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posted on Jul. 02, 2026 at 6:37 pmJul 6, 2026

C-Suite Round Table at Cannes: The beauty of thought leadership – when done right

posted on Jul. 02, 2026 at 6:37 pmJul 6, 2026

Several brand-side marketers and senior agency leaders explain why thought leadership must hold licence, be grounded in human tension, and be held accountable to moving the needle even in the age of AI.

The round table discussion hosted by Campaign Middle East in partnership with Bloomberg Media was held at Campaign House in Cannes, France, during the week of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2026.

Thought leadership seems to have become one of the industry’s biggest go-to reputation plays. But does it live up to its purpose of provoking thought and action? Is it becoming synonymous with generic content marketing in a world where every senior leader has a point of view, every brand wants authority and every platform has become a publishing channel?

In an era when leaders are trying to estab

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the authorAnup Oommen

Anup Oommen is the Editor of Campaign Middle East at Motivate Media Group, a well-reputed moderator, and a multiple award-winning journalist with more than 15 years of experience at some of the most reputable and credible global news organisations, including Reuters, CNN, and Motivate Media Group. As the Editor of Campaign Middle East, Anup heads market-leading coverage of advertising, media, marketing, PR, events and experiential, digital, the wider creative industries, and more, through the brand’s digital, print, events, directories, podcast and video verticals. As such he’s a key stakeholder in the Campaign Global brand, the world’s leading authority for the advertising, marketing and media industries, which was first published in the UK in 1968.