The Worldwide Partners (WPI) Next Gen Council is entering its second year, and we are pleased to welcome two new members to the group, who will be working alongside eight members continuing on for a second term. These ten Next Gen Council members are helping to inform and develop future-focused strategies for our network. 

The new members are:

Lindsey Patterson Vice President, Media & Publishing, R&R Partners (USA) Lindsey brings a wealth of media intelligence and insight to her clients while also overseeing the agency’s key travel & tourism clients including the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Brand USA and Discover Puerto Rico. Lindsey works across all departments in developing smart, strategic media plans and campaigns that not only consistently win industry awards, but also deliver the kind of results and added value that have built world-class travel brands and destinations.  Prior to joining R&R, Lindsey served as a strategist at OMD in Chicago, where she was responsible for media planning/buying on the Pepsi Co./Quaker Foods account. Her recommendations helped drive the Quaker brand in exceeding their sales goals.

Laura Stayt President, Zambezi (USA) Laura has spent 17 years working in advertising, starting in Account Management, and leading multiple world-class brand relationships such as Beats by Dre, Under Armour, PayPal, Airbnb, Nissan, Traeger Grills and many more.  She started her career fresh from Oxford University at AMV BBDO in London, before moving to Los Angeles to join TBWA\Chiat\Day. After a period at Crispin Porter & Bogusky, she then joined independent, female-owned, integrated agency Zambezi five years ago, where she currently leads all day to day operations, maintains oversight of brand relationships, has close involvement in growth efforts, and continues to spearhead the development of global relationships and ways of working for the agency within the Worldwide Partners network.

The members continuing on for a second term include: Aleena Mazhar, WPI Next Gen Council Co-Chair and Senior Vice President at FUSE Create (Canada), Ally O’Neill, WPI Next Gen Council Co-Chair and Media Director at Ardmore (Northern Ireland), Erik Sederowsky, WPI Next Gen Council Curator and Copywriter at Blomquist (Sweden), Sheryl Thomson, Creative Director at Union Direct (Scotland), Annika Keilhauer, CEO at Wächter PR (Germany), Emily Bonsignore, Associate Media Director at The Shipyard (USA), Tori Oh, Account Director at Hylink Group (USA/China), and Philippe Goudreault, Strategy Director at LG2 (Canada).

Worldwide Partners established the Next Gen Council in 2022 with lofty goals: to develop strategies for broadening awareness of and engagement with WPI deeper within each agency partner, to identify opportunities for expanding collaborations between Partner agencies, to enhance the employee experience at Partner agencies, and to inform the evolution of WPI’s offering to more effectively support our Partners and their Clients. 

The inaugural council exceeded these goals and expectations. They have helped to reimagine the format of our virtual events, increasing attendance rate by 20%. They launched our first-ever WPI Mentorship Program, connecting WPI leadership with mentees across the network. They were instrumental in getting the ball started on our upcoming WPI Global Coworking Community. And they have made life-long connections within the network that will continue to positively impact their professional and personal lives.

“We intentionally kept the brief loose for the first year to allow this group chart their own course, but that meant we weren’t entirely sure what to expect in terms of outcomes and deliverables,” said John Harris, President and CEO of Worldwide Partners. “But we have been impressed with all they have accomplished in a short time, and can’t wait to see what more this current Council will achieve together.” 

Please join WPI in welcoming these new members and celebrating those serving a second term. The entire WPI network is thrilled with the progress made in one year, and looks forward to new opportunities that the Next Gen Council will bring to its agencies, their employees, and all clients.