In-House Excellence Awards
Grand Jury

ERIC HARRIS

Vice President Brand and Creative
E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

BIO

Eric is a creative leader with 25+ years’ experience spanning design, development, and marketing across creative, media, and in-house agencies. He champions the power of thoughtful design and inclusive leadership as transformative forces for any organization and believes that building partnerships between PEOPLE is the only way to truly bring the utility of technology into focus. He currently leads marketing design within the E*TRADE Creative Solutions team, which among other things owns the E*TRADE brand guide. Prior to financial services, he led marketing automation and enterprise software development for a direct media agency overseeing data architecture, email, and experience design. He began his career in medical devices as Graphic Designer and eventually led the in-house agency to transform several companies from on-paper businesses to digital leaders, creating some of the first content marketing platforms and social media teams in the B2B healthcare space. Most importantly, he celebrates his 24-year marriage to his high school sweetheart and their 4 adorable children. “People matter; the rest is details.” 

Q&A with Eric Harris

Provide one word that defines "In-House Excellence" in 2026. 

Thoughtfulness. 

What is one trend in creative operations or in-housing you are watching most closely? 

The use of AI tools. 

In one sentence—what is the single most important element that moves an entry from "Good" to "Grand Prix"? 

A thoughtful execution that displays strong visual design (the structure beneath the polish) and quickly communicates the big idea in support of the strategy. 

What is the #1 mistake teams should avoid when telling their campaign’s "story" in a submission? 

Failing to tie results back to specific points of the strategy is a common mistake. Define measurable goals, strategically address them in your campaign deliverables, and show how results met those goals. (Don’t define “sales” as a goal if you can’t share how sales were impacted. If the stated goal is $1 in additional sales volume and the only results you share are “100 million impressions,” the campaign looks like a failure.) 

Why is it critical for in-house agencies to have their own dedicated stage for recognition? 

“If you don't promote yourself, no one else will.” To remain valuable and sought-after in the forward-looking eyes of internal clients, internal agencies have to periodically remind those stakeholders of past successes and present value. External agencies are proactively courting YOUR stakeholders regularly. A stage dedicated to in-house teams provides YOU that same opportunity. 

How do you balance creative ambition with commercial accountability when assessing great brand work? 

One thing services the other, and the market usually rewards those who execute on their creative ambition. But an awards contest doesn’t demand commercial ROI the way a business does, and brand work plays the long game anyway. When brand work resonates on an emotional level, creates personality and credibility, or just surprises and delights, I’m willing to give it credit while you wait on your balance sheet. 

How do you evaluate the "Strategic Partnership" between an in-house team and their external partners within a single award-winning campaign? 

In these awards, I want to see strategic partners being used as service providers by the in-house team rather than functioning as main contributors without whom there would be no “big idea” or special sauce.  

In an era of rapid automation, what "human-only" quality are you looking for most in this year's submissions? 

Originality and thoughtfulness. AI can give you quick access to a world of knowledge, but it’s giving it to everyone else, too. If you lean on it too much, a sea of sameness will give you away. Pre-packaged templates can help you execute faster, but they help others do the same. Show me what the in-house team brought to the table instead. 

Get to know the 2026 In-House Excellence Grand Jurors.