Global marketing coalition launches 2023 DEI census

Led by the WFA, ten marketing and advertising organisations including Campaign will help measure the state of diversity, equity and inclusion in 33 markets worldwide. Take the survey now

Mar 16, 2023 01:31:00 PM | Article | Staff Reporters Share -

A coalition of 10 global marketing and advertising organisations is supporting a WFA-led initiative to measure the state of diversity, equity and inclusion in the industry through a second Global DEI Census in marketing, which has gone live today here.

Marketing and advertising professionals in 33 different markets worldwide are being asked to share their views on DEI in a 15-minute anonymous survey. The aim is to monitor progress on the results of the inaugural 2021 census, which was held across 27 markets. While documenting the state of DEI, the census will also detail people’s sense of belonging, the absence of discrimination and presence of negative behaviours.

The first census found that one in seven professionals said that they would likely leave their company and the industry because of a lack of diversity and inclusion. It also identified the most common forms of discrimination on the basis of gender, age, caregiving responsibilities, race, ethnicity and disability.

“What gets measured gets managed," said WFA CEO Stephan Loerke. "Our industry is facing a well-documented talent crisis. Ensuring our industry is more diverse, equitable and inclusive will go a long way to addressing this challenge. There are patently clear moral and business cases for why our industry must better reflect the diversity of consumer we all aim to reach. This is why this exercise is so critical.”

The ten organisations supporting the initiative –WFA, VoxComm, Campaign, Kantar, Advertising Week, Cannes Lions, Effie Worldwide, IAA, Global Web Index (GWI) and Adweek – have also been backed by a growing list of leading marketing and advertising companies, including Bayer, BP, Danone, Diageo, Dentsu, The Estée Lauder Companies, Haleon, Havas, Kraft Heinz, L’Oréal, McCann, Philips, Reckitt, Sanofi and WPP.

The Census will be open for responses between 15 March and 15 April, with the results due in June 2023. The questionnaire is the same as the All In Census led in the UK by the Advertising Association, IPA and ISBA, but with slight adaptations for legal and cultural reasons and will be driven by similar local industry coalitions. Marketing professionals in other markets will be able to complete a shorter version of the survey in English.

The 33 participating markets include: Argentina Brazil, Canada, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, SAR, Italy, Ireland, India, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE), and USA.

“The challenges that we face when it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion vary by country and by region," notes Susan Akkad, senior vice president of local and cultural innovation at The Estée Lauder Companies and WFA global diversity ambassador. "The more people that complete the global census, the greater the granularity of our understanding and the more focused our solutions can be. There are lots of actions that we can take, this global survey will help identify the most effective ones.”

So far, more than 100 organisations have pledged to promote and help support the initiative, making it the biggest collaboration to date by the industry.

Added Marc Pritchard, ANA chairman and P&G chief brand officer: "Achieving growth through diverse, multicultural, relevant and resonant marketing requires a representative, equal and inclusive creative and media supply chain – across marketers, agencies, production crews and media companies. The 2023 Census will provide an important read on where we stand so we can continue to make systemwide changes necessary to create a diverse, equal, and inclusive industry that drives the growth we all want.”

(This article first appeared on Campaign Asia)