2023 Judges

Chris Batchik

Managing Director, Brand and Corporate Marketing Services, Charles Schwab

Chris manages the Creative Center (C2), Schwab’s 160-person in-house ad agency and one of the oldest internal agencies in the country. With a background in both external and in-house agencies as well as experience in brand, creative, operations and marketing, Chris leads his team in the creation of content across all Schwab products and services. C2 develops brand strategy, sponsorship activations, and prospect and client marketing communications across owned and earned media for B2B and B2C. Chris’ work over the last 15 years has led to C2 being twice named a finalist for IHAF’s In-House Agency of the Year award.

Kelly Chmielewski

Founder + Brand Innovator, The Possibility Shop

Kelly is an award-winning brand strategist, creative leader and innovation expert, passionate about the infinite possibilities that emerge from the intersection of customer empathy, authentic storytelling and strategic design. Kelly collaborates with client teams to turn brand purpose into meaningful customer experiences and creative campaigns that drive awareness, engagement and revenue. Previously, Kelly was VP of the PBS Creative Lab—the in-house agency for the nation’s #5 most-watched media brand. She also serves as a guest lecturer on brand and human-centered design at Georgetown University and on the planning team for TEDxMidAtlantic.

Maya Dukes

Managing Director Creative, Delta Air Lines

Maya has been the cornerstone of marketing strategies for numerous multi-billion-dollar companies. At Delta, she leads the in-house creative team to deliver campaigns that cultivate brand affinity and loyalty among employees and consumers alike. Well-versed in revenue-generating creative, Maya is the driving force behind internationally recognized campaigns like Delta’s Winter Olympics Beijing 2022 Look of the Games and Comcast NBCU’s 2018 Winter Olympics. As a DE&I thought leader, Maya works with assorted community organizations and nonprofits. She also teaches an undergraduate marketing course on creative disruption at Georgia State and is a KPMG Future Leaders Mentor to first-year college students.

Emily Foster

Director, IHAF

Emily is responsible for advancing the premier professional membership association for internal agencies, The In-House Agency Forum (IHAF). In leading the IHAF program team, Emily is responsible for the development and delivery of benefits and thought leadership content in support of nearly 300 member companies. She is also dedicated to cultivating the IHAF community to enhance the influence and impact of corporate advertising and creative services organizations. Prior to her current role, Emily was a Program Manager and then Associate Director of IHAF, facilitating targeted research, member events and networking among the in-house community.

Beth Anne Mandia

Director, Creative Services, TruStage

Beth Anne leads TruStage’s D2C Experience Unit, overseeing strategy, development and execution of creative communications while helping to protect middle-market Americans and their families with insurance products tailored to meet their changing needs. With a passion for professional development and culture building, Beth Anne has extended the value of the creative team across the organization, introducing metrics, scalable processes and a strategic-partner mindset. Prior to TruStage, she was a VP at Connect America where she elevated and aligned internal and external communications and collateral, crafting a new company brand and voice. Previously, she held various leadership positions at an external ad agency where she directed the turnaround of the underperforming Nutrisystem business.

Meghan McDonnell

President, Pile and Company

Pile and Company is a consulting firm focused on marketing resources and relationships. Meghan oversees Pile Consulting’s suite of practice areas including agency search, performance evaluation, agency compensation, agency model assessment, onboarding and more. Her deep knowledge of and perspective on the external agency landscape and client/agency best practices are why so many companies initially select and frequently return to Pile. Meghan has worked with hundreds of marketing organizations and outside agencies, spanning industries and disciplines to successfully establish more productive, valuable, mutually rewarding partnerships and agreements that deliver on clients’ business needs.

JD Schupp

Director of Event Operations, Walmart Shows and Events

With over 20 years of advertising, brand, agency management and live event experience, JD is responsible for event operations for the Shows and Events team within Walmart’s Corporate Affairs division. Previously, he was head of production for Walmart Films—building it into a full-scale, tech-powered and people-led center of excellence within Walmart Communications. JD spent much of his career within corporate marketing, leading top-tier creative agencies to produce memorable broadcast, social and radio advertising campaigns on behalf of the world’s largest retailer. 

Andrew Sinkov

VP, Marketing Brand, Etsy

Andrew leads the in-house creative agency at Etsy, overseeing global brand design, content and brand strategy across the company’s entire marketing funnel and customer lifecycle. Prior to joining Etsy, Andrew was a co-founder and head of marketing at Evernote, the brand that redefined productivity software for the smartphone era. Andrew lives in Brooklyn with his wife and toddler and is currently trying to get the Wheels on the Bus song out of his head. (Now that you read this, it’s probably in yours!)