Cannes

Monday 22 June

10.00 - 11.00 | RA*W Breakfast | RA*W Participants only

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

11.00 - 14.00 | RAW* Pitches | RA*W Participants only

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

14.30 - 15.00 | Opening remarks and welcome 

• Rik Ledder (TBWA\NEBOKO)
• Dieter Oude Kotte (City of Amsterdam)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

15.00 - 16.00 | Panel: Industry in transition & Why set up shop in Amsterdam 

Moderator: Kerrie Finch (the FINCH factor)                       

• Victor Knaap (Monks)
• Hollie Loxley (72andSunny)
• Darre van Dijk (TBWA\NEBOKO)                                        
• Colleen Geske (City of Amsterdam)
• Daniel Ajubi Awa (RA*W / Bikkelhart)

 

Tickets: Opening remarks and welcome, Panel: Industry in Transition & Why set up shop in Amsterdam 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

16.00 - 18.00 | Sunset Drinks & Amsterdam Music

With Clear Music

Tickets: Sunset Drinks & Amsterdam Music

Tuesday 23 June

10.00 - 11.00 | Espresso Dealmaking Session | VIA Members only

VIA members can email [email protected] to sign up.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10.00 - 11.00 | How Specialized Creativity and Branding from Amsterdam Build Global Brands

Intro: Dutch Digital Design - Bert Hagendoorn

Waves of Will, brainwaves to performance - Dentsu Lab

Dentsu Lab's Ashley Knight (Global Head of Strategy) and Pascal Rotteveel (Global ECD) will take the audience inside Waves of Will; the extraordinary Dentsu Lab project with NTT that helped Breanna Olson, a dancer living with ALS, return to the stage through a brainwave controlled mixed reality avatar. A story about creativity, technology and human willpower, and a glimpse into Dentsu Lab's global expansion with Amsterdam helping shape the next chapter.

Make your food a Distinctive Brand Asset

• Olaf van Gerwen (Creative Director & Founder Chuck Studios)
• Beth Marchant (Strategy Director, Global Partnerships - System1)
  
  

Closing words: Dutch Digital Design - Bert Hagendoorn

 

Tickets: How Specialized Creativity and Branding from Amsterdam Build Global Brands

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

12.30 - 14.00 | Female Champions of Sustainability & Creativity Lunch | Invite only

We kick off with a buffet style lunch dedicated to female leaders operating at the intersection of creativity and sustainability.
An informal and engaging setting to connect, exchange ideas, and explore the role of leadership in driving meaningful change across our industry.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

14.00 - 19.00 | On Board with Sustainability

14.00 - 14.30 | Coalition of Creative Impact Frontrunners: let’s connect for Impact!

Sharing the story of co-creating the Amsterdam based Coalition of Creative Impact Frontrunners. The results so far and the future plans. Inviting various players in the international creative ecosystem to connect to foster systemic change and strengthen societal impact together.

Speakers:

• Ellen Oetelmans, Senior Project Lead Amsterdam Impact, City of Amsterdam
• TBA
• Moderator: Kim Cramer, Director BR-ND People

14.30 - 15.00 | Ad Net Zero Europe Update and welcome to new supporters (Mary O’Sullivan)

15.00 - 15.30 | Panel discussion on GMSF (Mary O’Sullivan & Bill Wescott Ad Net Zero, Stephanie Scheller, OMC and more TBC)

Ad Net Zero & Kantar Consumer Behaviour

15.30 - 15:45 | Consumer Trust & Importance of promoting better Consumer Behaviour in Campaigns (Matt Bourn from the AA)

15.45 - 16.00 | Kantar presents insights from the new Sustainability Tracker data (Duncan Southgate)

16.00 - 16.15 | Open discussion on the data and how the Every Brief Counts toolkit can help brands can leverage this opportunity (Mary O’Sullivan, Ad Net Zero Europe & Matt Bourn, Advertising Association)

Ad Net Nero & Kantar Awards

16.15 - 16.45 | Kantar & ANZ Panel discussion with the Brands walking the walk!

