When Simon Hathaway took on the role of Marketing Agencies Association (MAA) chair last year, he talked about creating a change in the industry. He spoke about the need for diversity to bring together different disciplines and create opportunity for people from varied backgrounds to influence how we shape the conversation.
But what does this mean in reality? Who reaps the benefits?
It doesn’t mean that agencies must embark on new hiring strategies in which they try to fill spurious diversity quotas. What it does mean is that they must embrace diversity as part of their business strategy, opening themselves up to new thinking and “doing different” (the central theme of this year’s Best Awards).
We now have the world at our fingertips. Anyone with an internet connection has the ability to learn, create and share from anywhere. This brings with it a wealth of diverse talent and perspectives that transcend age, gender, sexuality and culture.
There is a huge amount that seasoned marketing and creative veterans need to learn from this shift – by thinking and doing differently. As digital natives, young people today have only ever known a connected world and understand how to develop meaningful experiences across the complex media landscape. Companies that embrace youth culture and the diversity that comes with it, the apprenticeships and the graduate training schemes, will be better equipped.
Another hot topic on the diversity agenda is gender. Many studies have reported that a gender-balanced workplace drives higher business performance. Companies are starting to actively address the imbalance within the industry, but as the results from the MAA’s diversity census reveal, there is still a long way to go.
Three years ago SapientNitro set up the Women’s Leadership Network (WLN) in recognition of the need to “do different”. The WLN engages both men and women in a range of initiatives that focus on career development, enabling ongoing conversations that celebrate diverse perspectives and leadership styles. We have run panel discussions, networking events and a mentorship programme, with one initiative directly influencing the company’s maternity and flexible working policies in the UK.
This has impacted not only our ability to attract and retain top female talent, but also the capacity to foster junior talent within an informal support network. The company has also launched PRIDE (Potential Realised In Diverse Experiences), a network for LGBT and “straight-ally” people, focusing on advocacy and education.
Initiatives such as this not only benefit our staff and our culture; they also help us to understand the people who are our clients’ customers. It’s important to recognise that cultural diversity spans language, ethnicity and religion. The world has opened up and one size no longer fits all. Consumers don’t respond to blanket messages that tell them to buy this or that; they want relevance and resonance. If they don’t get it, they’ll get online and shout about it, causing PR headaches. Companies that work seamlessly across cultures are beginning to see the fruits of their labour.
Our industry needs people with diverse backgrounds, skills and perspectives, working together to challenge the everyday, push boundaries and create meaningful experiences for clients, consumers and within our own agencies. This will help us shape the conversation far better than a boardroom full of white, middle-class males ever can.
Mette Davis is client services director at SapientNitro
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