DE&I Forum

The focus on DE&I in the workplace and with suppliers is not a new one, but it has risen to the forefront as discussions around social injustice and lack of representation have ramped up over the past months.

In response to the increased interest among marketers, the ANA has committed to hosting regular DE&I Forums, a place where professionals can be briefed on current thought leadership, learn from case studies presented by market leaders, and network and share best practices with peers.

• Chair: Susette Brooks, Director of Inclusive Marketing, Penguin Random House

Contact the ANA staff managing the DE&I Forum:

• Bernice Veloz, Senior Director, Multicultural & Diversity Initiatives
• Karim Amadeo, Director, Multicultural & Diversity Initatives

Discussion Topics:

The DE&I Forum is open to all client-side marketer members as well as Platinum and Gold-level solutions provider members.

Request to Join

Resources

• Virtual Supplier Diversity Fairs
  • Meet Black-Owned Media Companies
  • Meet Women-Owned Companies
  • Meet LGBTQ+ Owned Companies

Thought Leadership

• LGBTQ+ Marketing Inclusion Report (March 2024) In a pivotal era of cultural shifts and heightened awareness, the 2024 ANA LGBTQ+ Marketing Inclusion Report emerges as a beacon for advertisers aiming to navigate the complex landscape of diversity and inclusion authentically. With comprehensive insights derived from ANA members, this report illuminates the progress, challenges, and untapped opportunities in LGBTQ+ advertising, presenting a compelling call to action for brands to champion inclusivity beyond mere tokenism. It underscores the transformative power of embracing LGBTQ+ communities year-round, leveraging targeted media, and fostering an inclusive corporate culture.
• A Diversity Report for the Advertising/Marketing Industry  (February 2024) This report tracks the gender and ethnic diversity of ANA member companies and recommends steps for improvement. Since its inception, this study has shown the strides the industry has made to increase ethnic diversity. Yet, this latest study has found that ethnic diversity took a step back, after several years of progress. The industry is now 30.8 percent ethnically diverse, down from 32.3 percent a year ago.
• Influencer Pay Equity Guide  The ANA, 4A’s, and PR Council released an Influencer Pay Equity Guide to address the lack of transparency and the 29% pay gap between white and BIPOC influencers. The Guide offers an actionable roadmap for marketers committed to equitable compensation and greater transparency across every stage of partnership in the $34 billion influencer industry.
• Certified Diverse Suppliers Resource List (Updated on an Ongoing Basis)
  Finding diverse suppliers is a key challenge in supplier diversity. As a follow-up to the 2020 report, “The Power of Supplier Diversity,” ANA/AIMM began curating a list of diverse suppliers that work in our industry. The initial “Certified Diverse Suppliers Resource List” was issued in July 2020 and has been updated on a regular basis.
• Guidelines for Buyers (Agencies and Marketers) When Doing Business with Diverse Media Suppliers (May 2022)
  The purpose of this guidance is to help buyers (agencies and marketers) and diverse media suppliers improve their ways of working together. This work was created by a cross-industry collaboration. The 4A's, the ANA, and AIMM, with input from our respective members, drafted the initial guidelines.
• And Now a Word from the Diverse Suppliers: The Supplier Perspective on Certification (December 2021)
  This research surveyed suppliers on the ANA/AIMM list of certified diverse suppliers. The focus was on certification, to understand its importance, benefits, challenges, ease/difficulty of the process, and more. The research found that there are multiple benefits of obtaining certification. Businesses are included in more RFPs, which provides additional exposure to corporate marketing departments, which leads to increased sales.
• A Diversity Report for the Advertising/Marketing Industry (November 2021)
  This fourth annual report from ANA and ANA's Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM), based on three separate studies among ANA members, concludes that finally, there has been progress in increasing ethnic diversity in the advertising/marketing industry. The overall ethnic skew of the marketing/advertising industry is more diverse than ever, at 30.8 percent, yet despite the progress, there is still work to be done.
• The Growth of Supplier Diversity (May 2021)
  A supplier diversity program is a proactive business program which encourages the use of women-owned, ethnic/minority-owned, veteran-owned, LGBTQ-owned, disability-owned, and small businesses as suppliers. “The Growth of Supplier Diversity” provides a deep dive into supplier diversity in marketing/advertising, covering areas including benefits, challenges, spend, goals, and measurement. The report is based on both quantitative (March 2021 survey with 112 respondents) and qualitative research. “The Growth of Supplier Diversity” is a follow-up to the 2020 ANA report “The Power of Supplier Diversity.”
• The Power of Supplier Diversity (May 2020)
  A supplier diversity program is a proactive business program which encourages the use of women-owned, ethnic/minority-owned, veteran-owned, LGBTQ-owned, disability-owned, and small businesses as suppliers. This report covers the findings from quantitative and qualitative research conducted by the ANA. The purpose was to gain an understanding of the incidence of supplier diversity programs as well as benefits, challenges, spend, goals, measurement, influence, and more.