The Jury

Gabi Bauer is an experienced, creative leader with extensive expertise in marketing, communications and sales of complex products. Her focus is on transformation, digitalisation and sales enablement. With an agile mindset, a strong service orientation and excellent analytical skills, she motivates teams, shapes transformation and achieves sustainable business success.

Dr. Saskia Diehl studied psychology and economics and completed her doctorate at the Institute for Brand and Communication Research while working as a strategy consultant. Her publications include various publications on emotional brand management, and she is a lecturer for consumer behavior & neuromarketing at the EUFH Cologne. At GMK Markenberatung, Diehl has supported numerous international clients in the efficient management of their brands and brand portfolios - from AI-supported brand development to implementation and sustainable brand controlling.

Stefanie Eller is a business builder with experience at Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson and E.ON. She combines strategic brand management with entrepreneurial thinking, developing companies and brands from the initial idea to international expansion with a focus on impact, relevance and sustainable success.

Roman Jud is Chief Growth Officer at Saxenhammer and has been working in leading marketing and strategy roles for over 20 years. He has worked in London, Zurich and Berlin for international brands and agencies and now advises companies at the interface of brand, growth and transformation.

Jörg Liebeskind studied Communication Design at the Technical University of Nuremberg and Marketing Management at the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg. He then worked as a graphic designer for various agencies in Munich, Nuremberg and New York. In 2003, he founded the creative agency stilbezirk in Nuremberg with three partners and worked for almost 15 years with international clients such as adidas, Marin Bikes, uvex, Siemens and Vaude in the areas of brand development and brand communication. In 2017, he joined act.3, an official partner of the adidas group, as Director Brand Communications, where he was responsible for event concepts and brand activation for adidas. From 2018 to 2020, he worked for the software company DATEV and was responsible for the further development of the brand and image communication. Since 2020, he has headed the brand and communications department at Conrad Electronic and is responsible for the international relaunch of the 100-year-old traditional brand. As a brand and communications expert, he has already won several prizes in renowned creative competitions.

Katrin Menne is Head of Brand and Content Marketing at the science and technology company Merck. She has extensive expertise in strategic brand management, communication, design and market research. In her previous role as Head of Brand and Research at Commerzbank AG, she led successful campaigns, sharpened the brand positioning and brand presence and carried out comprehensive analyses of brand perception and customer loyalty. As a recognised expert, Katrin is also active on juries such as the Effie and shares her knowledge and experience in the industry.

After studying economics and industrial design, he worked in various management positions in industry and the consulting sector. Since 2003, Günter Moeller has been running the Munich-based consultancy Herrmann, Moeller + Partner together with Dr Christoph Herrmann. He is a recognized expert in the field of brand-oriented corporate development and has worked for many national and international companies in the course of his consultancy work. In addition, he has published numerous specialist articles on brand management, innovation and design management and is also a lecturer in strategic marketing, innovation and product management, most recently at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences.

Carsta Maria Müller, Managing Director at Baby got Business, is an industry expert and media scientist who has been working in the social media world for over 15 years, most recently at Meta as Strategic Partner Manager for Creator, Media & Sport Companies and previously as Director of Social Media at ProSiebenSat.1. For 10 years, she has been supporting (media) companies in their digital transformation, inspiring people with content, creative storytelling and KPIs & social media strategies. As Managing Director at Baby got Business, she is responsible for the Academy & Consulting division and hosts the social media podcast ‘What The Social?!’ powered by Baby got Business.

Matthias Oetting has been contributing his many years of experience in digital and design agencies to large companies ranging from medical technology to furniture fittings for more than 18 years. He focuses on strategic topics such as customer centricity, brand management and digital transformation, as well as the successful implementation of customer lifecycle-oriented, data-driven marketing and corporate communications. Since 2023, he has been working on his core areas of interest as Director of Marketing at the Hettich Group.

Julius Palm is deputy managing director and head of strategy & brand at the sustainable food brand followfood. While studying at Zeppelin University, he explored the question of the future viability of modern societies. In practice, Julius Palm works with followfood to solve socio-ecological problems through a business model. The goal: regenerative entrepreneurship. As a board member of the German Federal Association for Sustainable Business, he is also committed to creating the political framework for a sustainable economy.

Stefan Raake studied business administration at the University of Cologne, specialising in marketing and business psychology. He has been managing partner of AMC Finanzmarkt GmbH since 2010. AMC operates the insurance industry network for marketing and sales (www.amc-forum.de). Stefan Raake launched his first Internet projects for the insurance industry back in 1995. As editor-in-chief, he was responsible for Versicherungen.de and Finanzen.de until 2005. He continuously organises events, studies and projects for the AMC network. As a specialist author, he has published books such as ‘Marketing Online’ (the first German book on the subject), ‘Web 2.0 in the financial sector’, ‘Insurers on the Internet’ and the annual study ‘The insurance industry on the Internet’.

Sophia Rödiger is Chief Marketing Officer at 1KOMMA5°, a marketplace and technology platform for CO2-neutral energy, heating and mobility. She is a business psychologist and author and has been shaping innovation in the digital energy and mobility environment for over 10 years. Most recently, she founded and led the blockchain technology company bloXmove as CEO, which was created after a management buyout with Mercedes-Benz. It was here, at the car manufacturer, that Sophia's career began in various management positions related to start-up investment and digital transformation. Sophia Rödiger was a member of the bitkom executive board and is an active international keynote speaker. She places particular emphasis on (digital) education and also posts her own podcast formats on this topic, such as the current NEW ENERGY TALKS.

Isabelle Rogat (known to most simply as ‘Isi’) is one of the leading voices in the German creative scene. As a young leader who was already managing her first teams at the age of 25, the cultural trend scout and aspiring author captivates the industry with her incisive insights, columns and keynotes on topics such as zeitgeist, next-gen marketing and feminism.

Dr Simone Roth has 14 years of professional experience in brand management in various industries and business areas. Her current research focuses on international brand management, social media marketing and intercultural communication. She contributes this expertise as a sub-project manager in two research projects funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (social robots and QuantumMiniLabs). Simone Roth also works for HRW as Executive Director in the European university alliance CHARM-EU.

Christian Rummel worked for internationally renowned advertising agencies, including Young&Rubicam, Publicis and Saatchi&Saatchi, for over 15 years. During this time he worked on projects around the globe for Coca-Cola, Hewlett-Packard, Ford, Avis, Orange and Citibank. In 2011 he joined Deutsche Bank, where he is responsible for worldwide brand communication and sponsoring as well as selected flagship projects forming part of the company's extensive social responsibility programme. As a brand and communications expert, he has already won numerous prizes in international competitions for creative advertising.