Meet the NZ/AU coaches and mentees for LIA’s Creative LIAisons Virtual Coaching Programme

LIA’s exclusive and sought after Creative LIAisons educational program, which first launched in 2012, as a way of giving back to the industry that supports us has announced the 2024 Mentors from New Zealand and Australia.

The entire program is funded by LIA. LIA’s mission is to develop, educate, inspire and nurture emerging talent from around the globe. That in a nutshell is the driving purpose behind the Creative LIAisons initiative.

LIA added this virtual mentoring/coaching program in 2021, to augment the onsite Creative LIAisons program held in Las Vegas later this year. This is part of LIA’s on-going efforts to give back to the industry by supporting and nurturing the younger generation of creatives.

Beginning in May and continuing through November, approximately 200 mentees will begin their Creative LIAisons Virtual Coaching journey. As part of the program, each mentee will have three one-to-one bespoke coaching sessions with three different well-known, well-awarded and well-established industry leaders from around the world.

Says Laurissa Levy, director/events director, Creative LIAisons: “Challenger, cheerleader, coach, confidant. Our coaches are all of these and more to the mentees. To the 200 mentees joining this program, we urge you to make the most of your sessions. Grasp your personal sessions with both hands. It’s a rare opportunity to be mentored by not just one, but three industry greats. Push yourself (and your mentors) out of your comfort zone. Let it be your purpose to get the best out of yourself, and in time you’ll be able to pass on the lessons you’ve learnt to coming generations.”

This year, there are 8 mentors from New Zealand and 11 mentors from Australia. Among the list of mentors are:

NEW ZEALAND:

Melanie Bridge, CEO at The Sweetshop, Auckland
Matty Burton, Group Chief Creative Officer at DDB New Zealand Aotearoa
Leisa Wall, Chief Creative Officer at FCB Aotearoa
Tom Johnson, Associate Creative Director at Special Group Aotearoa
Cassie Roma, Founder & Director at CR&Co, Aotearoa
Damon Stapleton, Chief Creative Officer at The Monkeys New Zealand
Gary Steele, Chief Creative Officer at DDB Group Aotearoa
Lee Sunter, Executive Creative Director at Saatchi & Saatchi, Auckland

Mentees from New Zealand (pictured below) include:

Léon Bristow, Junior Art Director, Colenso BBDO
Josep Jover, Senior Art Director, DDB Group Aotearoa
Jack Roberts, Social Content Producer, FCB Aotearoa
Phoebe Rooney, Junior Copywriter, DDB Aotearoa

AUSTRALIA:

Jake Barrow, Group Executive Creative Director – Sydney & Melbourne at VML
Adrian Bosich, Managing Partner / Creative Founder at AIRBAG, Melbourne
Dave Bowman, Chief Creative Officer – Australia and New Zealand at Publicis Groupe
Gavin Chimes, Executive Creative Director at Howatson+Company, Sydney
Shane Geffen, Executive Creative Director at HERO, Melbourne
Avish Gordhan, Chief Creative Officer at Saatchi & Saatchi, Sydney
Jim Ingram, Group Chief Creative and Co-Founder at Thinkerbell, Melbourne
Sarah McGregor, Executive Creative Director at Dentsu Creative, Sydney
Iggy Rodriguez, Executive Creative Director, Sydney
Abby Sie, Head of Sound at MassiveMusic, Sydney
Keir Vaughan, Head of Craft at Thinkerbell, Sydney

Mentees from Australia (pictured below) include:

Amanda Chen, Art Director, VML Melbourne
Annika Duncan, Junior Copywriter, Momentum Energy, Melbourne
Isabel Evans, Copywriter, VML, Melbourne
Lon Garbett, Junior Copywriter, Akcelo, Sydney
Tayla Orr, Art Director, Freelance, Melbourne
Charlotte Smith, Art Director, HERO, Melbourne
Kean Szczur, Art Director, Dentsu Creative, Melbourne
Sophie Walter, Social Creative, Orchard, Sydney
Alana Wood, Art Director, TBWA\Melbourne

Says Matty Burton, group chief creative officer at DDB New Zealand: “I’ve been part of the LIAisons coaching academy for a number of years now and I have met some wonderful talent from all over the world. There is nothing else like it and it is important for the growth of our industry at large. Plus helping people to come to their own conclusions, realise things they already knew but didn’t quite ask the right question to get the answer they needed is something I get a great big kick out of. I’ll keep putting my hand up for this for as long as it continues, which I hope is for a very long time.”

This virtual mentoring/coaching program has become an integral part of the Creative LIAisons program. The importance of mentoring cannot be over stated. Some of the most famous people had mentors. The film director, J.J. Abrams, for instance, has always been inspired by Steven Spielberg. As a teenager, Abrams was hired by Spielberg to clean old reels and organize old Spielberg films. Over time, Spielberg came to appreciate Abrams’ passion for the craft and agreed to help him. Abrams credits this mentorship for helping him in production and opening up opportunities for him. J.J. Abrams has been called the next Spielberg.

Says Avish Gordhan, chief creative officer at Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney: “Being a Creative LIAisons Coach is not only a huge honour and responsibility but an opportunity. I find it invigorating to hear what the brightest young minds of our industry are thinking. I can’t wait to learn from them and I hope I can offer something of value to them in return.”

These mentoring/coaching sessions aim to cover all disciplines with emphasis on skill development, elevating ideas and boosting creative confidence to fast track careers. Creativity is fluid, so there are no set rules or a prescribed formula for the sessions. Each mentee and their mentors are at full liberty to design how they want to conduct each session. The end game? To hone the skills of young creatives, so they can reach their full potential and rise to greater heights.

Says Melanie Bridge, CEO of The Sweetshop: “I feel extremely excited to have the opportunity to mentor emerging creatives through the Creative LIAisons Coaching program. At The Sweetshop, we’ve always loved nurturing young talent and helping them carve out brilliant careers. It’s not just about sharing our experience; it’s about guiding the way and empowering them to unlock their potential. I can’t wait to connect with the next generation of creatives!”

How are mentees matched with their respective mentors?

While mentees are able to submit their wish list from the list of 200 mentors, there are a few criteria LIA abides by. The rule of thumb is: no mentee will be mentored/coached by someone in their own company, either locally or globally.

The focus is on the mentees – to give them greater length, breadth, height and depth with these sessions. So careful consideration is given to the mentees’ requests.

Creative LIAisons endeavors to make matches based on interests, goals and their fields within the industry. It begins by making sure they have, among their coaches, at least one who is in their field of expertise. The other two can be from different backgrounds, regions and different disciplines to broaden mentees’ perspectives. Each coach has a different mentoring style based on their strengths and experience, so by being assigned three different coaches this leads to the mentees gaining valuable insight that ultimately benefits their career goals and growth.

Selection process

To be eligible for the program, mentees have to be currently working in the industry or a related business and be between the ages of 21 – 30 years old.

LIA does not directly select mentees. LIA leaves it up to companies and agency networks that support LIA to put forward candidates. Additionally, LIA collaborates with different ad clubs and associations, and trade press by generously allocating spaces to winners of creative competitions organized by them. LIA wants everyone to get a fair shot at a place in the virtual program. Winners from these regional competitions, selected by local creative leaders based on their creativity, will then become part of the Virtual program cohort.

To cast the net even wider, the Creative LIAisons Virtual Program does accept a certain quota of self-nominations.

View all 2024 coaches and 2024 mentees.