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From historical wins, to personal joys — adobo SheCreative Network’s 2025 kickoff celebrated winning where it matters

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MANILA, PHILIPPINES — To kickstart the year 2025 with as much inspiration as possible to set the stage for another stellar year, adobo Magazine and the adobo SheCreative Network hosted a session on “Why Women Win.” The insights-packed event served as a masterclass on creative ingenuity, excelling beyond expectation, and winning where it matters; that is, in leading caring yet effective teams, making real-world impact, and finding meaning in the Work.

Hosted by Justine Peña, the event kicked off on January 30, 2025, coincidentally a day after Lunar New Year celebrations, underlining the theme and topic’s relevance on all fronts. The crowd, made up of students and industry professionals alike, was welcomed by Rem Tuando, adobo Magazine Brand Partnerships Director. “This was actually supposed to be our December, year-end celebration,” she started. 

“But last year, when we were brainstorming about the next session for adobo SheCreative, and realized that we wanted to put the spotlight on women’s wins and achievements, it made perfect sense to have it open our year instead — to set the tone for, hopefully, another year of impact and ingenuity for the whole industry, starting with learnings from women who are no strangers to winning, especially winning where it matters,” Rem stressed. 

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She then welcomed the speakers one by one, and wished everyone an insightful and fruitful adobo SheCreative session: “Personally, I want to thank these four women who have gracefully accepted our invitation to share their stories today — I am just as excited as all our attendees to learn from you, and share this space with you.” 

Great ideas take time

The first speaker of the day was Abi Aquino, Chief Creative Officer at MullenLowe TREYNA, who talked about the historical milestones achieved by the “Right to Care” card campaign, in partnership with the Quezon City local government. The card signifies a monumental moment for same-sex couples in the Philippines, allowing partners the right to decide for each other in medical emergencies in Quezon City clinics and hospitals. 

In the advertising front, the campaign emerged as the country’s first-ever Grand Prix Glass Spikes winner, and first Sustainable Lotus for its undeniable impact. This is on top of the many accolades it has bagged in both local and international award shows. But beyond these trophies, its social impact has been incredible; especially in a country that is deeply traditional, for better or for worse. On the adobo SheCreative stage, Abi shared that the team is currently in talks with other cities and healthcare companies who want to adapt and implement “Right to Care” with their services. The Right to Care Bill has also been filed to Congress by Akbayan Partylist representative Percy Cendana to make it a nationwide policy, and push for more inclusive healthcare to same-sex couples in the Philippines. 

“Arriving to progress and success is not linear,” Abi emphasized, sharing that just arriving at the name for “Right to Care” took them months of grueling rejections for hundreds of name studies until they arrived at the right name. “The best ideas kinda do need to take time. So you have to be comfortable with that.”

“That’s why it’s so hard, because you all want it to work. So you all want it to be right,” she added, referring to the amount of people, time, and hard work involved in launching something this significant to the world. “It takes time; It takes work; It takes a village; and it will take time.” 

“At MullenLowe, we’re very proud of the fact that we work together towards this [solution.] We work together, we win together, and we get to where we want to go to together,” Abi underlined. Lastly, she noted three things that’s important for creatives to keep throughout their careers: “Gut (audacity), grit, and a sense of humor.”

We listen, and we do something about it

Kat Bautista, Founder and Chief Operating Officer of NYMA, then took the stage to talk about NYMA’s journey in redefining the talent management industry in Philippine entertainment. Having won the Bronze Stevie Award for Most Innovative Leader of the Year at the 2024 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, her presentation focused on her journey before NYMA, and how the agency continues to stand strong despite challenges since its launch. 

Taking on a ChatGPT-style presentation, Kat answered basic prompts about herself, her goals, and lessons throughout her career. A fun fact she shared was that she’s actually employee 106 of what was previously called “The Facebook,” having previously come from Silicon Valley, and had a stint at Google too. She came back to the Philippines to work at Globe Telecom for 13 years, then was tasked to help grow KROMA, and eventually, launch NYMA Talent Management in 2022.

She identified six tips that helped her generate ideas as a creative leader:

  • Romanticize Your Life: I draw from everyday experiences and observations, finding creativity in the little things like conversations with friends, travels, and even moments of quiet reflection. 
  • We Listen and We Don’t Judge: Engage in open discussions with my team or collaborators, bouncing off each other’s ideas to spark new directions and concepts.
  • Embracing Risk and Experimentation: Step outside of comfort zones, sometimes trying unorthodox methods or embracing creative risk to see where it leads. 
  • Read the Comments: I read the comments, the love, hate, all of it — and I build from there. Sometimes your haters can be your best teachers.
  • Being A Marites: I constantly seek new knowledge, from books, podcasts, or new experiences — feeding my curiosity and inspiring fresh perspectives.
  • Allowing Time to Brain Rot: As creatives, spend time to just be blank and absorb content.

In line with her commitment to listen and take action, after being told in 2024 by Globe Telecom that NYMA had to be shut down, Kat and her husband — and now business partner as well — Christian Bautista bought the agency on July 04, 2024 to continue operating as an independent agency. She knew the agency had to go on and pursue its mission of creating a safe space in the entertainment industry for everyone, especially for women. “Talent agencies can be a very sexist environment, and it’s unsafe!” she emphasized. 

Encouraging the crowd to also listen and “do something about it,” Kat enumerated a few tips to overcome challenges: surround yourself with feminists, walk into every room making eye contact, stay solution-oriented and not problem-focused, call out the disrespect, have faith, and be a goldfish (have a three-second memory when it comes to hate). 

