US agency culture 'discriminatory' say 50% of professionals - 4A's study

Arvind Hickman
By Arvind Hickman | 28 September 2016
 

Nearly half of industry professionals in the US believe agency culture is discriminatory and around three-quarters believe they are mediocre at best when hiring a diverse mix of professionals a new 4A's member survey has found.

However, the study found that 60% of the 549 respondents believe ad agencies were somewhat or definitely more racist in the past than they are now, but there is work to do.

Respondents don’t feel ethnically diverse professionals are given the same opportunities as white male employees.

One in five say the industry is terrible about providing ethnically diverse professionals the same opportunities as white males, while 28% say it is not great at this, while 29% said the industry is terrible at offering opportunities to disabled employees.

“The ad industry must do more to hire diverse professionals who will create work that reflects our diverse consumer base; there is a very real appetite for that work. We’ve made some progress, but we have a lot more to do to make agencies a place where anyone can thrive, and everyone is represented,” says Nancy Hill, president and chief executive officer of the 4A's.

“Next time we field a study like this, we’d like to see closer to 100% of respondents noting they’ve seen improvements in diversity at agencies.”

Consumers want diversity in ads

A second study launched by the 4A’s and research partner SSRS looked at consumers’ opinions about diversity in ads. It found the vast majority of respondents agree advertising has become more diverse in the past five years (81%).

Nearly three-quarters (74%) believe ads should reflect America’s diversity in a realistic way, and 64% say advertising should ensure all ethnicities are portrayed.

The poll, which gauged the thoughts of 1,027 respondents, found 71% of respondents should feature diverse people as part of a marketing strategy provided diversity does not appear to be a gimmick.

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