The All In Action Plan, the UK advertising industry’s initiative to build a workplace where everyone belongs, has announced three new action points to focus the industry on creating positive change.  

The three focus points are; improving the experience and representation of women, improving the experience and representation of Asian talent and improving the representation of older talent. 

Speaking at industry conference Renew this morning, Kathryn Jacob OBE, Chair of the Inclusion Working Group and member of the Ageism and Gender groups and CEO of Pearl & Dean, said the group would be measuring progress by doing a comparative cross industry census next year.

The power of being #FlexibleFirst

Jacob explained: “With women being six times more likely to be personally discriminated against because of their gender than men, we desperately need to shift the dial to create workplaces that are fully inclusive. The new actions are designed with a clear path for companies to implement and make real change possible.”

Companies are being urged to implement the Flexible First checklist, created by Women in Communications London (WACL). All In Census Data found that ten times more women than men believed parental leave negatively impacted their career progression (53% of women versus 5% of men). Whale women were six times more likely to be personally discriminated against because of their gender.

Speaking at the Renew conference, Kate Waters, President for WACL; Director of Client Strategy and Planning, Commercial and Online at ITV, warned that hybrid working could usher in a ‘two tier working system’. 

A system in which women, who have taken on a disproportionate percentage of caring responsibilities throughout the pandemic,  would not be in the office as much as their male counterparts. A trend that makes embracing flexible working for all vital. “Let's not go backwards, assess on outputs and outcomes, not presenteeism,” she explained. 

Waters urged the industry to implement the Flexible First checklist. She explained: “#FlexibleFirst organisations have proven the business case, shown how flexible working directly improves their gender pay gap, whilst having significant benefits for everyone in the workforce, regardless of their gender.”

Opening up the industry to Asian talent

The next action point, which is focused on improving the experience and representation of Asian talent, is urging the industry to use the guide on the Advertising Association’s website. The guide, which was developed by the All In Asian Working Group, hopes to tackle the fact that  27% of Asian respondents reported they are likely to leave the industry due to a lack of inclusion or discrimination experienced. 

Naren Patel, Founder, Media For All, Chair of the Asian Talent Working Group, explained:  “Leaders need to take responsibility for ensuring that their staff do not face discrimination in the workplace and that they feel a sense of belonging.”

He continued: “Businesses need to start by understanding how ethnic minority talent feel about their lived experience in organisations by using the All In Census data, internal survey or focus groups. We have provided some simple tips to help improve the experience and representation of Asian talent within your business. The list is not exhaustive but will hopefully provide the spark that creates change for good.”

Tackling ageism in advertising

The final new action point is focused on Improving the experience and representation of older talent. Companies across the industry are being asked to implement All In’s Shared Experiences policy in response to data from All In showing that 43% of respondents aged 55 to 64 felt that their age limits their career.  

Anna Dalziel, Founder of 40 Over Forty and SVP, Director of Marketing Communications, Global, Momentum Worldwide, explained: "Addressing ageism at both ends of the spectrum is vital to making our industry be, and feel, more inclusive.”

She continued: “Shared Experiences is a simple, first step for agencies to adopt to make everyone feel included, seen and valued. We don't want talented people leaving, especially because of visible or invisible ageism. We want people to stay and grow as we have a lot to learn from each other. I hope everyone takes action and starts to implement this policy.

The third phase of the Action Plan will be revealed in the spring to mark the first anniversary of the All In Census, with the final three actions covering LGBTQ+, Mental Health and Physical Disability. 

Companies that show evidence that they have completed the actions from the Action Plan will be awarded ‘All In Champion’ status in summer 2022. To help companies prepare, All In is running a series of free-to-attend sessions providing guidance on how to complete each action. More details on the sessions can be found here.