16.45 - 17.30 | Kantar & Ad Net Zero Awards for brands showcasing sustainable behaviour

16.30 - 19.00 | Appertivo Drinks served

Tickets: On Board with Sustainability

 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

16.00 - 19.00 | Celebrating Impact & Aperitivo

We close the afternoon by spotlighting and celebrating brands that have successfully driven sustainable behaviour through their campaigns. This will be followed by an Upper Deck Aperitivo, where all guests are invited to join for drinks, networking, and continued conversation.

 

Tickets: Celebrating Impact & Aperitivo

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

19.00 - 21.30 | CMO diner Institute for Real Growth & VIA - A three course dinner | invite only

About the Institute for Real Growth

The Institute for Real Growth (IRG) helps CMOs worldwide increase their personal, business, and societal impact by driving more Humanized Growth. Our programs and events connect CMOs to peers, experts, and best practices. The IRG operates as a not-for-profit and independent organization and is supported by WPP, Google, TCS, Ipsos, the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford, Chinese Business School CKGSB, and Spencer Stuart.

The IRG programs are built on the findings of Marketing2030, the 2024 IRG Impact Study as well as four previous studies; the IRG Growth Study, Marketing2020, Insights2020 and the Leading Global Brands Study. 

Wednesday 24 June

10.00 - 11.00 | Espresso Dealmaking Session | VIA Members only

VIA members can email [email protected] to sign up.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10.00 - 12.00 | Reclaiming Growth: Europe's Playbook for the AI-Driven Advertising Era

Opening - Tim Geenen, CEO Spektre & VIA Board Member "From Platform Dependency to Objective Intelligence"
Brands have lost control over advertising and growth due to platform dominance and lack of transparency. Are we collectively being algorithmically disappointed and if so, what can we do?

Who Controls Growth? Platform Power, AI and Europe's Advertising Economy
Daniel Knapp, Chief Economist, IAB Europe 
Daniel will provide an independent macro-economic view on how platform dominance, AI and regulation are reshaping the market. Define the structural challenges, without prescribing solutions. 

MMM is Back - But It's Not What You Think
Alison Keith, CEO, The Excellence Office 
Introducing the solution layer: how modern MMM and AI enable brands to regain control over budget allocation, forecasting and growth. Shift from dependency to predictability.

Balancing Platforms, Data and Control: A Brand Perspective
Cristina Sagarduy, Nike Account Lead, Omnicom Media
Showing how global brands navigate platform ecosystems today. Bridging theory to reality: trade-offs, organisational challenges and the need for integrated decision-making.

From AI to agentic advertising - Connect the dots
Anne Coghlan, COO, Scope3 
Showing how autonomous systems are starting to plan, optimise and transact media, and what this means for control, decision-making and accountability. Outlining how brands can design the right guardrails, data inputs and governance to stay in control while machines execute growth.

Panel Discussion "Who's Really in Control? Growth, AI and the New Power Balance" 
hosted by Tim Geenen

• Knapp (IAB Europe)
• Keith (The Excellence Office)
• Sagarduy (Omnicom Media)
• Coghlan (Scope3)
• Dorine van Mullem (COO Talpa Media, Talpa Network)

Who is in control: marketing, finance, tech or algorithms? Positions Amsterdam as an ecosystem where this integration already happens.

Closing - Translate insights into action: explore partnerships within the Amsterdam ecosystem during Cannes and drive towards concrete business opportunities.

 

Tickets: Reclaiming Growth: Europe's Playbook for the AI-Driven Advertising Era

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

13.00 - 15.00 | Future Bosses Lunch | Invite only

Many activities at Cannes are organized for senior levels and management. Except for the Future Bosses Lunch. In collaboration with RA*W and Young Dogs, we're organizing a lunch event for young talents and forward-thinking leaders, where participants have the chance to get to know the other side of the table. What's happening in each other's generation? Is it affecting work? And what can you learn from each other?

We will provide a nice mix of talents and leaders, conversation starters and lunch.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

15.30 - 18.00 | Igniting Shared Passions; Music, Entertainment & Sports - Tapping into culture

Sports, live entertainment are the most powerful community engines in modern culture, yet most brands treat it as a media channel rather than an emotional territory. At a time when audiences have fragmented across micro-communities and attention can no longer be bought, the question isn't how to reach fans, but how to genuinely belong to them. ‘what it actually takes to build brands that earn belonging and not just awareness.

