New York Festivals Health Awards Lifetime Achievement Award honours June Laffey

Image supplied. The New York Festivals Health Awards Lifetime Achievement Award has been awarded to June Laffey, executive creative coach, retreat founder, and former chief creative officer for McCann Health New York

The New York Festivals Lifetime Achievement Award recognises prominent industry leaders, innovators, and driving forces in the industry whose accomplishments have advanced their field and made a lasting impression on the industry.

Commenting on the award, Laffey says: “What a wonderful life where you can do what you love, be creative, have fun, inspire and be inspired by amazing people the world over, first in agencies then through coaching creative leaders.

“Then to be recognised by the brilliant New York Festivals for doing just that with the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award in health …life doesn’t get any better.”

A more than two decade career

Laffey has built a stellar creative and leadership career within the healthcare advertising space resulting in a remarkable professional reputation spanning more than two decades, from APAC to the Americas.

She served a decade at McCann Health, from 2010, starting in Australia as a creative and culminating as CCO of the flagship New York office. While in her leadership role, she led a culture of creativity to elevate the network to the world’s number one.

Respected within the industry amongst top-tier award competitions, June was one of the first women to chair Cannes Lions Health and was tapped multiple times to chair Clio Health and the NYF’s Global Awards.

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World-class campaigns

Through her extraordinary career, Laffey has championed world-class campaigns, such as Unfinished Votes, chaired prestigious international health award shows and helped build creative reputations, careers and business.

Few have made the impact and contributions in health communications that June has, she is, without doubt, one of the world’s most respected leaders in the field of healthcare advertising.

In Australia, June co-founded and presided over Bravo! a committee of Australian healthcare professionals with representation from healthcare agencies and the Communications Council of Australia, for the APAC region.

Global Awards and Bravo! celebrated NYF’s Global Award winners in APAC. The event that was so successful, it was quickly replicated in the US resulting in concurrent New York Festivals Global Awards celebrations annually honouring winners in both Australia and the US.

McCann World Group’s most awarded female creative

June was McCann World Group’s most awarded female creative earning numerous accolades for her top-tier creative work for prominent brands from prestigious international advertising competitions.

In 2020, she was recognised by the One Show as one of the top 25 chief creative officers worldwide.

Empowering creative leaders

After an industry-leading career, Laffey turned her creative talents to empowering creative leaders to be their best. Her Executive Creative Coaching business, FUN (For U Now).

FUN guides individuals via a bespoke blueprint for success which supports, upskills, and empowers people to be better leaders.

Laffey’s philosophy is Receive, Believe, Achieve. Her unique set of insights, tools, and uncanny ability to join the dots is not only great for the individual but also good for business. Especially when creatives do not have enough high-level support from proven creative leadership in-house.

Her commitment to empowering creative leaders and would-be creative leaders to reach their full potential is what has motivated her to set up her executive coaching business FUN (For U Now).

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Laffey works with individuals and agencies, both remotely or in-person, to offer intensive individual and group coaching.

She has launched a workshop and accommodation space a world away from the hustle and bustle located on beautiful land at Topi Topi, three hours north of Sydney. Within this retreat centre, she provides curated tailored intensive programs with powerful guest speakers.

“Laffey truly deserves this honour, as an award-winning creative and a respected leader within the industry, she is known for being a unique trailblazer, changemaker, and visionary,” says Ellen Smyth, CEO, New York Festivals.