A widely respected and highly awarded strategist, Sophie Price is a media trailblazer. She is a rare breed of leader who has excelled in shaping the field of strategy in both creative and media agencies.
She is also a quiet achiever, according to Imogen Hewitt, CEO of Spark Foundry. "Sophie is busily focused on the goal of great work and not one for self-promotion or fuss," Hewitt says.
"But her low-key approach should not be mistaken for a low-key contribution. Sophie believes in the power of the media industry with a commitment and passion that knows no bounds. She advocates for the industry, is the first to raise her hand to contribute, and has a long and esteemed track record of personifying the good our industry can do in terms of work, social purpose and innovation.
As one of the best strategic minds in Australian media, Sophie's work has won multiple Cannes Lions and Grand Prix awardsfrom the Australian Effies and the MFA Awards for ground- breaking and change-making campaigns, such as the Tontine date stamped pillows, Berlei's Uplifting Tour of Australia, LEGO Christmas Star, Tourism Australia Matesong, WHISKAS #Catsinboxes and many more.
But it's for her important role in leading the strategic development of a new brand purpose for the Australian media industry, We Are The Changers, that Sophie is being recognised with the MFA Industry Contribution Award. The task of steering a process involving hundreds of stake-holders representing the diversity of an industry of nearly 5,000 individuals, all sharing their own perspective on what a communal purpose should look and sound like, was nothing short of momentous and far reaching.Sophie's ability to bring everyone together and define and distil our industry's vision cannot be overstated.short of momentous and far reaching. Sophie's ability to bring everyone together and define and distil our industry's vision cannot be overstated.
A key goal of this unique and ambitious project-no other industry has an industry-wide purpose-was to make it easier to attract new talent, and ultimately contribute to the reduction of employee churn from 17%. The most recent churn figure is 13%, demonstrating the quick-acting impact of We Are The Changers, which has been wholeheartedly embraced by the media agency industry since its launch in 2022. A true testament to Sophie's diligence and passion in ensuring our purpose was honest and resonated with everyone at all levels of the industry.
"Sophie is one of the most committed, collaborative and compassionate leaders in media and the truest definition of an industry leader," says Chris Colter, Managing Director Media Strategy at Accenture, who serves as MFA Awards Co-Chair alongside Sophie. "She leads with proactivity and action and has influenced more progression in the Australian media industry than anyone would ever recognise.
"From architecting the MFA's exceptionally well-embraced purpose of We Are The Changers, the countless people she's mentored into wildly successful careers, myself included, to thebenchmark media thinking she delivers (...yes, ok, I admit I was jealous of WHISKAS #Catsinboxes!), you'd be hard pressed to find an industry leader who's contributed more."
Imogen Hewitt describes Sophie as the industry's biggest champion. "As the lead strategist on the We Are The Changers industry purpose, Sophie gave selflessly of her time and her ample smarts to drive a team of collaborators forward and to distil the thinking of many into a powerful encapsulation of the difference each and every one of us can and does make in the industry, for our clients, consumers, the economy and the community at large," Hewitt says.
"Sophie's enthusiasm, leadership and sheer love resulted in a compelling and meaningful piece of work that will serve to create and reinforce real pride in our industry for many a media person today and into the future. It's a fitting legacy."
WPP Chief Strategy Officer Katie Rigg-Smith believes Sophie "sets the standard for what constitutes best-in- class strategic thinking"."She is passionate about the power our industry has in driving our clients' success and is always so generous in her time and commitment to helping drive our industry forward," Rigg-Smith says. "Her work in developing We are the Changers and her ongoing commitment to the MFA Awards and MFA EX are just two examples of this. Sophie is so deserving of this award!"
Hewitt sums it up best: "Thank you, Soph. Long may your contribution continue."