All In DEI Summit 2023

On Thursday 11th May, the second All In census on the status of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in the Advertising and Marketing industry was released by the Advertising Association , IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising) , ISBA & 凯度 .

Broadly there have been some positive shifts in the data, with the overall All In Inclusive score moving up +2 points to 69% in 2023, but there are still so many challenges to front into.

Kudos to All In for starting with the data.?We can’t change what we don’t know so this two yearly survey is absolutely critical to ensuring progress. Is it time now to build on the data by setting industry goals for all to rally around??

1 in 7 people (15%) are estimated to be #neurodiverse in the UK so are we doing enough as an industry to support neurodiverse talent?? Are those individuals more stressed in work, more likely to leave, experiencing greater discrimination??Perhaps this is a new space for the All In Census to explore in 2025. ?Great to hear from Dame Caroline Dinenage MP DBE of 安永 ’s leadership in this space, where they have built a Neurodiversity Centre of Excellence and created a whole new recruitment programme for applicants who self-disclose as neurodiverse, with 4 steps to the application process concluding with a week long ‘Super Week’, better enabling neurodiverse talent to show up as themselves and thrive.?The results speak for themselves with 92% of people recruited through the programme staying more than 5 years.

Fantastic to see #Menopause being included in the census for the first time but with only 25% of respondents saying their company has a Menopause policy, there is much work to be done in this space.?With a staggering 77% of the industry aged 44 or under, this could be one of the key unlocks to keep older talent in the industry and thriving.?The challenge was well summarised by Matt Bush & Sharon Lloyd Barnes saying, “In our industry you get past 50 and you’re washed up.?Ageism is a huge issue and we’re not tackling it enough.?Women are choosing not to work in the industry post 40.?That’s a great shame.”

A shocking reveal that 38% of 25-34 year olds are being affected by stress or anxiety – much higher than 45-54 year olds at 25% - and representing a large group within the industry.?In parallel, the census data reveals that this younger group are also more likely to leave their current roles.?Cost of living (especially in London), student loans and hybrid working were all hot topics raised at the summit which could, in part, be driving these numbers.?A great initiative from 盛世长城 with their 'Saatchi Home' partnership with the London Hostel Accommodation, offering subsidised accommodation and a welcoming community to new starters, making London living feel more achievable and more inclusive.? Sarah Jenkins sites this as an example of how the industry can apply its own creative super powers to the challenges of DEI.

An important challenge from Maria McDowell , Founder of lollipop mentoring CIC , on performative action, trust & consistency, specifically around race and ethnicity, within the industry. “There is a huge job to be done in keeping trust and sustaining initiatives is a big part of building trust…. For example we have gender pay gap reporting but not ethnicity.”

Brilliant challenges from Matt Bush on #SocialMobility: “Why does our industry think it’s ok to ask what school you went to or what your parents did??Class has come to feel like the last acceptable form of discrimination.?65% of the cabinet and 45% of journalists went to fee paying schools.?5% of footballers did.?There’s an assumption that intersectionality will solve this and that’s patronising.???93% of the population didn’t go to a fee paying school.?Are we doing enough in reaching out to the parts of society that feel left behind??We’re in the creative industry and so much of our creativity comes from our culture.”

A hard to hear but critical challenge from Danny Josephs , Partner at MFUSE and Chair of the #AllIn Disability Working Group, that in many people’s eyes “disability equals inability” and a reminder that disability is a broad group ranging from the invisible to visible.?He also flagged the important link between #Disability and #FlexibleWorking, saying that “video calls have extended the careers of disabled people because you don’t need to be out and about.?Once you are out of a controlled environment it’s hard.”

Hats off to a brilliant host, bringing humour and honesty to the summit.?Thanks Ben Hunte who is leading for change through his own Confidence Academy and journalism masterclasses where he aims to 'wrap-up' journalism in an hour, giving young people “a comfort space to be themselves, not just be the culture of where your culture is.?You are told to bring your whole self but if you don’t look like or sound like others that’s hard.”??Ben challenged the audience and industry to ‘step outside of this London bubble and go out to their spaces.’

Inspiring case studies from the panel on ‘The Value of Talent’.? Jake Dubbins brought to life how Media Bounty | B Corp (#BCorp) has added 5 days volunteering to employee contracts to “hard wire in support, close the do say gap and help talent align their values with the business they are in.” Calling on businesses to be ‘a flexible, trusting and understanding employer.’ ?

