Cannes Lions has spent decades defining what great creativity looks like. Effie has done the same for effectiveness.

Paul Kemp-Robertson sits inside both.

As Chief Content Officer of LIONS, Paul has a rare vantage point on the forces shaping the global advertising industry. LIONS brings together Cannes Lions, Effie, WARC and Contagious — institutions that influence what gets celebrated, what gets studied, what gets put on stage and, ultimately, what the industry believes great work looks like.

Paul has also watched the industry change from almost every angle. He started at Shots in the early 1990s, when the world’s best advertising arrived on VHS tapes and call-for-entries went out by fax. He went on to Leo Burnett and co-founded Contagious before becoming Chief Content Officer at LIONS.

So we wanted to ask him a bigger question:

What wins now?

Because advertising is at another strange inflection point.

AI has made the tools of creativity available to almost everyone.

ChatGPT, Claude and the other major AI platforms are rapidly changing how people search, work, make things and consume media. Yet some of the companies building that future are now turning to advertising agencies, brand-building and very human creative work to differentiate themselves.

Paul thinks that’s telling.

We get into Mother’s work for Claude and its attack on ChatGPT; why an industry flooded with frictionless AI content could put a new premium on human creativity; why craft is ultimately a form of respect for the audience; and whether we’re heading towards a world where “100% human made” becomes something worth signalling.

We also go inside the institutions that have spent decades setting the bar for the industry.

What is Cannes Lions actually for now? Do awards still influence the direction of advertising? What separates work that wins awards from work that actually works? Why might the client be the bravest person on an award-winning team? And is safe, generic “wallpaper” advertising actually the biggest risk a brand can take?

Paul takes us inside AXA’s “Three Words,” one of the standout ideas from Cannes Lions, and the difficult boardroom conversations behind adding domestic violence coverage to its insurance policies. It’s a fascinating example of creativity moving beyond communications and into the business itself.

That leads us somewhere even more interesting: what happens when creative people stop being handed a media plan and start getting closer to the product, the organization and the problem?

We talk Oatly’s Department of Mind Control, why some of advertising’s greatest ideas came from creatives wandering around factory floors, the Bitcoin investment Paul wishes he’d made, why curiosity still matters, and what the next generation should know coming into the business.

And after a career spent thinking about some of the world’s most celebrated advertising, Paul tells us what he’d put on his LinkedIn tombstone: “It’s only advertising.”

Paul Kemp-Robertson is Chief Content Officer at LIONS. He co-founded Contagious and previously worked at Shots and Leo Burnett.

Second Wind is a podcast about the people, ideas and forces reshaping advertising, creativity and marketing.

Hosted by Kerrie Finch and Gully Flowers.
A Second Wind podcast by AKA.

“We just have no interest in flooding the public consciousness with ugly noise.”

Justine Armour, International Chief Creative Officer at 72andSunny, joins Second Wind to talk about what great creative work looks like when everyone has access to AI.

Fresh from serving as a D&AD Jury President, Justine talks about why human craft is becoming more conspicuous, what separates genuinely creative cultures from agencies that merely talk about creativity, and why 72andSunny has no interest in joining the race to make more, cheaper content.

We get into what 72andSunny has learned from working with e.l.f., why strategists and creatives should be “getting up in each other’s shit,” and Justine’s five ingredients for great work: simple, surprising, audacious, craft and energy.

Justine also explains why Australian creatives tend to spend longer mastering their craft, why she once turned down an ECD opportunity because she didn’t think she’d made enough great work yet, and the Guinness “Surfer” ad that changed her understanding of what advertising could be.

Plus: AI and creativity, D&AD, e.l.f., Wieden+Kennedy, creative leadership, agency culture, optimism without toxic positivity, tall poppy syndrome, and why Justine remains determined not to be average.

Justine Armour is International Chief Creative Officer at 72andSunny.

Second Wind is a podcast about what happens after you’ve made it — and what the best people in advertising, design and creativity learn next.

Search Second Wind by AKA.

#Advertising #CreativeLeadership #AI

AI isn’t changing marketing. It’s changing what a brand is.

In this episode of Second Wind, Craig Elimeliah, Chief Creative Officer at Code and Theory, introduces a concept we haven’t been able to stop thinking about since recording: brand refounding.

For years, companies have talked about brand transformation. Craig argues we’re entering something much bigger. AI isn’t simply making marketers faster. It’s forcing organizations to rethink the foundations of how brands are built, governed and remembered.

We explore why AI exposes disconnected organizations, why brand consistency becomes more valuable as content scales, why consumers are becoming dramatically harder to fool, and why creative leaders are increasingly responsible for shaping entire businesses, not just campaigns.

In this conversation:

• What “brand refounding” actually means

• Why AI is exposing weak brand systems

• The difference between brand transformation and brand refounding

• Why speed, scale and brand no longer have to compete

• How AI creates organizational memory instead of disconnected campaigns

• Why creative leaders are becoming business leaders

• The future of agencies, brands and creative operating systems

• What every CMO should understand before investing in another AI tool

Craig Elimeliah is the Chief Creative Officer at Code and Theory, one of the world’s leading digital transformation and creative technology companies. Throughout his career, he’s helped shape products, platforms and brand systems for many of the world’s most influential organizations.

