THE AFRICAN
DIGITAL SUMMIT

Iris Diaz, an award-winning marketing visionary, is the Director of Marketing and Brand for FIFA World Cup 2026, overseeing efforts in USA, Mexico, and Canada. She was previously the first Latina Chief Marketing Officer for the Dallas Maverick and the NBA.Diaz is dedicated to reshaping a diverse sports marketing lense, championing inclusivity, and creating pathways for more women of color in sports. She recently received the highest prestigious OHTLI award from the Mexican Government for her contributions to opening paths for others.

Andy Stalman, one of the world's leading brand experts, CEO of TOTEM Branding, acclaimed speaker and author of three bestsellers.Andy Stalman is a branding authority, a futurist, a world reference in his field. With more than 30 years of experience, he has developed projects on five continents. His work and influence in the world of branding has led Andy to be recognized as one of the world's leading branding experts, and globally referred to as “Mr. Branding”. He is currently co-founder and CEO of TOTEM Branding, recognized as one of the most reputable branding companies in the world.As a famed speaker, he has shared the stage with leaders such as Barack Obama. He is a professor at prestigious business schools.Author of 3 best sellers: “BrandOffOn. The Branding of the Future”, considered one of the most influential books of the 21st century. “HumanOffOn: Is the Internet changing us as human beings?”. AND “TOTEM. Transforming customers into believers”.It has the purpose of creating and transforming brands that bring people together. And the mission to help unlock the power of brands to help leaders, businesses and communities to grow.One of the “100 best speakers in Spain” according to the consulting firm Thinking Heads. Member of the LinkedIn Top Voices program.

Aerospace engineer and entrepreneur, ​O​scar ​Pierre began his professional career as an aerodynamics engineer at Airbus, based in Toulouse. After 6 months he decided to look for new challenges and dedicate to creating a new business,and in early 2015, he created Glovo. Previously, while studying, Pierre had already founded Zikkomo.com, a charitable platform in Malawi, and LoveItLocal.es in 2014, a website dedicated to promoting local artisanal businesses. In 2017, two years after launching Glovo, Oscar was named among the most influential young Europeans by Forbes magazine.

Berna Bodur Frizzi is a thought leader and business developer with over 19 years of experience in the tech and telco industries, helping businesses grow, transform, and innovate. Her previous roles include positions at leading telecom operators in Turkey, such as Turkcell and Turkish Telecom Group, as well as du Telecom in the UAE. For over five years, she has been leading growth partnerships at Meta for the Africa, Middle East, and Turkey regions. Berna is also a leader and advocate for connecting women in the tech industry.

Tyrona Heath is a leading B2B marketer, speaker, author, athlete and community builder who explores these topics at the intersection of behavioral science, diversity, equity, inclusion and transformation. Ty is Director, Market Engagement, The B2B Institute at LinkedIn, a think tank funded by LinkedIn studying the future of B2B marketing and decision making. She is also Co-Founder of TransformHer, the premier conference for professional women of color and allies in technology.With research, Ty engages and educates the industry in partnership with the leading marketing effectiveness thinkers and organizations such as Cannes Lions, ANA, and IPA to help better define the category, and drive growth.Ty is passionate about connecting people with information needed to make intelligent decisions, sharing research to help marketers be more productive and successful with a bit of humor. An award winning marketer, speaker and two time Olympic Trials qualifier in the 800 meters, Ty is a top B2B marketing influencer teaching B2B marketing as well as leadership and diversity, equity and inclusion.Marketers benefit from Ty’s marketing experience at Google Inc, consulting within IBM as a social business manager and leading her own B2B consulting practice where she authored “Marketers of Tomorrow: A Step-by-Step Toolkit for Inbound Marketing”. Beyond marketing, Ty served as the President of LinkedIn’s Black Inclusion Group (BIG).Today, Ty serves on the Digital Marketing Institute’s Global Advisory Council, on the Board of Directors for the American Advertising Federation and as an Adobe Insider with top executives, experts, and pioneers in technology. Ty is a frequent industry and academic speaker on the marketing circuit, having appeared at INBOUND, Festival of Marketing, ADCOLOR, Marketing Society Changemakers, Ghana Tech Summit, Adobe Summit and the Digital Summit events to name a few. In her career, she has delivered marketing education to thousands.

A 2023 Advertising Age 40 under 40 Honoree, Rob Sender is the Senior Director of Brand and Marketing for the Dallas Cowboys. With over 15 years of experience built from a unique blend of time in agency, Fortune 500 corporate brand and front office environments, Rob has worked across CPG, telecommunications, insurance and sports & entertainment building communications programs for some of the world's largest and most beloved brands. A graduate of both Trinity University and Baylor University, Rob lives in Dallas, Texas with his wife, two young children and never short on energy springer spaniel.

Thebe Ikalafeng is a Hall of Fame global African branding authority and THE leading advocate for a brand-led African agenda. He has been recognized as one of the 100 Most Influential Africans by New African Magazine (UK), Reputation International (UK) and Most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD)(USA).A trailblazing marketer, since being awarded a Marquette University American Marketing Association for marketing excellence upon graduation in 1992 in the United States of America, he has made a sustained, distinguished and consequential contribution to branding and in reframing the African narrative for over 30 years.He is the founder of The Brand Leadership Group, a multi-disciplinary advisory group at the intersection of strategy, creativity and intellectual property law; the founder of the seminal independent non-profit Brand Africa movement for a brand-led African renaissance and ‘Brand Africa 100: Africa’s Best Brands’ initiative which is widely referenced as the definitive barometer of brands in Africa.He has received Lifetime Achievement awards by Financial Mail AdFocus and the Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa, and an EMY Africa Special Recognition Award in Ghana for driving a brand-led African revolution. He has been to every country in Africa and every continent in the world from Cape to Cairo, and the Arctic in Greenland to Antarctica; trekked the rare silverback gorillas in Rwanda and Uganda; summitted Mt. Kilimanjaro and Mt. Sinai, and jumped the 216m high Bloukrans Bridge bunjee in South Africa, among his many breath-taking adventures to 120 destinations globally.Born and raised in Kimberly, South Africa, he was educated in the USA, Italy and South Africa. He holds BSc Business Administration, MBA and LLM (Intellectual Property Law) degrees. In 2024 the University of Johannesburg and University of South Africa conferred him with honorary doctoral degrees, PhD (Honoris Causa), for his thought leadership and contributions in Africa. A consummate pan-African, “Thebe is Africa,” (TedxGhana) and ‘foremost branding authority in Africa,’ (African Business).