McCann XBC’s Joyce King Thomas is Grand Jury President at AdFest 2018

AdFest has roped in Joyce King Thomas, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of McCann XBC in New York, as Grand Jury President for next year’s festival. She will also lead the Branded Content Lotus and Integrated Lotus panels as Jury President. 

Thomas is the mastermind behind Mastercard’s infamous ‘Priceless’ campaign, which has been spoofed by everyone from Ralph Nader to Bart Simpson and has launched in more than 100 markets around the world. She was also involved in the creation of ‘Fearless Girl’ for State Street Global Advisors – a defiant statue symbolising the power of women in leadership, which took “a herculean effort” to create, before winning hearts all over the world. 

Thomas now leads XBC (which stands for ExtraBoldCondensed), a unit of McCann that leads all of MasterCard’s global marketing efforts, from advertising to digital and events. 

“I’m excited to be joining AdFest as so much meaningful work is being done in Asia. Last year’s Lotus winners were truly inspiring, so I am sure the standard of entries will be very high. I am also looking forward to spending time in Asia – always an enlightening experience,” said Thomas, who first joined McCann Erickson New York in 1995, rising to the role of Chief Creative Officer. 

Under her leadership, the agency won over a billion dollars in new business, from brands like the US Army, Verizon, Nikon and Weight Watchers. In 2010, she took a two-year hiatus to become a partner at Longreads, also joining the board of the Nurse Family Partnership, a group that teaches parenting skills to young mothers living in poverty, returning to McCann in 2012. 

Jimmy Lam, President of AdFest, said, “It is a true honour to welcome Joyce to AdFest – an accomplished leader and visionary creative, who has helped to create some of the world’s most talked about and loved campaigns. Her experience and talent will be invaluable in guiding next year’s judges of the AdFest Lotus Awards.” 

Thomas has won numerous awards, judged countless award shows, and spoken at numerous industry events. In 2012, Advertising Age named her one of the 100 most influential women in advertising. 

AdFest 2018 runs from March 21 to 24, 2018 at the Peach Royal Cliff Resort, Pattaya, Thailand with the theme “Transform”. The festival is now accepting entries to the 2018 AdFest Lotus Awards.