Top company and news stories 27 November 2017 - 27 Nov 2017

• Winners announced for the 2017 Financial Mail AdFocus Awards, Danette Breitenbach reports
  
• Phumi Mashigo, MD of Ignitive succeeds Craig Page-Lee, founder of d-cifr, as AdFocus Awards chairperson for 2018-19
  
• Brand Science joins Brand Union to form a dynamic new market offer; Doug de Villiers, CEO of Brand Science, will assume the role of vice chairman
  
• Multi-sensory Design Indaba Conference announces first three confirmed speakers
  
• The Creative Circle is taking steps towards its new purpose to accelerate transformation
  
• Following the Mobile Marketing Association Forum in Johannesburg and Mobile Monday in Cape Town, I interview Adam Pattison, vice president, Americas & EMEA at BBM Messenger, on chat or dark social and how this is shaping the mobile economy
  
• #Newsmakers this week included Michelle Dobson, Lumen's MD and Kriya Gangiah, 'info-tainment professional' and Jacaranda FM's digital lead
  
• Juanita Pienaar interviews the three finalists in the student category of the AdFocus Awards
  
• Leigh Andrews interviews Net#work BBDO's Mike Schalit and Emma Strydom on the Make a Life Foundation and how their t-shirt designs are "wearing it forward" as the ideal of "creativism" gains momentum
  
• Andrews 'praat met' Pendoring Awards' ranked Abnormal Group, Joe Public United, Black Khaki and The Odd Number
  
• And goes #BehindtheSelfie with... Dale Ferreira, MD of creative digital marketing agency Sconetent
  
• She also interviews filmmaker Myeza-Mhlambi from 7Films on its 2017 award track and secrets to success
  
• Continuing our #EntrepreneurMonth coverage, I attended the release of the 2017 Annual Ventureburn Startup survey, while Andrews interviews BrightRock's Suzanne Stevens, as well as Lethabo Motsoaledi and Matthew Westaway from Motsoaledi & West

Jessica Tennant
Editor: Marketing & Media SA