Susan Irving

Susan Irving is an industry leader with a passion for brands and a reputation for delivering business results through strategic integrated marketing campaigns. As Chief Marketing Officer for Kruger Products, Susan is responsible for leading the marketing team to set the vision, strategic direction, and drive business performance for all Kruger Products brands and marketing activities in Canada and the United States. She is also a key member of the company's executive team.  Susan is an accomplished, award-winning senior marketing executive with over two decades of experience leading many successful and well-known brands at Warner Lambert, Coca-Cola, and PepsiCo. She has a strong passion for brands and building high-performance teams. She is a strategic business leader with experience spanning all aspects of business management and consumer marketing, including brand strategy, advertising and communications, P&L management, media planning, digital, social media, innovation, consumer insights, as well as sports and event marketing.  As an accomplished marketer, Susan has been recognized with several industry accolades including CMAs, Cassies, Cannes Lions, Effies, The Bessies, Clios, Media Innovation Awards, and Canadian New Media Awards. She was also among Marketing Magazine's prestigious Top 30 Under 30, Canada's Strategy Magazine 2020 Marketer of the Year, the Canadian Marketing Association 2021 Marketer of the Year, Canadian Grocer's 2022 Senior Star Women, and won Bronze at the prestigious Stevie Awards for Women in Business - Female Executive of the Year in 2023.  An avid sailor, Susan was a member of the Canadian Sailing Team, having campaigned for the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics. She was the President of the Leaside Hockey Association Board of Directors where she served for seven years; the current Jury Chair for The Globe and Mail's Cannes Young Marketers Competition; North American and Global Grand Prix Jury Chair for the WARC Awards in association with Cannes Lions; a judge for several industry award shows including the 2023 Cannes Lions Entertainment Sports Jury; a keynote speaker for North American conferences; and a committee member of WISE Canada (Women in Sport and Entertainment). She is also a member of the Canadian Women and Sport Board of Directors and the Ontario Hockey Federation Board of Directors. 

What are you looking for in winning entries?

As we review the entries as a jury, I will be looking for agency work that solves brand problems, drives business results, and ignites consumers to engage.