BARMA Steering Committee
Steering Committee members
Peje Emilsson (Chair)
Peje Emilsson is the founder and, through the family holding company Magnora, majority owner of Kreab Gavin Anderson, Kunskapsskolan and Demoskop. The credo of Magnora is to be a responsible owner of knowledge-based companies that create value for all stakeholders.
Kreab Gavin Anderson is one of the world’s leading advisory firms in Financial, Corporate and Public Affairs communications and issues management. Kreab Gavin Anderson has a staff of 350 in 25 offices, providing strategic advice to more than 750 clients globally.
Kunskapsskolan Education Sweden AB is a leading independent school operator in Sweden. Kunskapsskolan set up its first schools in 2000 and now operates 33 schools with 10 000 students. Kunskapsskolan’s vision is to provide the best schools where every student, through personalised learning and clear goals, will stretch their boundaries and learn more than they thought possible.
Demoskop is a well-known Swedish market and opinion research consultancy.
Peje Emilsson has more than 40 years of experience in strategic communications counseling. His experience includes developing communications programs for leading international corporations and implementing such programs vis-à-vis all relevant stakeholders. He has vast experience in handling communications issues in mergers & acquisitions and crises situations.
In 2009, Peje received the Sabre Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Public Relations and the Social Capitalist Award in the category “personal achievement” for founding Kunskapsskolan and initiating Silver Life, a private/public partnership in providing elderly care. He was also awarded H.M. the King of Sweden’s Medal of the Twelfth Dimension in Blue Ribbon for valuable achievements as a business leader and entrepreneur in 2007.
Peje is a former politician and was Member of the Stockholm County Council from 1970 to 1973. He was Chef de Cabinet of the Paris-based International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the world business organization, from 1973 to 1981. He is currently chairman of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.
Peje holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Stockholm (political science, practical philosophy. statistics, sociology, national economies, computer programming), and is a graduate of the Owner/President Management Program (OPM) from Harvard Business School.
Stephen Kehoe
Stephen Kehoe is currently Head of Global Corporate Relations, VISA in Singapore. Prior to this Mr Kehoe served as Vice President of International Public & Government Affairs at PepsiCo, based in Purchase, New York. His primary area of responsibility was for the company’s external and government relations across the UK, Europe, Russia and China. Mr. Kehoe joined PepsiCo in 2003 from a background of public affairs and public relations consulting in Brussels, Washington DC and London.
Leonie Ki
Leonie Ki is Managing Director of New World China Enterprises Projects Ltd., a subsidiary of New World Development Co., Ltd. Concurrently, she heads New World Liberty China Ventures Ltd., a private equity fund jointly formed by New World, Liberty Mutual Company and Asian Development Bank whose mandate is to invest, reform and restructure SOEs and POEs in China and to instill concepts of corporate governance, anti-corruption, branding and good business practice. Previously Leonie was the Founder, Partner and Chairman/CEO of Grey Hong Kong Advertising Ltd (1978 – 1995) and Grey China Advertising Ltd. (1992 – 1995). A graduate of the University of Hong Kong, Leonie has more than 30 years’ experience in integrated communication and marketing services. She was Chairman of 4A’s China Committee from 1992 to 1995 and had acted as an unofficial advisor to the PRC Government when they formulated the first National Advertising Law which was launched in Jan 1995. She taught Advertising and PR at the Communication Department of the Baptist College as a part-time lecturer from 1974 – 1980. A popular writer and columnist, Leonie has published nine books so far, including the first ever advertising book in Chinese in the world in 1984. She has also lectured extensively in Greater China on marketing and advertising.
Eve Magnant
Eve Magnant is VP, Corporate Social Responsibility Director for Publicis Groupe (3rd worldwide largest communication and advertising company). Previously, 2002-2007, she was VP, Corporate Communications Director for Publicis Groupe. She is a Vice-Chair of the Marketing and Advertising Commission the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce). She’s also involved in many working groups at the international level, discussing about CSR issues as ISO 26 000 (OECD, ICC, WEF, ISO…). Her interest for CSR issues started in 1992 (Rio).
She joined Publicis in 1991 in charge of communication strategies in various sectors, expert in Corporate Communications. She was named Partner of Publicis Consultants in 1996, in charge of Corporate communications and Crisis-issues management for many clients, including large international corporations, in many businesses (Food, Health, Agribusiness, Energy, IT/Telecoms, Facilities and Services…).
Before, she dedicated the first 3 years of her career leading public & press relations operations in the fields of Energy & Agrobusiness.
Graduate in Executive MBA 2007 (HEC, Paris), Eve Magnant has two Masters Degrees – Political Science & Information Communication (Paris II), + an Industrial Strategy Degree. 2010-2011, she’ an Auditor at the Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Protection Sociale (IHEPS)
Carlos Portilla Robertson
Carlos Portilla Robertson is a partner in and co-founder of Portilla, Ruy-Diaz y Aguilar, S.C and serves as the Chair of ICC Mexico’s Marketing and Advertising Commission. He obtained a degree in law from the Universidad La Salle, and was admitted to the bar on July 16, 1986. In addition to a Specialty Diploma from Universidad Panamericana on Constitutional Proceedings (Amparo) and Corporate and Business Law, he also holds a diploma from the Escuela Libre de Derecho on Law System on International Business in Mexico and on International Arbitration. He specializes in litigation in the fields of civil and commercial law, bankruptcy and reorganization, banking and insurance, consumer protection, mediation and arbitration, real estate, public and private construction and corporative law. He also has extensive experience in negotiating, drafting and the execution of international agreements. He has been professor in three important Law Universities and speaker in several conferences regarding Arbitration, E-commerce, Product Liability and Advertising. Mr. Portilla is also member of several Professional Associations.
Elizabeth Thomas-Raynaud
Elizabeth Thomas-Raynaud is Policy Manager for ICC’s Marketing and Advertising Commission and is the ICC International Secretariat’s manager for the BARMA initiative. She has been with ICC since 2005 in evolving roles from communications to policy development and advocacy – managing the work of the E-Business, IT and Telecoms Commission task forces and her current responsibilities. She joined ICC with a background in public affairs and communications having working in both the health care and financial services sectors in Canada. She holds a Master of Arts degree in International Journalism from London’s City University in the UK and studied International Economics and Political Science to earn her Bachelor’s degree from the University of British Columbia in Canada.
George Velez
George Velez served as GM’s Global Process Leader for marketing and competition law and Chair of the US Center for InternationalBusiness (USCIB - ICC National Committee) Marketing and Advertising Commission. He holds both a JD and an MBA from Harvard University. With GM since 1984, he coordinated legal review of GM vehicle advertising, marketing campaigns and promotional contracts, dealer network and franchise matters, and customer complaint and warranty lawsuits. He served for three years with Adam Opel AG and GM Europe, working on international commercial, marketing and distribution issues.