2024 Winner

Black Canadians experience a 70% higher unemployment rate than non-visible minorities. The CEE Centre for Young Black Professionals sought to raise awareness of this hiring bias issue in Toronto by showcasing the achievements of Black youth.

Knowing that young Black men wearing hoodies face a negative social bias that has engrained itself in the job market, the “Who I Really Am” campaign, by Publicis, personalized hoodies to highlight the skills and accomplishments of nine CEE alumni as a way to showcase the potential of Black youth. Program inquiries surged by 13,000, creating a waiting list for the first time.

Credits

Executive Team:
Andrew Bruce, CEO, Publicis Groupe Canada
Stephanie McRae, Head of DEI, Publicis Groupe Canada
Scott Pinkney, CCO, Publicis Hawkeye
Nicole Grant, SVP, North Strategic
Steve Persico, Lisa Greenberg, Co-CCOs, Leo Burnett Toronto
Ben Tarr, President, Leo Burnett Toronto
Eric Seguin, CFO: Publicis Groupe Canada

Creative Leads:
Scott Pinkney, CCO, Publicis Hawkeye
Natee Likitsuwankool, ACD/ Art Director, Leo Burnett Toronto
Appanna Chetranda, ACD/ Copywriter, Leo Burnett Toronto

Strategy:
Emma Bayfield, Senior Strategist, Publicis Canada
Chris Whyte, Group Strategy Director, Publicis Canada
Aleeza Yermus, Senior Strategist, Leo Burnett Toronto

Account Leads:
Daniel Vescio, Account Director, Publicis Canada
Deb Sanyal, Account Supervisor, Publicis Canada

Production:
Tara Handley, VP Head of Production, Saatchi
Darrell Martin, Retoucher, TPM
Chris Benson, Editor, TPM

Production: IQ & Maker
Mark Bisson & Jennifer Millington, Executive Producers
Terry Theofilactidis, Executive Producer
Morgan Detmer, Line Producer
Kobi Ntiri, Video Director
Darrell Wonge, Director of Photography
Alex Chan, Photographer

Web Design:
Kevin Chinbuah, Senior Exp. Designer, Publicis Sapient
Matty Rivera, Tech Lead, Publicis Canada
Melanie Jarcaig, Director of Digital Production, Publicis Canada

Colour: Studio Feather
Sara Windrim, Executive Producer
Ebi Agbeyegbe, Colourist

Online: The Pub Productions
Hali Gale, Flame Artist
Tony Ramayon, Motion Graphics
Sherry Kennedy, Producer

Audio: TA2 Sound + Music
Steve Gadsden, Audio Director
Christine Leslie, Executive Producer
Ken Lo, Audio Engineer

Media:
Nikki Stone, EVP, Managing Director, Zenith Media
Steve White, Strategy Director, Zenith Media
Marina Matyash, VP, Digital Performance, Zenith Media