Yahoo’s 14th annual Yahoo Academy program has come to a close, culminating in a high-stakes Pitch-Off event for Australian youth charity Musicians Making A Difference (MMAD). 

Thirty emerging leaders from across the Australian and Singapore media and marketing industry responded to the pitch brief, ‘Keep MMAD’s Home Humming’. The objective of the brief was to develop a compelling and repeatable fundraising mechanism to generate over AUS$200,000 (£95.8k) annually to help sustain MMAD’s headquarters and continue their life-changing support for at-risk youth in Australia.

Delegates incorporated the techniques, skills and tools picked up over the course of the two-day programme run by industry luminaries, including:

• Rob Campbell (Chief Strategy Officer, Colenso BBDO)
• Simone Gupta (Co-Founder, Supermassive)
• Lucio Ribeiro (Founder, Lucio.AI)
• Greg “Sparrow” Graham (Founder, The Nest Consultancy)

The judging panel was composed of Simone Gupta, Rob Campbell, John McNerney, managing director AUSEA of Yahoo, Dominic Brook, co-founder and managing director of MMAD, Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB Australia, and Erin Green, head of marketing of The Hatchlingswere presented with a wealth of innovative ideas from teams in the Pitch-Off. 

In the end, it was team ‘Hoo Ya’ - consisting of Shai Stern, native and social campaign executive of News Corp Australia, Meaghan Lowth, performance manager at OMD, and Brian Yak, senior account manager at CPXi Asia in Singapore - who took home gold and won the competition. This year also saw a Singaporean delegate being part of the winning team for the first time since Yahoo Academy opened to the country three years ago.

Their idea, ‘MMAD About Silence’, tackled the often-unseen mental health challenges young people face, aiming to break the silence by making it impossible to ignore. The campaign centred on a three-pillared, omni-channel strategy. It featured a unique combination of busking and silent disco and sports partnerships with supporting social content shared under the hashtag #WhyCantIHear. The team also successfully mapped out a path to sustainable funding through corporate partnerships. At its core, the campaign aimed to spark conversation through intrigue.

The winning team, lauded by judges for a simple, emotive approach that felt more like a cause than a campaign, was awarded an all-expenses-paid trip to a major international marketing conference held later this year in May. 

Reflecting on his team’s win and overall experience, Singapore delegate Brian Yak, account manager, CPXi Asia, says: “Being part of Yahoo Academy has been an experience of a lifetime. This opportunity has allowed me to broaden my horizons and emboldened myself to help push the boundaries in our field back home through the best-in-class tools and insights that continuously redefine the advertising landscape. 

I’m thrilled to have met some of the region’s brightest minds, and I’m incredibly proud to be part of the team that clinched the winning pitch. We put our heads together, applying the skills we’ve learnt from the programme, and came up with an idea that would bring attention to the mental health challenges young people face. Yahoo Academy has left an impact on me, and I will continue to carry this experience throughout my career.”

John McNerney, Yahoo’s managing director AUSEA, says: “Congratulations to this year's winning team on an outstanding performance. Yahoo Academy was designed to help spark fresh ideas and equip participants with practical tools they can leave with. 

The calibre of creative-thinking and boldness we saw in this year’s delegates was exceptional. It’s inspiring to see these emerging leaders tackle real challenges and walk away with elevated confidence and practical strategies to create meaningful impact in their roles and across the industry.”

Companies involved in this year’s Yahoo Academy included: CPXi Asia, OMD, Kinesso, Initiative, Starcom, News Corp Australia, Hearts & Science, PHD, iProspect, Athyna, Slingshot, The Speed Agency, Wavemaker, Zenith, INNOCEAN, Spark Foundry, BWS (Endeavour Group), Half Dome, UM, and Atomic 212.

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