LONDON, UK – Fifteen leaders from creative transformation company WPP have been named in the global Empower Role Model Lists 2022 for breaking down barriers and driving inclusion for people of color in business.
The lists, compiled by INvolve and supported by Yahoo Finance UK, celebrate 100 Executives, 100 Future Leaders, and 50 Advocate Role Models from across all business sectors for their work in championing inclusion and driving strategic change within their organizations.
Empower 100 Executives:
Kirk McDonald, North America CEO, GroupM (7)
Dionne Aiken, Chief Marketing Officer, Kantar (10)
Debbie Ellison, Global Chief Digital Officer, VMLY&R Commerce (13)
Traci Dinkins, President – Head of Media, North America, Essence (18)
Demet Ikiler, EMEA CEO, GroupM and Country Manager for Turkey, WPP (23)
Akama Davies, Global Practice Lead, Digital OOH, Xaxis (29)
Shelina Janmohamed, Vice President – Islamic Marketing, Ogilvy (42)
Dorothy Burwell, Partner, Finsbury Glover Hering (60)
Sabrina Natasha Browne, Vice President – Corporate Affairs, BCW (67)
Apoorva Bapna, Chief Culture Officer – India, WPP (74)
Empower 100 Future Leaders:
Nikeisha Beckford, Group Director – Client Engagement, VMLY&R (34)
Francis Carrero-Green, Senior Talent Development Manager, VMLY&R (97)
Empower 50 Advocates:
Mark Read, CEO, WPP (1)
Jessica Walsh, Managing Director – Health, Hill + Knowlton Strategies (30)
Jennifer Remling, Chief People Officer, WPP (32)
VMLY&R’s Group Director, Client Engagement Nikeisha Beckford and Senior Talent Development Manager Francis Carrero-Green both feature on the Future Leaders list.
WPP CEO Mark Read tops the Advocates list, which identifies leaders who are creating diverse and inclusive business environments, with Jessica Walsh, Managing Director – Health at H+K Strategies and Jennifer Remling, WPP’s Chief People Officer, also recognized.
“For WPP, a diverse and inclusive culture is a business opportunity as well as an imperative. Building teams from different backgrounds and experiences helps us to understand our audiences better, deliver innovation and produce the best work for our clients. Ultimately, our success is driven by our people and I’m proud of what we’re doing together across WPP to create a culture where people feel they belong and want to be a part of,” said Mark Read, CEO of WPP.
In 2020, WPP announced a set of commitments to combat racial injustice and support Black and minority ethnic talent, investing $30 million over three years to support anti-racism charities and inclusion programs. This includes the Racial Equity Program which funds projects that help bring about change, and expanding WPP’s Elevate sponsorship program designed to support Black women in their career growth.
WPP has also introduced diverse candidate slate policies in the UK, US and APAC, has roles specifically marketed and accessible to candidates from under-represented groups, and is nurturing early talent to build a diverse pipeline. Its NextGen Leaders learning series welcomed 1,500 people from 60 countries in its 2021 cohort, with half of the participants identifying as Black, Asian or Latinx, while WPP’s partnership with Colorintech, The Update, is an initiative aimed at Black tech professionals looking to accelerate their careers within the creative industry. To ensure progress is driven by accountability, WPP established a global Inclusion Council in 2020 which gives a voice to underrepresented groups and advises on goals, identifies barriers and recommends new systems, and in 2021, introduced DE&I metrics linked to leaders’ compensation and quarterly reviews.
