The Association of Accredited Advertising Agencies (4As) Philippines has just welcomed its newly inducted Board of Trustees during its first general membership meeting for 2021, which took place over Zoom.
TBWA\Santiago Mangada Puno Chairman and Chief Creative Officer Melvin Mangada was sworn in as Chairman, while Grupo Agatep President and Managing Director Norman Agatep, and Seven AD Chief Executive Officer and Chief Creative Officer Teeny Gonzales were sworn in as President and Vice President, respectively.
Serving alongside them are DDB Philippines Group Chief Culture Officer Anna Chua-Norbert as Board Secretary; Grey Manila Chief Executive Officer John Lucas as Treasurer; and Dentsu JaymeSyfu Managing Partner and Chief Client Officer Alex Syfu as Corporate Comptroller.
BBDO Guerrero Creative Chairman and outgoing 4As Chairman David Guerrero, WOO Account Management and Business Development Senior Director Hans Gahol, and Propel Manila 360 President and Chief Executive Officer JC Valenzuela were all sworn in as Trustees.
During the simple ceremony, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, who was the inducting officer and the event’s keynote speaker, congratulated the new board members and expressed confidence in their capabilities in harnessing creativity to inspire Filipinos.
“I look forward to how the members of the 4As will use their talents and skills to enlighten, intrigue, inform, and inspire the Filipino consumer, rebuilding peoples’ confidence and giving local businesses that much-needed boost,” Romulo-Puyat said.
Mangada thanked the 4As for placing their trust in the new board members and accepted the position as a challenge to support each other, share ideas, and emerge stronger next year through creativity.
“There is still fear and uncertainty but less of it. We are assured that our industry is evolving through the very nature of its existence – creativity. Staying safe is about our health, not about our work. It is during these times that innovative ideas are championed. And because creativity is our business, let’s keep the creative instinct alive amidst adversity,” Mangada said.
Meanwhile, the association has revealed key activities lined up for 2021 to recognize agency work and to support continued learning for members.
After a hiatus in 2020, the Agency of the Year Awards will be launched soon, with all efforts for 2019 and 2020 being considered for evaluation. “To encourage more participation from independent agencies, we are opening up indie awards for Best Creative, Market Performance, Management of Business, and Industry Leadership & Community Service,” Agatep said. Entry fees will also be reduced.
For the ARAL Sessions which are learning events mounted by the association, Agatep said that classes will resume in April this year with the mission to contribute to the members’ bottom line through a skills-upgrade program. “We will begin by addressing fundamental gaps and branch out to key topics that build on the creative margin theme.”
The 4As is considering the creation of tiered or socialized pricing for the sessions, as well as an infrastructure to complement self-paced learning.
To learn more about these activities and stay updated on the latest from 4As, visit the website at www.4asphilippines.com and like them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/4AsPhilippines.
