WPP Announces Commitments to Fight Racism and Invest in Black Talent
June 17 2020 - 8:41AM
Business Wire
WPP (NYSE:WPP) today announced a set of commitments and actions
to help combat racial injustice and support Black and minority
ethnic talent.
- We will take decisive action on each of the 12 points in the
“Call For Change” open letter to the industry from more than 1,200
Black advertising professionals; complete a fundamental review of
our hiring, retention, promotion and development practices; and
publish our racial diversity data.
- We will use our voice to fight racism and advance the cause of
racial equality in and beyond our industry.
- We will invest $30 million over the next three years to fund
inclusion programmes within WPP and to support external
organisations.
The 12 actions in the “Call For Change” letter range from
investment in the career paths of Black employees and a measurable
commitment to improving Black representation in senior management,
to wage equity plans for people of colour and mandatory anti-racism
training for leaders and HR employees. Our agencies have already
taken or are in the process of taking many of the actions, but we
will implement all 12 throughout WPP, on an accelerated timescale.
This will include setting targets, tracking the progression of
under-represented groups and publishing our racial diversity data.
This work will be underpinned by a comprehensive review of our
policies, processes and practices so that they elevate Black talent
and never stifle it.
Our greatest impact is through the work we create, and we
will use our platform to enlighten, educate and inspire action.
We will engage with clients, partners, peers, industry bodies,
event organisers and suppliers to ensure that Black and minority
ethnic talent is fairly represented not only in the work but in our
industry and wider networks. We will formally commit only to
participate in events or panels where people of colour are
represented, in line with the pledge WPP CEO Mark Read signed some
time ago not to participate in male-only panels. We will also
identify and put forward people of colour as speakers at events to
proactively raise their visibility. We will review supplier
diversity to give greater support to minority-owned businesses.
We will commit $10 million a year over the next three
years to fund these programmes and to provide support for
anti-racism charities. We will make donations, offer our services
pro bono and work with our media partners to support charities and
other organisations committed to fighting racism, developing
minority talent and addressing issues that affect Black and ethnic
minority communities. WPP will also match employee donations to
charities selected in consultation with our WPP Roots steering
committee up to $1,000 per person, to a total of $1 million.
Our new Global Inclusion Council will work with Mark Read and
the WPP Executive Committee to ensure that the commitments above
are met. Advising the Council will be a taskforce dedicated to
advancing the opportunities and interests of Black colleagues
specifically.
The leaders of WPP’s global agency networks have each signed up
to these commitments and will be held accountable for delivering
them within their businesses.
Announcing the commitments, Mark Read, CEO of WPP, said: “Over
the last three weeks, I have heard an outpouring of pain, anger and
frustration from Black colleagues, along with clear demands for
change. This is the moment to embrace that change, and to use our
creativity, our scale and our influence to make a difference in the
fight against racism. WPP must support and elevate Black employees,
and those from other under-represented groups, not as a diversity
and inclusion initiative but as a business and moral
imperative.”
More on our commitments, examples of our work combatting racism,
anti-racism resources, and Black voices within WPP:
http://wpp.com/anti-racism
About WPP
WPP is a creative transformation company. We use the power of
creativity to build better futures for our people, clients and
communities. For more information, visit www.wpp.com.
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Chris Wade, WPP +44 (0)20 7282 4600 Chris.Wade@wpp.com
Martina Suess, WPP +1 212 632 2522 Martina.Suess@wpp.com
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