VALID vs. VALIDATION: WTF is a Cannes Lion Award, and Do I Really Need One?

Let’s face it, everybody wants to win awards and be recognized for the work they do. However, the awards culture in advertising has a lot more implications than just acknowledging great work. Brands use your agency’s award history as way of determining your value. Executives want to work for agencies that have won, and they want to receive the type of briefs that allow them to create award-winning-worthy work. While this doesn’t sound bad at all, how does this affect diverse owned agencies, and executives who are fighting to get an opportunity to compete on a level where they can reap the awards of a Cannes Lion or an Effie? Is the awards industry inherently biased, does it inadvertently perpetuate bias, and how can it make itself more equitable? In this panel, Simon Cooke, CEO of Cannes Lion, will talk about the awards industry and the work he is doing to make awards work for everyone!