The annual Future is Female Awards, hosted by Advertising Week Europe, were announced tonight via a virtual ceremony, to honour ten rising stars in the creative comms industry, who have showed outstanding leadership this past year.

The winners were judged on a combination of proven achievements, demonstrated ability to effect organisational change, commitment to external causes, ability to mentor others and professional endorsements.

Winners demonstrated strong leadership throughout their career accomplishments. The awards recognise the winner’s achievements while also championing diversity, inclusion and empowerment in the next generation of professionals.

Ruth Mortimer, chair of the Future is Female judges and managing director for Global Education at Advertising Week, says, "The last 12 months have been a timely reminder of the importance of strong leadership and the need to invest in talent. The ability demonstrated by these award winners is quite incredible.”

Among the winners were three female founders including Charlotte Williams, founder of SixSeven Agency, a diversity focused social media and influencer marketing agency. Both Jemelia Donaldson, founder of TreasureTress, a monthly beauty subscription for women with curly hair, and Loriane Mbayo, senior HR assistant at KPMG and founder of Woman to Woman, a platform redefining societal ideas of femininity, also won at the awards.

Reem Berger, PR associate at Clarks Originals won for her contributions to the public relations industry after working alongside fellow winner Rani Patel Williams, business partner at Livity, to deliver a project celebrating black female creatives this year.

Hannah Ngakane, strategic partnership manager at Pinterest was among the winners, after launching the company’s first-ever UK and Ireland Black History Month campaign.

Geraldine Anyanwu, client development director at Global Media, Fran Griffin, senior strategist at MullenLowe London, Pooja Popat, partner publisher at adidas and Tini Sevak, vice president of audience and data at CNN International Commercial, were also won the Future is Female Award.

“These rising stars have not only excelled in their own careers but have also improved diversity and inclusion in advertising and marketing for others too,” adds Mortimer.

The judging panel included Patricia Corsi, global chief marketing and digital officer at Bayer, Arancha Cordeo, chief growth officer at Danone Waters and a previous winner, Shelina Janmohamed, vice president of Ogilvy Islamic Marketing.