Brussels, 1 April 2025: Barbara Sala, Europe Sr Connections Director at Coca-Cola and Sven Huberts, President, Global Experience & Innovation at dentsu will co-chair this year’s Effie Awards Europe’s Jury.
Effie’s mission is to lead, inspire, and champion the practice and practitioners of marketing effectiveness globally. For almost three decades, the Effie Awards Europe have been the pinnacle of recognition for agencies and brands, inspiring and celebrating work that works, setting the bar for marketing effectiveness in the region. Being the Effie Jury Chair is a prestigious role that requires deep industry knowledge to lead the judging process and to champion the Effie spirit.
Barbara Sala brings many years of experience in the holistic marketing area, with different roles covered during her professional career, which kicked off with a degree in Economics and a 9-month master’s in strategic marketing. She started her journey in the marketing team of Mondelez, moving then to Coca-Cola Italy and joining the local strategic marketing team, and then extending her responsibility to the full IMC capabilities, meaning strategic communications, digital, media, experiential, partnerships, packaging and shopper marketing.
From 2013, she spent 3 years at the agency side as CEO of Vizeum Italy (Dentsu group), and in 2016, she came back to Coke as Central and Eastern Strategic Media Director, managing 26 countries & many projects and campaigns as part of an international and integrated marketing team. Since November 2020, she has been Europe Sr. Connections Director developing both global and European end-to-end communications strategies for the full portfolio of brands, always having Audience Planning at the centre of whatever they deliver, with “Human first” as a mantra.
She has been an adjunct professor at the Cattolica University of Milan, covering the area of digital and interactive marketing, and IAB Italy’s vice president. Passionate about travelling, reading, and cooking, she loves spending her free time with her two daughters, dog, family, and friends, and enjoying life to the max.
“The Effie Awards hold a vital place in the marketing industry because they elevate and celebrate campaigns that truly make a difference. Their rigorous and transparent criteria ensure that only the most impactful and results-driven efforts are recognised, inspiring brands and agencies to strive for effectiveness and excellence in every initiative.
Becoming part of the Effie jury is no small feat: marketing savviness, technical expertise, precision, and a passion for measurement are the essential qualities required of an Effie Judge. Furthermore, the Effie jury stands out for representing all aspects of Communication: large and small agencies and clients have the opportunity not only to submit campaigns but also to join the jury, thereby ensuring a wide range of skills to be brought to life by identifying the best of the best of the European campaigns.
Co-chairing the Effie Europe jury, I am looking forward to collaborating with some of the most distinguished minds in the industry. I expect a rigorous yet enriching process where technical expertise, precision, and diverse perspectives come together to celebrate and reward the most impactful communication campaigns in Europe. It’s a unique opportunity to uphold the high standards of the Effie Awards and contribute to the evolution of excellence in marketing. Sure, I am sure I will come out far more enriched, under both a human and professional perspective, from this fantastic experience,” said Barbara.
Sven Huberts is the President, Global Experience & Innovation at dentsu and President of Dentsu Lab, driving client growth through experience and innovation. He is the driving force behind Dentsu Lab’s global expansion, a global innovation group with creative R&D at its core, building solutions at the convergence of design, technology, humanity, building solutions at the convergence of design, technology and humanity to solve business problems and human needs. Sven is expanding the Lab beyond its Tokyo origins to include London, Amsterdam, Warsaw, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, establishing a connected global network for collaborative innovation.
Seen over 17 years at dentsu, Sven has championed innovation that balances business impact with societal good, pioneering solutions in AI-powered retail, inclusive digital platforms, and large-scale immersive entertainment. While global head of legacy dentsu agency, Isobar, he saw it named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies and earned multiple Campaign Digital & Innovation Agency of the Year awards across APAC and EMEA. His work for clients has received accolades from Cannes Lions to the Effies, consistently demonstrating his deep commitment to achieving marketing effectiveness.
Sven added: “The Effie Awards have long been a powerful beacon for our industry’s ability to drive and demonstrate commercial effectiveness. At their core, they celebrate the undeniable link between campaign objectives, strategy, creative excellence, and real business impact. I am truly honoured to co-chair this year’s Effie Awards Europe and look forward to immersing myself in the most inspiring work, exchanging insights with brilliant minds, and celebrating the ideas that set new benchmarks for marketing effectiveness.”
The Awards open for entries in early June, with the final deadline to submit work on 10 September. The full jury lineup will be announced in May. The key dates are available at www.effie-europe.com.
The Effie Awards Europe are organised by the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) in partnership with Kantar as the Strategic Insights Partner, Google, ACT Responsible, and Ad Net Zero.
