Kevin Mercer

Kevin currently leads brand strategy across the Hotels.com and Vrbo brands at Expedia Group. He brings over a decade of experience of developing award-winning creative campaigns and brand positionings for brands ranging from Nestlé and LEGO to small start-ups. Prior to joining Expedia, Kevin led Brand Strategy at LEGO, and held strategy roles at agencies including McCann Worldgroup and JWT.

What are you looking for in winning entries? 

True partnerships that drive commercial growth, built on care for its people. I'd like to see evidence that the agency's business growth is driven by a depth of trust and shared ambition with its clients. I'd also like to see evidence that this growth is underpinned by a level of care for its people, and break the misconception that an agency has to be run like a sweatshop to be profitable or creatively award-wining. The winning entries should also show how they have harnessed the power of elevating under-represented groups to key leadership positions, with show the impact of including these groups in shaping more impactful creative work.

Why do you believe these awards are important for the industry? 

As an industry we always talk about our clients success, but rarely about the success of our agencies. As agencies get merged, abandoned, it can easily seem that they are disposable entities rather than truly important vehicles to making the work that moves the industry forward.