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Focus on people and diversity unveiled for Mumbrella360 conference program

People and diversity issues in the communications industry will be the subject of a full stream of content at this year’s Mumbrella360 conference.

The event, Australia’s biggest media and marketing conference, runs at the Hilton in Sydney from June 7 to 9. The People Stage will be one of four simultaneous streams of content taking place on Thursday June 9.

Mumbrella360 battle of the media

Mumbrella360: Back for 2016, June 8-9, Hilton Sydney

The panel will follow an opening keynote on Wednesday June 8 featuring US-based adland provocateur Cindy Gallop, in which she will set out a manifesto for how advertising can change the world.

Last year Gallop’s intervention when Leo Burnett Sydney announced a new, all-male team of creatives proved to be a turning point in the industry’s gender diversity debate.

Gallop's tweet kicked off a huge dbeate

Gallop’s tweet kicked off a gender debate

As a result, Mumbrella invited Gallop to travel from New York to be a part of the conference.

mumbrella360 gender diversityShe will also join a panel on the Thursday morning to discuss the lack of gender diversity within parts of the communications industry.

Fellow panellists include Dr Jennifer Whelan, an organisational consultant whose areas of specialty include how to help organisations overcome unconscious bias.

Also on the panel is Lorraine Jokovic, who leads diversity issues for industry body The Communications Council.

The fourth panellist is Simon Ryan, CEO of Carat ANZ and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN), one of Australia’s largest media agency employers.

Leo Burnett was invited to participate but declined.

The next session on the People Stage will tackle Australia’s lack of ethnic diversity in Australia’s media and advertising output.

Among the panellists will be Natalie Ahmat, presenter of Australia’s only indigenous TV news bulletin NITV News.

Writer Benjamin Law, creator of SBS comedy drama The Family Law, which was inspired by his experiences growing up in his Chinese-Australian family, will also contribute.

Also on the panel is Nicole Taylor, MD of DDB Sydney, who will share insights into diversity in advertising and what clients look for when casting ads.

Patricia Powell-Hughes, vice chair of the first reconciliation industry network group in Australia, The MediaRing will be the final panellist.

deng adutThe People Stage will also feature Bec Brideson, founder and ECD of Venus Communications, who specialises in marketing to women and research company TNS’s global head of communications, Anne Rayner, who will discuss the rise of “womenomics” and make the case for why the communications in adland needs to rethink how it markets to women.

Meanwhile, previously announced sessions for the People Stage include BMF’s Christina Aventi and Ali Tilling, who will discuss the practical issues facing – and insights offered to clients by – working mums in adland.

The People Stage will also hear about how the extraordinary story of former child soldier Deng Adut become part of the transformation of Western Sydney University.

Insights agency Direction First will unveil exclusive research to Mumbrella360 into what Gen Z really thinks of brands.

Mumbrella360’s diversity partner at the event is Carat while the sponsor of the People Stage is Dentsu Aegis Network.

More information about the conference and how to buy tickets is available on the Mumbrella360 website.

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