Maria Mandel
Partner, Director of Digital Innovation, OgilvyInteractive Digital Innovation

Maria is currently Partner, Director of Digital Innovation at Ogilvy Interactive. She consults across the Ogilvy group on emerging communication platforms such as broadband, wireless, gaming, digital out-of-home advertising and interactive TV.

Prior to joining Ogilvy, Maria was VP - Director of Interactive Services at Draft where she oversaw clients such as Unilever, Jose Cuervo International, AARP/UHG and Johnson & Johnson. She joined Draft after they acquired the interactive group from Lowe Worldwide. At Lowe, Maria was a VP-Account Director and led interactive advertising initiatives for Unilever, Lego, RCN, DirectHit.com, and RCA.

Her client-side experience includes brand management at Kraft where she worked on several brands under the Maxwell House portfolio. Previous to her experience at Kraft, she was also the Founder and President and of Market-Strat, a Philadelphia based advertising agency with clients that included AT&T, Dow Jones & Company, Kellogg's USA, and Citibank.

Maria co-chairs the Marketing Best Practices committee at the Mobile Marketing Association. She has received over twenty-five industry awards including three Echo awards and seven Caples. Maria is an adjunct professor of marketing at NYU's Stern Business School where she teaches a course in integrated marketing communications. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Business School and is currently pursuing a doctorate degree in Philosophy with a concentration in emerging communications from Murdoch University.