Happy New Year!  212 is pleased to introduce our inaugural event of the year, a tour-de-force discussion with two of the most well-known and respected executives of the advertising industry – Wenda Harris Millard, President, Media and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc., and David Verklin, CEO of Canoe Ventures.  Ms. Millard and Mr. Verklin, two old friends, will share their perspectives on the continuously evolving advertising industry, the role of digital marketing, and what we as members of this ecosystem can do to propel us successfully forward.  Moderating the discussion will be Brian Morrissey, Digital Editor for Adweek.

NEWSMAKER PROFILES:

WENDA HARRIS MILLARD
President, Media and Co-Chief Executive Officer
Wenda Harris Millard was named Co-CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (MSLO) in June 2008. She is also the company’s President, Media, a position she assumed when she joined MSLO in July 2007 after three years of service as a member of the Board of Directors. Ms. Millard oversees MSLO’s media businesses, which include Publishing, Internet and Broadcasting.

During her tenure, Ms. Millard has been rapidly expanding the company’s presence in the digital space, including spearheading the company’s investments in WeddingWire and Pingg Corp. She has been the driving force behind creating cross-platform programs for marketers to leverage the MSLO brands’ passionate consumer connection. The company’s multimedia brand portfolio encompasses the award-winning Martha Stewart brand, including its Weddings franchise; Everyday Food, a magazine and a 2007 bestselling book, Everyday Food: Great Food Fast, as well as two companion PBS television shows; Body + Soul, a growing whole living brand, and Chef Emeril Lagasse, one of the biggest brands in food-related content. MSLO acquired Emeril’s media and merchandising business in April 2008.

A seasoned executive with over thirty years of multimedia and advertising experience, Millard was formerly Chief Sales Officer at Yahoo! Prior to that, she served as Chief Internet Officer at Ziff Davis Media and President of Ziff Davis Internet. Previously, she was Executive Vice President of DoubleClick, where she was responsible for establishing the DoubleClick brand and oversaw the operations of DoubleClick Media. Millard has also served as President and Group Publisher of SRDS, Senior Vice President and Publisher of Family Circle and Executive Vice President/Group Publisher of Adweek, Mediaweek and Brandweek magazines.

Active on behalf of the advertising industry throughout her career, Millard is Chairman of the Interactive Advertising Bureau and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Ad Council.  She has received numerous industry awards including the 2007 John A. Reisenbach Award for Distinguished Citizenship, the 2006 “Advertising Person of the Year” Silver Medal Award from the AAF, the 2005 Matrix Award for “Women Who Change the World” and a “Digital Media Master” from Advertising Age, acknowledging her as one of the 20 most influential executives in interactive media. Millard was the subject of a Spring 2000 profile by Tom Brokaw as part of NBC’s “Women to Watch” series.

She sits on the Boards of the James Beard Foundation, Do Something and Pop!Tech.  She served two terms as a Trustee of Trinity College in Hartford.

Millard holds an MBA from Harvard University and a BA from Trinity College.

DAVID VERKLIN
CEO, Canoe Ventures
David Verklin serves as CEO of Canoe Ventures, LLC, a joint venture founded in 2008 by the country’s leading cable operators.  Based in New York City, the company is focused on enabling advanced advertising technologies and making them easier to buy, use and measure.  Under David’s leadership, Canoe Ventures is developing addressable, interactive and data solutions that will make TV more valuable for marketers and viewers.  Since being named CEO of Canoe Ventures, David has been named to Mediaweek’s “Watch List 2009” and recognized as one of the industry’s most influential people among the “CableFAX 100.” 
Prior to joining Canoe Ventures, David was CEO of Aegis Media Americas, where he quickly grew capitalized media billings to approach $7 billion annually.  He revolutionized the industry by unbundling the media services agency and creating a 360-degree service offering for clients, and he reinvented the agency model by integrating on and offline marketing services with the merger of Carat Fusion and Carat USA.  This resulted in one operating company that became the largest fully integrated on/offline agency in the world.  Also during his tenure at Aegis, David wrote a book, “Watch This, Listen Up, Click Here,” a user’s manual for understanding the new media landscape, published by John Wiley and Sons. 

David is a recognized leader.  In 2007, he was appointed Media Lions Jury President at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival.  He has been inducted into the American Advertising Federation (AAF) Hall of Achievement and recognized as a Mediaweek “All Star” and Ad Age “Media Maven.”  Writing about David, Ad Age asked the question, “…is there a single other human being who has been as much of a leader, visionary, a force for change and a voice of optimism in the media and marketing industries over the last 15 years?”
 
David serves on the Boards of the American Advertising Federation, the New York Multiple Sclerosis Society, the Power of Peace and the Ad Council.  He also serves as a Director-at-Large for the American Association of Advertising Agencies.  In 2008, The UJA Federation’s Global Leadership honored him with an Award for all of his professional and philanthropic achievements.  

David began his career at Young & Rubicam, New York and then helped create Hal Riney & Partners in San Francisco, first serving as its Media Director and later as its Managing Director.  Under his leadership, Hal Riney grew into one of the largest privately held advertising agencies in the U.S.  David is a graduate of the University of Virginia.  

MODERATOR: Brian Morrissey
Digital Editor, Adweek
Brian Morrissey is the digital editor of Adweek, where he leads its coverage of digital media and marketing. His coverage focuses on innovative, effective ways advertisers are reaching consumers through digital channels. He has covered the Internet advertising industry since 2000. Prior to joining Adweek as a senior reporter in 2005, Brian was a senior editor at DM News for two years and a reporter at ClickZ for two years. He has also covered Internet marketing and advertising at Silicon Alley Reporter. He regularly speaks at industry conferences, including Ad:Tech, iMedia Summit, the MIXX Conference, AdForum, JWT’s Digitivity Day, Yahoo! Searchlight Awards and others. He has commented on industry developments for the BBC, CNBC, NBC and local TV outlets. Prior to journalism, Brian worked as a speechwriter in Washington, D.C. A graduate of Providence College, he has master’s degrees from Columbia University and the University of Leuven (Belgium).

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Inauguration Day Notice: Please note that Barack Obama’s swearing in as the 44th President of the United States takes place at 12pm.