Bangladesh Brand Forum’s 12th communication summit held

Bangladesh Brand Forum hosted its flagship event, the 12th edition of Communication Summit at InterContinental Hotel on 9 September.Courtesy

Bangladesh Brand Forum hosted its flagship event, the 12th edition of Communication Summit on Saturday bringing together local and global industry professionals and thought leaders to exchange insights on communication trends, strategies, challenges, and solutions.

Themed under "Creativity in the Age of Disruption," the BBF organised the summit in collaboration with Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity and in association with The Daily Star at a city hotel.

The event aimed to address the multifaceted aspects linked with modern communication strategies and sought to provide a panoramic framework to adopt the disruptive approaches in creative communications through a diverse agenda comprising an expert set of speakers.

The summit hosted three keynote sessions taken by renowned global experts, four pertinent panel discussions, three insight sessions and a case study.

The keynote sessions were conducted by Partha Sinha, president of The Times of India group and The Advertising Club, India; Kainaz Karmakar, chief creative officer of  Ogilvy India; and Ali Shahbaz, chief creative officer of M&C Saatchi Group Singapore and director of World Toilet Organisation.

In the first keynote session of the event, Partha Sinha addressed the value of accolades like Commward.

“With the rapid advancement of AI, the gap between Western and Eastern methods and processes of creative communication has lessened. We are striving towards a global and unipolar practice of communication.”

Partha Sinha also emphasised the need for innovation in an ever changing world.

“Now is the time of innovation. The more flexible we make ourselves with innovation, the more we evolve collectively.”

The summit featured issues such as Customer-Centric Advertising: Aligning the Creatives to Deliver Personalised Experiences in New Media Age, Al in the Creative Industries: Opportunities and Pitfalls, Shaping the Future of Media Consumption: Trends, Technologies, and Audience Engagement, in the intensive insight sessions.

The panel discussions were decorated with discussion generative topics such as "The Client Brief: Do we take proper care of Creative Fetus, How to Overcome Creative Constipation and Crafting Genuine Messages in a World of Delusion," to bring forward different angles and aspects for the attendees to perceive.

Addressing the occasion, Shariful Islam, founder and managing director of BBF, said, "We are living in the golden age of creative disruption. Al was in its premature stage during the last communication summit. But within a year, as we have gathered here today, we have glimpsed the true potential of Al."

"From now on, the road to going ahead should be filled with more innovative approaches. At the same time, we must be more critical in telling our social issues through our creative communications."

The 12th Communication Summit was also attended among others by Galib Bin Mohammad, brand and marketing consultant; Salahuddin Shahed, chief executive officer, FCB Bitopi; Tanvir Hossain, executive creative director, Sun Communications Ltd; Drabir Alam, COO and director, X - Intergrated Marketing Agency; Risalat Siddique, chairman (The Man of Steel), Analyzen Bangladesh Ltd; Shamim Uz Zaman, head of brands and marketing communication, Robi Axiata Ltd and Urfi Ahmad, brand and communications director, Banglalink.

Kaniska Chakraborty  conducted the summit.