Jun 22, 2022 03:36:00 PM | Advertising

“No company or industry can ignore this,” WFA says
Oct 18, 2021 04:12:00 AM | Article | Gideon Spanier Share -
Women and ethnic minorities working in advertising have “poorer lived experiences” than men and ethnic majorities, age and family status are the most common forms of reported discrimination, and 17% of people say they plan to leave their current company because of a lack of inclusion.
Those are some of the key findings from the World Federation of Advertisers’ first global diversity, equity and inclusion census, which identified “major challenges” across the ad industry.
“No company or industry can ignore this,” Stephan Loerke, chief executive of the World Federation of Advertisers, said, adding the “onus” is on the whole sector to make improvements by the time of the next survey in 2023.
More than 10,300 people and 27 countries took part in the online census, which was run by Kantar and supported by Campaign, the European Association of Communications Agencies, VoxComm, Advertising Week, Cannes Lions, Effies, GWI and IAA.
Detailed results from the census showed some “huge” variations by country—with some markets “significantly below the global average” when it comes to tackling discrimination.
Despite these “serious concerns”, the organisers of the census pointed out that advertising still ranked better than other industries globally in Kantar’s inclusion index, a ranking that measures sense of belonging, absence of discrimination and presence of negative behaviours in companies.
The 27 countries that participated in the census were: Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Greece, the Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE), Hong Kong, China, India, Ireland, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Portugal, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the United States.
The UK was not involved because it ran its own “All In” Census, administered by Kantar, earlier this year. That survey was used as a model for much of the WFA’s work.
Key findings:
Industry reaction
Advertising leaders said the results of the census showed the industry must make progress by the time of the next survey, which is already planned for spring 2023.
Stephan Loerke, chief executive of the WFA, said. “This has been a Herculean but long overdue effort. For the very first time we hear and see the marketing industry in all its different facets and nuance. There is a confidence and strong sense of belonging that rings true of the marketing industry. But there are significant minorities in all countries saying they witness negative behaviours and discrimination on account of their age, family status, gender, ethnicity, race, disability, mental health, sexuality... such that one in seven considers leaving the industry.
“No company or industry can ignore this. A line has been drawn in the sand and we now know where progress must be made. The onus on us all now is to work together to make our industry fairer, more diverse and more inclusive—and to measure our common progress in a second wave in the spring of 2023.”
Belinda Smith, chief executive of M/SIX for the Americas and WFA global diversity ambassador, said: “This research represents a critical first step in holding the industry accountable to something many claim are important for their companies and brands: diversity, equity, and inclusion.
“For decades we have watched as companies and industries pledge to do better, and for many this pledge has not had a meaningful impact on their lived experiences including their safety and ability to earn a living in an environment free of discrimination. I am thrilled to see this first start and benchmark data. Our message to the industry for wave 2 [in 2023] is clear, ‘Put your measurement where your pledge is.’”
Jerry Daykin, senior media director, EMEA at GSK Consumer Healthcare Marketing and WFA global diversity ambassador, said: “Whilst there are some positive takeaways the research does highlight that for many individuals the marketing industry is not as inclusive nor as welcoming a place as we know it needs to be.
“Through some of our wider work with the WFA we’ve been exploring the power of representative creative output and we know that that starts by listening to representative voices and having diverse opinions from our teams.
“This first in-depth survey to look at both the diversity of our global industry and also how included people feel within it is a critical step towards moving us forwards. Of course, what we now need is continued and greater action to ensure the results are stronger when we next see them.”
Tamara Daltroff, president of Voxcomm, said: “There is only one limitation to sustainable growth: Talent. If we want to be an attractive industry to thrive in, we must listen, acknowledge, and act upon the problems of those who are at the heart of the advertising and comms world. With this first-ever industry ambition in the shape of the Global DEI Census, we now know exactly where the issues lie and, at the same time, we are presented with an opportunity to overcome the biggest challenges.”
Gareth Rees, head of CX partnership services, insight division at Kantar, said: “The marketing industry shows itself to be relatively progressive at first glance. But scratch beneath the surface and there is a myriad of stories of suffering.
“Common themes arise again and again: discrimination against care givers and the old and the young, women and minorities living poorer work experiences and stark inequalities between cohorts and countries.
“This survey shines a light on those stories so that action can be taken to address them. There is a business and moral imperative to do so.”
The WFA did not identify the worst-performers in the initial census results. It is expected to release more data for individual markets and regions over the coming days and weeks.
(This article first appeared on CampaignLive.co.uk)