speaker at high-profile events, communication & business schools on the topics of brand strategy, marketing, communication and leadership. During several years Rosie has acted as course director & lecturer at world renowned Berghs School of Communication. As executive coach and board professional she has worked with leaders, teams and entrepreneurs around the globe, making them thrive.

Rosie said of her new role: “I can’t wait to get inspired and help others to flourish. The role as Dean offers a fantastic opportunity to do exactly that – acting as facilitator, teacher and mentor for top talent from across the world. This Academy is an excellent platform for connecting top talent with best-in-class industry experts, while creating magic through creativity and innovation. My aim as Dean is to provide a world-class learning experience for the participants that can fast track them to the next level of their careers.”

Simon Cook, CEO, LIONS, says: “The Academies are a core part of the Festival of Creativity. They are designed to give a five-star education and training experience to our community, using a network of talented speakers from across media, marketing and creative communities. Our Deans set the tone - and the standard - of these learning experiences, making sure they inspire attendees and provide them with a comprehensive set of tools and skills to help them build successful careers and produce great work. We are delighted to have two new Deans with such impressive and wide ranging expertise to shape and design these high calibre learning programmes. Their knowledge and experience will be invaluable and we look forward to welcoming them and their students to our Academies next month.”

Both Deans were selected from a strong field of candidates, who all applied for the roles advertised on the Cannes Lions website, and shared on social media and with our global networks. Applicants were asked to submit their CV or resumes and answer questions to share their knowledge and insight of mentorship and coaching. Candidates were scored and assessed across a number of criteria that was outlined in the advertisement, and interviewed by a panel from the LIONS team. This hiring process was co-designed by LIONS and The Unmistakables to be open, transparent, equitable as well as mitigate bias. The Unmistakables is an independent agency that specialises in helping organisations build inclusive cultures, structures and behaviours.