The Media Federation of Australia (MFA) has unveiled the six senior marketers who will serve as Signature Judges for the 2024 MFA Awards. This group of esteemed professionals includes Martin Brown (Nestlé and AANA Chair), Naysla Edwards (American Express ANZ), Ben Hill (Mars Wrigley), Lisa Ronson (Deakin Business School), Nicole Smart (Woolworths Group), and Sarah Sorrenson (Diageo).

Introduced at last year's MFA Awards, the Signature Judges were brought in to provide a strong advertiser voice in the judging process and ensure the focus remains on proven effectiveness. The MFA Awards' rigorous judging process includes automatic conflict filtering, independent auditing, blind voting, and proof of media contribution.

The Signature Judges will lead a judging cohort of over 100 experienced professionals drawn from across the industry, including media agencies, media owners, tech companies, and a record number of marketers.

MFA Awards Chairs Sophie Price and Chris Colter expressed their delight at the return of the Signature Judges, stating, "We’re delighted to welcome our six Signature Judges to act as champions for proven effectiveness in the MFA Awards judging room. With enormous expertise and knowledge among them, we believe they will make a valuable contribution to the process of identifying the most innovative and effective media thinking in Australia."

Martin Brown, General Manager at Nestlé, who is returning as a Signature Judge, shared his enthusiasm, "I’m thrilled to return as an MFA Awards Signature Judge this year. Last year’s judging experience was enormously inspiring and a great reminder of the high calibre of media thinking being delivered by Australian media agencies. As always, I will be looking for breakthrough ideas that led to exceptional brand and business results."

Nicole Smart, GM Group Media & Media Planning at Woolworths Group, emphasised the importance of innovation and collaboration in the entries, "I’m a strong believer in the power of media to drive commercial impact, which is why I’m excited to be judging the MFA Awards. In addition to effectiveness, I will be keeping a keen eye for collaboration, innovation and ideas that take me by surprise."

Entries to the MFA Awards are open until 3 May to MFA member media agencies, clients, and media owners. The winners will be announced at a black-tie gala dinner at White Bay Cruise Terminal in Sydney on 19 September. The 2024 MFA Awards sponsors include Grand Prix Sponsor Seven Network; Platinum Sponsors Meta, Outdoor Media Association, SBS; and Gold Sponsors Ad Standards, OzTAM, Foxtel Media, News Corp.