AMASA Appoints Memoria Masilela as Vice Chairperson

On the back of announcing its 2018/19 committee, the Advertising Media Association of South Africa (AMASA) has confirmed the appointment of committee member Memoria Masilela as Vice Chairperson, serving alongside Wayne Bishop as Chairperson.

Wayne says: “We are absolutely thrilled to announce Memoria as this year’s new Vice Chair. She has brought energy and passion to both the organisation and the industry and it is just reward for someone so dedicated to the progression of others. I think I can speak for the entire committee in congratulating Memoria and wishing her every success in her new role. Her commitment to education and transformation in this industry is also truly commendable.”

Initially joining the committee in 2016, Memoria heads the Gordon Patterson AMASA Learnership Programme (GPALP).

“Our joined purpose is to bring the next generation of excellence into existence,” she says.  “We cannot afford to keep complaining about a lack of new talent, when we have an immediate opportunity to address that issue.  AMASA is the solution to drive skills and development of the media and advertising industry.

My plan as the Vice Chair is to ensure that AMASA becomes the brand that does not wait for the future to happen, but one that boldly brings the future to the present, to ensure the success of our industry,” she says. “I want to continue to inspire the industry to prioritise on mentoring and grooming young minds.  I believe that those of us with experience have a responsibility to impart knowledge to young minds, because we can no longer complain about a lack of talent when we have not made an effort to groom new talent.”

Memoria goes on to say that “The prevalent advertising media industry practice is to recycle existing skills, instead of grooming fresh talent.  The main reason why AMASA exists in the first place is to address the very issue of talent in the industry.  Through our Education and GP-ALP portfolio we are able to provide the industry with new people, who are trained and groomed by industry experts.”

AMASA is in an exciting next growth phase and over the next 12 months plans to launch the first Online Media Management course to cater to those who are already in the industry and want to sharpen their skills. The organisation is also planning on partnering with other industry bodies aligned with its vision to address the education issues that face our country.

Another focus and passion point for Memoria is increasing transformation in the advertising industry. “I believe that we need to unlearn what we think we know about transformation.  Every generation has its own cause and what is remarkable about our generation is that we are finally addressing the core of our current cause, diversity.  As we engage more and more on the issue of inclusion, we begin to allay existing “fears of the unknown”.

Our dream is to exist in a conscious industry that is not only concerned with advertising as a form of generating revenue, but one that uses it as a vehicle to change mind-sets and unlock consumer’s minds about how unlimited we really are. We have the capacity to lead better lives and fight against poverty and all the social ills that exists in our society.

We are not in the most influential industry by a coincidence, we are chosen for a task to challenge the status quo of our country and it all starts with making selfless and fearless choices – and I believe that as AMASA we are up to that task.”