Stepping Up with Determined Action to Promote Equality

The events of 2020 have brought clarity to what matters. The role of business in society has been forever disrupted. It is now inescapably clear that we have a responsibility as brands and companies to step up as a force for good and a force for growth – for consumers, communities, our industry, and the world.  

How we use our power is a choice, and as the world’s largest advertiser, P&G has a responsibility to step up with determined action. So, we’re choosing to double down as a force for good and a force for growth to promote equality.

Last month at the ANA Media and Measurement conference, I shared with national advertisers a roadmap to transform media into a force for good and a force for growth. I reinforced that same roadmap today and debunked the myths holding us back: 

Step 1: Achieve equal representation in the creative and media supply chain.

 Myth: The “pipeline myth” inaccurately states that “there’s not enough diverse talent in the pipeline.” This is a head fake. Amazing diverse talent exists everywhere. It’s our job as Marketing leaders to go outside of traditional networks to find people and connect the pipes to achieve equal representation in every link of the chain. 

Step 2: Eliminate systemic investment inequalities in the creative and media supply chain. 

Myth: The “scale myth” that states “you can’t get big enough scale by investing in minority-owned businesses.” Another head fake that reinforces the majority-built system. Focusing on big scale alone misses the point about relevance and effectiveness. It’s our job as Marketing leaders to find these businesses and create new systems to enable access and investment – at any scale.

Step 3: Accurately portray all humanity in advertising and media. 

Myth: Here, you may hear the “measurement-costs-too-much-myth.” Another head fake. The Gender Equality Measure (or GEM) is publicly available on the ANA website and you can build GEM directly into your current ad testing. Or, you can join #SEEHER for about the same cost as a national magazine ad – and get ads GEM-tested for free. Get started…it’s worth it.

Step 4: Eliminate hateful content online. 

Myth: You may hear excuses here too, but frankly, there is no excuse. We’ve agreed on common definitions for reporting through the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, or GARM. But now comes enforcement. We need common metrics, third-party auditing to verify results, and alternatives, so brands can advertise in safe places. It’s time for the platforms to get on with it.

Step 5: Level the playing field with transparency to enable broader participation. 

Myth: None here. This is not about creating winners and losers – it’s about leveling the playing field to enable broader participation, and for all of us – across the entire industry – to create growth and value together so all boats rise.

These steps represent the systemic changes P&G is making to promote equality for growth. Achieving these steps will help us focus on what really matters…joining together to create content for good like the many of the films P&G has released this year to address systemic inequality and support many communities hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic:

Choose Equal 

This was developed with our partners at Grey to raise awareness of ongoing gender inequalities and inspire action through multiple relief and gender equality organizations. 75% of workers on the frontline are women who experience the majority of job losses and who bear the disproportionate burden of work in the home. So, instead of setting gender equality aside during the crisis, the call to action is to choose equal as we go forward, for an equal future.

Estamos Unidos 

This was created with the Alma agency for the Altisimo and Delores Huerta benefit events and the launch of the Hispanic Star movement - helping the 80% of U.S. Hispanic adults who have jobs outside of their homes. This effort was personal, because my father, who was Mexican American and worked in a hospital, used to take me to migrant farmworker towns in Colorado to provide healthcare services. Decades later, there are still no healthcare systems for far too many Hispanic families.

 Circumstances 

A virus doesn’t discriminate but circumstances do. This was created with Cartwright and Grey for BET’s Saving Our Selves benefit to raise money for Black Americans, who are up to 340% more likely to die from COVID-19. It shined the light on the inequalities that disproportionately affect the Black community and raised money for much needed assistance and emergency support.

The Talk, The Look 

Racism is not new. It has plagued America for 401 years. It exists everywhere and cannot continue. We re-released “The Talk,” which shines the light on the conversations that Black parents have with their children to prepare them for the bias and racism they will inevitably face.  

And we re-released “The Look” to help people learn about the bias and racism that Black men face every day.

Action is what’s most important, so we accelerated plans to promote equality even further. We established a fund and a resource site, called “Take on Race”, building from the initiative established last year to drive community efforts that advance racial equality and equity.

But the deep problems of systemic racism and inequality have been institutionalized over centuries and will not be solved unless the white community helps. 

The Choice 

“The Choice” is an invitation to encourage the silent majority in the white community to step up to become allies, advocates and activists to end racial inequality. The film inspires individuals to take action to create the world we all want to live in by challenging them to move beyond their comfort zones to Read, Listen, Donate, Plan, March, Vote, Speak Out, Step In, Step Up. Because how we use our power is a choice. 

 The Pause, Love Is All They See 

Pride is much more than a single event or a moment, it’s a movement to advance equality and serve as a catalyst to fight bias. “The Pause” calls out the struggle of hesitation that the LGBTQ+ community experiences every day before deciding how much of themselves to reveal to those around them. 

We’re encouraging people outside of the community to notice, reflect and realize how their reactions can make a difference. And we choose to lead with love. 

 In addition to consumers and shareholders, we have a responsibility to society. Doing good needs to also lead to driving growth…which in turn enables doing more good – creating a virtuous cycle that is sustainable. There’s still much more to do, and I’m looking forward to stepping up with all of you to lead as both a force for good and a force for growth.