I have identified four tasks that are quite immediate. AFAA is currently present in 14 countries in the region through its regular voting members. Of course, we have a few more members but they do not have voting rights, nor can they take part in the management of AFAA. The first obvious task is to see how to expand this footprint.

The second aspect is to see how to serve our “regular members” better. Each of our member is an association who may have other associations as their constituents, or could be a body of big corporates as their members. The task is to engage with our members’ members, so as to get alignment on what we need to do, to improve the standards of our industry or address issues that confront the industry.

The third task is to build on the properties AFAA have and ensure that more people participate in them. The last few years have been hard for everyone, and as nations open their doors for visitors, we should have more in-location events and initiatives like DigiAsia, FastTrack, Olive Crown Awards, AdAsia, etc. Many things can be achieved when there is personal warmth and that is possible only when acquaintances turn into friendships.

Last but not the least, another important task will be to review AFAA’s constitution to make it future-ready.  With passage of time, some course correction has become necessary in the way the association is structured and administered. For instance, we could have more associations from our member countries as voting members rather than have only one per territory.  This will increase participation from that country as well.  Further, our Corporate Members cannot aspire to take on leadership positions when their CEOs run corporations sometimes in multiple countries.  This anomaly needs correction.

Special Awards being instituted

AFAA does not honour marketing and advertising professionals who make a big impact on our Society.  They are true influencers and changemakers on a variety of initiatives that transform the world we live in. AFAA therefore would introduce a new set of Awards called “Changemakers for Good” and the real winners will be honoured on the AdAsia stage.  This apart as a true believer in the power of advertising, AFAA will present creative Awards for advertising that has made a difference in the market place – Real Awards for Real Advertising.  These awards will stand apart since they are not awarded to advertising specially created for Award shows, but to advertising that were backed by real budgets.

I look forward to the cooperation of all industry practitioners to come together for the growth and well-being of all of us!

Srinivasan K Swamy

February 2023