AdForum Summit includes key meeting with Omnicom Advertising Group leadership

Source: © 123rf 123rf The 2025 first half AdForum Summit will take place in New York between 12 and 16 May 2025 with one of the key meetings with the leadership of Omnicom Advertising Group

The Summit, held twice a year in selected cities across the globe, will include South Africa’s Johanna McDowell of the Independent Agency Search & Selection Company (IAS) as part of an exclusive, captive audience of search consultants.

The AdForum summit is an invitation-only event that brings top players in the industry together and offers them the chance to grow their business, network, and experience how they are shaping the future.

The IAS is the only South African pitch consulting company that has been participating consistently in the summit over the past 20 years.

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Global communication industry trends

It will provide the IAS with the opportunity to assess and forecast global communication industry trends; and, with up-to-date information constantly being exchanged, an exclusive forum to share ideas, challenges and opportunities.

More than 15 participating agencies, including big names like Uncommon, Creative Business (Sir John Hegarty), DEPT, Stagwell, Forsman & Bodenfors and VCCP, as well as some new independent players, will be visited during the summit week.

These participating agencies will have private meetings with more than 35 global search consultants at their respective offices to have 1-on-1 conversations about agency goals, strategies, key corporate messages, and to showcase their creative visions and talents.

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The future of the marketing communications industry

“The main reason we accept the invitation to attend is to ensure that the IAS continues to be at the forefront of global issues and trends facing the advertising and communication industry and the complex world of agency selection,” says McDowell.

She adds that AdForum offers them the chance to discuss the future of the marketing communications industry.

“This will be especially important this year with the rapid strategic shifts taking place within agencies as they grapple with the new needs of marketers, new ways an agency can partner with business, as they seek to break through the old, embrace change and bravely tackle the next frontier of challenges.

McDowell will also represent Scopen along with other Scopen colleagues from around the world at the Summit.

For South African agencies, brands and marketers, IAS will be hosting a Masterclass in June 2025 where insights and learnings, along with new case studies, from this summit will be shared.

See details here.