Panellists:

• Marielle van Schie (WPP Media Netherlands) Senior Director Sports & Entertainment
• Daan Ruitenbeek (Mojo) Manager New Business
• Valentino Brodkorb (Provoke) Founder
• Jarl Hector (Clear Music) Founder and ECD
• Moderator: Charley Stoney (CEO of EACA)

Followed by Aperitivo on deck, sponsored by Clear Music

 

Tickets: Igniting Shared Passions; Music, Entertainment & Sports’ - Tapping into culture

Thursday 25 June

10.00 - 11.00 | Espresso Dealmaking Session | VIA Members only

VIA members can email [email protected] to sign up.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10.30 - 11.30 | Fireside chat: Supercharging Creativity

10.30 - 10.45: Arrival & Networking

10.45 - 10.50: Welcome
- Brinsley Dresden, Chairman Global Advertising Lawyers Alliance, Partner and Co-Head Advertising, Lewis Silkin

10.50 - 10.55: Amsterdam as a Hub of Creativity and Innovation
- Alessandra Rossi - President, IAA Benelux, Partner, Business Markers

10.55 - 11.00: Self-Regulation's Role in Supporting Responsible Advertising
- Sibylle Stanciu - Director International Council for Ad Self-Regulation

11.00 - 11.15: Fireside Chat with Heineken
A conversation with a creative leader at Heineken on creativity, digital innovation, global brand building, and the role of Amsterdam as a creative hub.

• Rob van Griensven Global Digital Director, Heineken
• Daniel Haije Vice Chairman, GALA Partner, Hoogenraad & Haak

11.15 - 11.30: Fireside Chat with the SRC
A conversation with the director of the Dutch advertising self- regulatory authority on how advertising self-regulation in the Netherlands supports
the work of the advertising industry while protecting consumers as well.

• Otto van der Harst Director, Stichting Reclame Code
• Jeffrey A. Greenbaum Immediate Past Chairman, GALA Managing Partner, Frankfurt Kurnit

 

Tickets: Fireside chat: Supercharging Creativity

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

13.30 - 18.00 | Sunset & closing drinks Cannes & Creator Economy

Thursday afternoon / early evening

* Informal drinks & networking & music by Clear Music

* Focused on the creator economy, social agencies, talent, platforms, brands and digital culture

* Shared guest list and co-hosted by multiple agencies/partners & SRC Influencer Code Home | Influencerregels.com

 

Tickets: Sunset & Closing drinks Cannes & Creator Economy

Before you come aboard

We’re looking forward to welcoming you on board the Clipper Stad Amsterdam. To make sure everyone has a smooth and enjoyable experience, here are a few things to keep in mind:

An intimate setting
The ship offers a unique and intimate environment, which means space is limited. Therefore, you can register for one program session only, unless you have received a personal invitation for other sessions. Please only subscribe for the program that you really want to attend. To maintain a good balance between VIA members and international attendees, a fixed number of seats is allocated to each group. As a result, availability per session is limited. Pre-registration (1 week prior) is required – no registration = no access.

Access to the vessel may be denied even if a person holds a valid ticket, for safety reasons or if the vessel has reached its maximum permitted capacity.

Getting to the ship
Our three-masted flagship is anchored in the bay of Cannes and can be reached by two tender boats (25 persons per boat). Please arrive at the dock at least 30 minutes before your session so you have enough time to board and settle in.

The exact location to board will be announced later.

Arrival on the day
Access is managed on a first come, first served basis, so we recommend arriving on time to secure your spot. 

Bring your passport
As we are on international waters, a valid passport is required for boarding. When registering for any program, we kindly ask you to provide your full name, passport number, date of birth and nationality. This information is required for boarding access on international waters. Please note, your name must match.

Onboard conduct
We want to create a welcoming and safe environment for everyone on board.  We expect all guests to respect the rules applicable on international waters. This means:

• No boarding under the obvious influence of alcohol
• No drugs allowed on board
• No hazardous items

We reserve the right to deny access if these conditions are not met. Follow all instructions from the crew and captain at all times.

Agreement to conditions
By taking your place on board the Clipper Stad Amsterdam, you agree to comply with the above conditions and any instructions provided by the crew and organization.