Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

The business case for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I) in advertising recruitment is well documented. Treating people fairly and equally, while embracing diversity has a positive business impact. Organisations whose people and leadership teams best reflect and represent their audience and communities are more competitive, innovative, sustainable and have greater employee engagement.

For diversity and equality to be achieved, organisations need to recruit, attract and retain diverse talent. Therefore access to diverse talent is vital. I work with my clients to understand their needs, help them to access diverse talent pools and challenge them on their practices to ensure an inclusive process.

I continually focus my attention on growing ethnically diverse talent pools, engaging with new networks, as well as those I work with on a pro bono basis.

I recognize the important role I play as a recruiter in supporting founders, management teams, CEOs and HR leads, as they take steps to enhance the diversity of their workforce in the widest range of production roles

  • Talent pipeline & diversity

I support all efforts by my clients in developing clear, appropriate targets for enhancing diversity in advertising production and new business roles and in developing plans to strengthen the pipeline of diverse candidates.

  • Diversity goals

When taking a specific brief, I look at the overall company culture/composition and, in the context of the business's agreed aspirational goals on gender balance and diversity more broadly, explore with my client if recruiting women and/or ethnically diverse individuals is a priority.

  • Defining briefs

I formulate non-discriminatory job descriptions and work to ensure that these briefs are framed in an open and inclusive way. I work to ensure that significant weight is given to relevant skills, underlying competencies and personal capabilities and not just proven career experience, in order to extend the pool of candidates beyond those with existing advertising production /new business/social media management roles or conventional corporate careers.

  • Longlists/Shortlists

When presenting longlists, I ensure that at least 40% of the candidates are women and attempt to meet all specific targets for ethnic diversity - and, if not, I will explicitly justify why I am convinced that there are no other qualified options, by demonstrating the scope and rigour of the research. I also ensure that shortlists are appropriately reflective of the longlist, discussing with clients each diverse candidate on the longlist and aiming to have at least two women and one ethnically diverse candidate whom we would strongly recommend that my client should meet. This , of course, is dependent on the role and the availability of talent at the expected experience level.

  • Candidate support

During the selection process, I provide appropriate support to candidates, this is particularly important for first-time candidates and candidates from under-represented backgrounds. I prepare each candidate for interview and guide them through the process. I invest time in addressing candidate concerns, and support talent in preparation for appointment, providing access to networks and mentoring where appropriate.

  • Supporting candidate selection

As clients evaluate candidates, I ensure that they continue to provide appropriate weight to intrinsic competencies and capabilities, supported by thorough referencing, If necessary, I advise clients on how to run their interview process to demonstrate the required rigor and professionalism and share best practices on how to reduce the impact of unconscious biases.

  • Signaling commitment

I signal my commitment to supporting diversity in advertising production ranks, and my adherence this code, through my marketing activity, client discussions and by investing time in developing a relationship with the pipeline of future female and ethnically diverse candidates. In 2019, I have am an ambassador for three mentor programs (Creative Access, Who’sYourMoma, The Girls Network), sharing my experience with upcoming talent from diverse talent pools and am a Non-Exec Director of Shiny, an Emerging Director Networking hub, focusing on widening the talent pool from the traditional “friends and family” network. I work alongside the IPA and APA to support all the work they do, through their own inclusion initiatives.

  • Broadening the candidate pool

I continuously seek to broaden my own networks of potential candidates and sources to encourage greater diversity. I leverage, as appropriate, external lists produced by relevant organisations; and thoroughly search within a range of networks, formal and informal, for sources and candidates with diverse backgrounds.

“The business case for equality, diversity and inclusion is well documented. But it’s about more than just the numbers, treating people fairly and equally, while embracing diversity has a much broader business and social impact. I am passionate about supporting the case for greater diversity and helping my clients achieve this. It’s not virtue signalling, it’s root and branch of how plan to achieve my own professional success”