The 2023 instalment of industry talent building program Yahoo Academy has come to a close, with an idea to use dad jokes to galvanise industry support for MOOD Tea winning pitch off.
The day-long program held at Luna Park in Sydney saw 40 emerging industry talents from Australia and Singapore treated to workshops on taming AI, collaboration, creating compelling insights and creativity from the minds behind Genius Steals, Rosie and Faris Yakob.
John McNerney, MD of AUSEA for Yahoo, said the program emphasised future-proofing participants' careers through cutting-edge tools such as generative AI and focusing on the more human skills leaders will need into the future.
"The last year has seen a lot of hype around AI and emerging technologies supporting the future of work, so we wanted this year’s Yahoo Academy to dig into what that really means," he said.
"Rosie and Faris have done an outstanding job of practically showcasing to this group of young leaders the skills they need to thrive in their careers.”
The day culminated with a pitch-off, where participants were split into 10 teams of four and given 60 minutes to respond to a brief of generating more industry pride and support for UnLtd’s social enterprise product MOOD Tea.
The winning team - Tom Hamilton from EssenceMediacom, Simon Molloy from OMD, Mary Pantahos from Matterkind and Bonita Wong from WooliesX - pitched the idea of a peer-voted industry competition to find the best dad jokes to print on the tea bag labels.
Pantahos said the program was an incredible experience.
"The training was so informative, inspiring, and applicable to what we do in this industry. I can't wait to take this thinking back to work and share it with my colleagues. A huge thanks to Yahoo, Rosie and Faris for this amazing opportunity," she said.
The winning team was awarded a trip to a major international conference taking place in Sydney later this year.
The pitch off was judged by Kerry McCabe, founder & director of UnLtd; Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB AU; Shannon Shae Montoya, VP of global marketing; Rosie & Faris Yakob; and John McNerney; while Yahoo’s chief revenue officer Elizabeth Herbst-Brady awarded the prize.
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