Over the last year, there has been no shortage of avoidable PR nightmares for leading corporate brands. In January, fashion retailer H&M came under fire for an advertisement featuring a young black boy in a green hoodie bearing the words “coolest monkey in the jungle.” Last year Pepsi faced criticism for its ad featuring Kendall Jenner and imagery from the Black Lives Matter movement, as did Dove for an ad on Facebook that depicted a black woman turning into a white woman. Most recently, Heineken faced pressure to withdraw its ad featuring the slogan “Sometimes, lighter is better.”
PR Agencies Need to Be More Diverse and Inclusive. Here’s How to Start.
Your workforce should reflect the audiences you serve.
April 12, 2018
Summary.
One of the biggest risks to a company’s reputation is a tone-deaf advertising campaign. PR practitioners need to be keenly attuned to what their brands’ strategies are and how their campaigns can be perceived by stakeholders and a broader audience — but they’ll be hard-pressed to do so if they don’t become more diverse and inclusive themselves. However, racial and gender representation in the industry remains skewed. Interviews with 18 CEOs of top global PR agencies reveal some of the ways they’re responding to the intensifying spotlight on diversity and inclusion. Many agencies have made progress reassessing their recruiting efforts, and are now working toward developing more-inclusive work cultures.
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Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Course
Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging. Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
How to build a better, more just workplace.
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New!
HBR Learning
Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Course
Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging. Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
How to build a better, more just workplace.