Judges

Together with CMA, our Co-Chairs oversee the judging process. We're very proud to have these leading industry professionals take on this role.

Sabaa Quao
Chief Creative Officer
Cossette

With over 30 years of experience, Sabaa Quao is a creative leader, entrepreneur, and business strategist.  As a digital and social veteran, he has built and grown several platforms and companies across the content, tech and culture space—including, Newsrooms, Filminute, and Wealthie Works Daily.

Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Sabaa holds degrees in Marketing from Concordia University and Communication and Design from Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD), and has an Executive MBA from the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. An avid believer in the power of representation and mentorship, Sabaa is a Mentor at the Black Wealth Club, where he helps emerging Black leaders navigate the professional world and set and execute their long-term and short-term goals.

With a wealth of diversified experiences, Sabaa brings a unique and forward-thinking creative perspective to Cossette as Chief Creative Officer, where he leads the agency’s creative output.

Sandra Sanderson
Senior Vice President of Marketing
Empire Company Ltd.

Sandra Sanderson is the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Empire Company Ltd and a member of the Executive Team. Sandra leads marketing across a broad portfolio of banners, including Sobeys, Safeway, Thrifty Foods, Foodland, FreshCo, and Lawtons.  She is accountable for all aspects of marketing, including brand strategies, integrated marketing, Scene+ loyalty program, private label marketing, marketing technology, sports partnerships, community investments, consumer insights and an in-house creative team.  Sobeys was named a 2020 Brand of the Year by Strategy magazine under Sandra’s leadership.

Sandra has extensive marketing experience in leading successful brands across diverse industries. She was Chief Marketing and Quality Officer at Walmart Canada, as well as Senior Vice-President of Marketing at Shoppers Drug Mart.  She also held senior marketing roles at many leading organizations including Proctor & Gamble, Kraft, Coca-Cola, Canada Post, Universal Studios, and White House Black Market in the U.S.  Sandra currently serves on the Board of Directors for Special Olympics and Scene+ and was formerly a Director on the Board of Tiary.com.

Throughout her career, Sandra has invested in giving back to the Marketing community.  She was Vice-Chair of the Canadian Marketing Association Board.  She has chaired and judged numerous marketing awards including the CMA Awards, The Cassies, Media Agency of the Year, Shopper Innovation Awards, Canadian Young Lions and the Marketing Hall of Legends.  She has served on the Advisory Board of the Shopper Marketing Forum and Dx3; and is a frequent speaker at various marketing conferences.

Sandra was named Marketer of the Year in 2020 by the Canadian Marketing Association.  She was named Marketer of the Year by Strategy magazine in 2012 for her work at Shoppers Drug Mart and in 2021 for her work at Empire Company Limited. She was also a recipient of the Star Women in Grocery Award in 2015 while at Walmart.

Andrew Au
Managing Partner
Intercept

Ari Elkouby
Chief Creative Officer
Wunderman Thompson Canada

David Stevenson
Experience Diamonds

Justin Furman
Director, Business Development and Marketing
Essence Media

Suzanne Ware
Director of Marketing Planning, Media & Competencies
IGM Financial

Coming Soon