Neil Henderson shared 3 great employee initiatives from St Luke’s.?The Make Stuff More Interesting Fund offers employees ￡200 per year to ‘connect you to the real person, helping the business to understand people as complete people and building belonging'.?Also their child care voucher scheme supporting parents back to work and 'Flying Start' targeting under-represented groups with 3 month internships.

Thanks to Sue Todd from NABS for raising awareness of the #TimeTo campaign to eradicate sexual harassment in the industry.?2% of individuals in the industry have reported sexual harassment – 2% too many.?300 companies have already endorsed the #TimeTo code of conduct and The Inclusive Leader Training: https://nabs.org.uk/nabs-training/inclusive-leader/

The Summit concluded with a case study from All In Champions ITV .?What an inspiring high to end the day on.?A clear message from Ade Rawcliffe , Group Director of D&I ITV , to “embed DEI into everything we do and to be part of the fabric of the organisation.” ?? ITV was one of the first companies to have D&I represented at Board level.?“If I was the head of recycling and the only one recycling it wouldn’t work!”?

ITV are weaving #DEI into their mainstream content, for example with the recent episode of Loose Women focused on deaf awareness, building empathy and understanding.?"When we all cry at Finding Nemo because Nemo loses his dad, we’re not crying because we’re fish!"

Ade also flagged the importance of their #DiversityEquityInclusion dashboard for accountability, further endorsed by Melissa Johns, actor and Co-Founder of TripleC UK Creative Confidence Collective , “Targets are needed until we can do this organically.”

Harry Tan and Casey Shaw reminded us all of the vital role of #EmployeeResourceGroups in progressing DEI.? ITV have 5 #ERGs: Balance, Embrace, Pride, Women & ITV Able.? Harry Tan shared how being a member of the Embrace Network enabled him to ask some difficult questions in a safe environment.?“Networks can challenge the business at a senior level to do better.”?He also encouraged everyone to “just do something.?Think Minimum Viable Product.?Experiment.”

10 themes woven throughout the Summit:

1.????TRUST, must be built with all employees through consistency and continuity of DEI initiatives

2.????TOGETHER, in order to really bring step change

3.????EXPERIMENT, with MVPs and a 'just do something' mindset

4.????NETWORK, in order to make things happen

5.????ACCESSIBILITY, bringing benefits for all

6.????FLEXIBILITY, continuing the difficult balance of hybrid working post-covid, in order to reconnect, rekindle, respect and reflect

7.????EMPATHY, as a critical value and skill in DEI

8.????PARTNERSHIP, with experts in the DEI space in order to progress at pace

9.????STORY-TELLING, using the core skills of marketers and advertisers to progress DEI

10.?COMMITMENT & ACCOUNTABILITY, by saying it out loud and enabling others to hold you to account

Some headlines from the 2023 Census results:

Gender:

·?????29% of women believe that gender hinders career progression

·?????55% of respondents believe parental leave has negatively impacted their career progression

Ethnicity:

·?????30% of Black talent are likely to leave the industry due to lack of inclusion and/or discrimination experienced versus 7% of White people

·?????14% of Black & 11% of Asian talent have experienced racial discrimination in their current company

Disability:

·?????16% of Disabled talent are likely to leave the industry due to a lack of inclusion and/or discrimination (down from 22% in 2021)

·?????Disabled talent experience more work related stress compared to the industry average: 22% vs 14%

Social Mobility:

·?????Half the number of working class talent is represented in the industry versus the UK average: 20% versus 40%

·?????More than double the number of talent who have attended fee paying schools is represented in the industry versus the UK average population: 19% versus 8%

Sexual Orientation:

·?????46% of LGB+ respondents are affected by stress/anxiety versus 33% as an industry average

·?????Well over a quarter (27%) of LGB+ respondents were likely to leave their company in the next 12 months versus an industry average of 21%

Age:

·?????This is the first All In census to collect data on the Menopause.?56% of respondents believe their company would benefit from Menopause awareness training

·?????30% of respondents over 45 years old are currently providing care to a family member

Mental Health:

·?????33% of all respondents reported feeling stressed or anxious

·?????For 14% their stress/anxiety was primarily work related

More info on the 2023 All In Census can be found here:

https://advertisingallin.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/All-In-2023-key-findings_linked.pdf