Second Wind is hosted by Gully Flowers and Jake Neske, founders of AKA. Each episode features candid conversations with the creative leaders, CMOs, founders and operators shaping the future of advertising, branding, design, AI and business.

If you work in marketing, advertising, brand strategy, creative leadership, AI or digital transformation, this conversation will give you a new framework for thinking about what comes next.

Most products are designed for someone who doesn’t exist.

The average user.

David Vogel, Executive Experience Director at Hypersolid and former AKQA design leader, argues that the idea of a “normal” human has quietly shaped everything from schools and workplaces to digital products, customer experiences, and AI. The problem is that normal was never real.

In this episode of Second Wind, David joins Gully Flowers and Kerrie Finch to explore why neurodiversity changes the way we think about accessibility, why crash test dummies reveal a deeper flaw in modern design, and why designing for edge cases often creates better experiences for everyone.

The conversation also looks ahead. David explains why ChatGPT is only the earliest interface for AI, why brands should be careful about outsourcing customer relationships to AI platforms, and how intelligent experiences could reshape products, retail, and personalization over the next decade.

• Why there is no such thing as a “normal” user

• How ADHD and neurodiversity challenge traditional design thinking

• What crash test dummies teach us about accessibility

• Why designing for edge cases creates better products for everyone

• Why ChatGPT is only the beginning of AI

• How brands can embrace AI without giving away the customer relationship

• What intelligent experiences could mean for the future of retail, work, and customer experience

Guest: David Vogel, Executive Experience Director at Hypersolid

Hosts: Gully Flowers and Kerrie Finch

What does it take to lead one of the world’s biggest brands?

Jo Shoesmith joins Kerrie Finch and Gully Flowers shortly after becoming Chief Brand Officer at Amazon to discuss leadership, AI, creativity, agency relationships, and why the best leaders never stop proving themselves.

From Amazon’s leadership principles to building trust, influencing at scale, and preparing for a future shaped by AI, this is a practical conversation for anyone leading creative teams, brands, or businesses.

In this episode:

• Becoming Amazon’s Chief Brand Officer
• Amazon’s approach to leadership and trust
• How AI is changing creative work
• Working with agencies more effectively
• Why great leaders prove themselves every day
• Building influence beyond the creative department

About Second Wind by AKA

Second Wind by AKA features candid conversations with the creative leaders, founders, CMOs, producers, and operators shaping modern marketing, business, and culture.

New episodes every other Tuesday.

https://hey-aka.com/second-wind

In this episode, Gully Flowers sits down with James Kuczynski, Global Senior Creative Director at Duolingo, to unpack how one of the world’s most recognizable brands keeps creativity playful—and performance high. From the viral “Dead Duo” campaign to the way Duolingo uses social media as a storytelling engine, James shares how fun fuels innovation, why risk is part of the job, and where he thinks brand strategy is headed next.

You’ll hear:

• Why “fun” is Duolingo’s not-so-secret growth engine

• How to balance creative freedom with process

• Lessons from the “Dead Duo” campaign

• How audience sentiment shapes brand messaging

• The future of authentic, platform-native marketing

Eric Kallman is the co-founder and chief creative officer of Erich & Kallman, the independent agency behind standout work for brands like Reese’s, King’s Hawaiian, Franzia, Toyota and more. Before that, he helped create some of the most iconic advertising of the last two decades, including Old Spice, Skittles, Little Caesars, Kayak and Ragu. Erich & Kallman was named Ad Age’s 2024 Small Agency of the Year and was later recognized as a 2025 A-List standout.

In this episode of Second Wind, Eric talks about how Old Spice almost died before it changed culture, why absurd work only works when the product truth is dead simple, and what most young creatives are skipping when they chase shortcuts. He gets into the discipline behind funny advertising, the value of silence in the creative process, why six weeks and 250 scripts used to be normal, and how AI can help if it gives creatives more time to think instead of less.

Topics include Old Spice, Skittles, creative discipline, copywriting, campaign craft, small agencies, advertising fundamentals, AI in creative work, and what it takes to make funny ads that actually sell.

Greg Hahn - Chief Creative Officer and co-founder of Mischief - joins Second Wind to unpack the art of creating work that’s as fun as it is fearless. From his early days in psychology and journalism to leading one of the most awarded agencies in the world, Greg shares how Mischief built a culture where risk-taking thrives.

In this episode, Greg reflects on:

• The journey from psychology to advertising—and what that brings to creativity

• How to build safe spaces that encourage brave, culture-shaping ideas

• The role of strategy in helping clients embrace bold work

• The impact of AI on creativity and the future of the industry

• Why fun, authenticity, and legacy matter in creative leadership

A candid conversation about creativity, culture, and the mischievous spirit that keeps advertising alive.