Meet the finalists for the 2024 MAA Rising Star of the Year Award

The top three finalists for the 2024 MAA Rising Star of the Year Award. Source: Supplied.

Disrupting

This award recognises great marketers under the age of 35 who think differently, who disrupt the status quo and who challenge the way we think.

It celebrates those young marketers on the rise. Those with an edge, who define the future of marketing and push the discipline forward.

The three finalists are Amy Phillips, brand manager at Avon; Nastasje Cerbone, marketing activation manager at Pernod Ricard; and Tony Pitso, founder & CEO at eChamps. 

In congratulating the three finalists, the chairperson of this year’s Rising Star judging panel, Immaculata Segooa, head of integrated marketing communication at Discovery Limited, says the importance of this award should not be underestimated.

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“I was once a young marketer, whose career was inspired and nurtured by leaders who believed in me. Recognition is important. Our profession is crucial for driving business growth, and the winner of this award must demonstrate a solid understanding of strategy, critical and analytical thinking, and use creativity to deliver outstanding business results. The credibility and efficacy of what we as marketers do every day pivots on this,” Segooa notes, adding that the Rising Star MAA award category is close to her heart and she was honoured to chair this year’s adjudication panel.

Future leader

She was joined on the panel by Thembisile Sehloho, marketing director, of rice and pasta at Tiger Brands; Samantha Mokonyama, senior manager, of performance marketing at Standard Bank; and Clement Motale, head of marketing & corporate relations at Absa CIB.

The panel was unanimous in what it was looking for this year: young ‘future leader’ marketers doing great things in their organisations, or own companies; who were commercially minded with a focus that extended beyond marketing communications or advertising. It sought marketers who demonstrated leadership, innovation, forward-thinking and an inherent ability to strategise for impact and growth as positive role models for other up-and-coming marketers.