Wrapping up, she stressed: “My vision for the future of women in the creative industry is simple: empowerment through visibility and collaboration. We need more women not just participating, but leading the charge — breaking barriers, setting trends, and building spaces where creativity thrives without limitations. The future is about elevating diverse voices, supporting each other, and creating a legacy of innovation where women aren’t just in the room, but they’re at the table, steering the ship.” 

Winning means willing

A key part of creative work in advertising involves accounts management, something that is often wrongfully overlooked when it comes to celebrating the work in general, let alone winning ones. But at “Why Women Win,” Julia Arsenal Dela Rosa, Account Management Director at Publicis Manila, raised the flag for accounts with a powerful presentation. She was the NextGen Accounts Person at the 4As Philippines Agency of the Year Awards in 2023. 

“[Winning for accounts] is not about the podium finish at all, it’s about the everyday mess in what you do for the team,” she started. “An idea is deemed a good one if it goes out in the world.” So, Julia emphasized, what accounts people need to ask themselves are: How willing are they to bring an idea to life and into action? What can I do to give this idea a chance? Anong ambag ko sa idea? 

She stressed that accounts work is really about the everyday mindset and action of championing ideas from the creative team. After all, account managers are the first to hear about their ideas before a pitch, and usually the one who will actually sell and defend it to the clients afterwards. So it’s incredibly important that they, themselves, believe in the idea enough to really support it. 

What are you willing to do for the idea? 

  1. Think: How can I help? 
    1. Be: willing to see what’s possible.
    2. It’s not about the face value of what they need, how can you really help? 
  2. Think: Why should I believe in it? 
    1. Be: willing to drive bigger purpose.
    2. Any idea that creatives conceptualize, it’s the accounts manager who is first exposed to it.
    3. If you really believe in the idea, you would walk into the pitch and present it as if you wrote the idea.
  3. Think: Who are we connecting to? 
    1. Be: willing to make an impact to influence.
    2. How will this ad affect people?

“If it’s an everyday choice, it transforms you as a person. My [being willing] is something that allows me to become a true partner; not just to clients, but to creatives, my strat team, my fellow accounts. It’s really about being passionate everyday,” Julia opened up. “If you’re willing to put in the care and value, it can bring genuine fulfillment. And that’s the real win!” 

Real success for women empowerment

The last speaker of the day was Nikki Golez, Creative Director at Jayme Headquarters, who was the 4As Philippines’ NextGen Creative Awardee at the 2024 Agency of the Year Awards. Nikki’s presentation was all about the creative women who raised her and mentored her throughout the years — from her creative educator mom and creative crafter grandmother, to industry giants who have personally taught her in the ad industry — and why it’s still important to continue supporting women even though it seems that the fight for equality has already been won. 

She began her session with an poignant thought starter: “There are successful creative women. So is there [still] really a problem?” 

The answer, of course, is yes. Nikki pointed out that despite many women having illustrious careers in the creative field, there are still not enough women able to put passions into action, and a woman’s success is still often attributed by “despite” and “because” and never simply accepted for what it is. 

Thus, in pursuit of change, she urges everyone to care more purposefully:

  • Care to make a difference for people: for the underserved, for co-workers, for creativity
  • Care to make a difference: so we all have access to and are able to take opportunities
  • Care to create: environments where women believe they can
  • Care to support women: to make their passions happen
  • Care in a systematic way: so it isn’t a surprise that women are successful 

All of these action points uplift not just specific women in our lives, but everyone. Because as Nikki pointed out, “Women win when all women can win!” 

No small wins

After the presentations were shared, host Justine Peña moderated a Q&A panel with all the speakers, opening up a lively discussion with the audience who took the opportunity to ask everything from personal book recommendations, to very specific advice on their work situations. 

Wrapping up the session, after an afternoon of discussing all the big industry milestones they won, Justine asked each speaker to share a so-called “small win,” or something that may not be industry signposts of success but make them feel fulfilled — a significant way to illustrate that success and winning aren’t exclusive to awards and recognitions. 

Nikki started the discussion by sharing a personal moment, recalling the moment she announced her resignation from her previous agency, and her juniors and team members — many of whom she personally taught and trained — asked her what they can do for her. “That’s when I realized that ‘Oh, they’re okay,’” she mused. 

Kat then shared a short but powerful sentiment: “I think it’s a win that I’m able to have dinner. And that I’m able to have dinner with my husband.” She stressed that the industry and entertainment business can be incredibly demanding that sometimes we forget to eat properly, or spend time with loved ones. But it’s a great personal win to have everything in order at work to be able to enjoy these moments with loved ones. 

Julia opened up about raising her sons, and the fulfillment she feels raising kids who are kind, smart, and recognize and respect her work. She recalled the times that they’re buying groceries and they would request a brand that she’s been working on because they saw the logo on her laptop and documents. 

Finally, Abi divulged that listening to everyone’s responses made her really think deep about her answer. But the first thing that came to mind was having the time, freedom, and space to pet dogs to her heart’s content. She believes that it’s these seemingly small moments of joy that really make up a meaningful and happy life. 

The adobo SheCreative: Why Women Win session was made possible thanks to:

  • Co-Presenter: Unilever
  • Venue partner: The Astbury
  • Food & Beverage partners: Potato Corner, Greenwich,  Jade’s Temple, Pick Up Coffee
  • SWAG: Strip It PH,  Flowerstore PH, OldTown White Coffee (San Miguel Foods) and San Mig Sugar Free Coffee (San Miguel Foods)
  • Media Partner: Navi Manila

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