Why the 4A’s is dialing up its training and DEI programming in 2022
Amid an ongoing pandemic, high political tensions and uncertainty about the future of work, leading trade organization the 4A’s has seen members increasingly demanding new solutions. The organization is responding with a full-blown makeover of its education, training and diversity, equity and belonging programming.
The 4A’s is going all-in on equity and inclusion
Ad industry body the 4A’s has announced a series of programming changes to bring more training as well as diversity, equity and inclusion resources to members. To support its efforts, the organization has also made two key leadership updates.
The 4A’s is making the series of changes in response to ongoing member feedback. “Our industry has changed a lot with Covid and with [the death of] George Floyd and [the Black Lives Matter movement],” says the 4A’s executive vice-president of talent equity and inclusion Simon Fenwick. “We’ve really taken note of what we’ve been hearing from our members and from the industry, and with that we’ve made the decision to ... pivot.”
The demand of the marketing and communications industries is part of a larger, cross-industry sea change; per a report by Worldwide Business Research in conjunction with workplace training solutions provider Traliant, nearly 80% of businesses across sectors plan to increase their diversity, equity and inclusion budgets and resources in 2022.
Fenwick also points out that, in light of economic and industry shifts over the past year-plus, agencies have been increasingly demanding new talent solutions from the 4A’s. Among the top priorities for many agencies when it comes to talent, he says, are investing in diversity, equity and inclusion and learning and development. “We overwhelmingly heard in the last 12 months ... a lot of feedback [from people saying], ‘We really want foundational learning programs that we can get behind that are going to support our people – in particular, in being better managers and when they first join the organization.’”
In response to these demands, the organization has established a new practice dubbed 4A’s Talent, Equity and Learning. It will include a wide variety of updated programs and offerings grouped into two categories: the 4A’s Foundation and the newly-created 4A’s Learning Institute. Fenwick will head up both efforts.
Amping up diversity, equity and belonging
The 4A’s Foundation is a nonprofit branch of the organization dedicated to improving diversity in the marketing industry and advocating for diverse talent. Changes within the Foundation include new partner engagement initiatives, consulting solutions, grants and scholarships, awards and events and the organization’s diversity, equity and belonging-focused programs. The Foundation in January launched a joint program with Spotify designed to amplify the voices of Black creatives. The Foundation will also bring new offerings to its Multicultural Advertising Intern Program, its Manhattan Early College School for Advertising high school program, and its Black talent advocacy initiative 365BLACKPRINT, as well as other alumni, fellowship and education programs.
In January the organization appointed Tangie Murray to oversee the Foundation. She comes to the role with 20+ years’ of experience in communications, much of which has been centered around nonprofit work. Murray previously served as the executive director of Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit focused on supporting emerging artists and providing underserved youth with arts education. Murray also sat on the Obama administration's President’s Committee for the Arts & Humanities and contributed to ACT/ART, an initiative designed to help leverage contemporary art as a catalyst for social change. Fenwick, to whom Murray will report, is confident that her contributions will help accelerate growth for the Foundation.
“The Foundation’s mission is ... to support all people of color. Under Murray, we’re really hoping that we can further develop existing programs [for supporting Black talent], but really work with the industry to identify, ‘How do we serve the needs of our Hispanic/Latinx population or the Asian/Asian-American population?’” Murray will be tasked with collaborating with industry stakeholders to establish new approaches for expanding support to a wider range of populations through programs, consulting and more.
Training, education and development gets a makeover
Meanwhile, the new 4A’s Learning Institute – rebranded from what was previously the 4A’s Professional and Organizational Development practice – will see a range of changes designed to help agencies and other industry stakeholders attract, develop and retain top-tier, diverse, equitable talent. Chiefly, the 4A’s has established new certification programs designed to give industry players new opportunities to develop various skills. It will also update its suite of talent solutions and consulting, which includes everything from a job description library and HR support and training tools to talent process, organizational design and diversity, equity and belonging consulting services.
A key focus of the Institute will be advancing the organization’s Workplace and Campaign Enlightenment Certification, a multi-pronged program rolled out in 2018 focused on helping leaders create more equitable, inclusive and productive work environments. The 4A’s also recently launched a Team Leadership Certification for managers, which aims to help first-time managers develop valuable leadership skills. Fenwick says the Institute has various other coals in the fire, with ambitious plans for its many training, development and education programs.
As part of its efforts, the organization has promoted Sean McGlade, the former head of the Professional and Organizational Development practice, to senior vice-president of talent and learning solutions. McGlade has helped develop the 4A’s training and education offerings since he joined the organization in 2019. Fenwick says McGlade, who has also taught arts and humanities courses at the School of The New York Times, Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art and the City University of New York, is unquestionably “the best person” for the job.
Equity as a guiding light
On the large scale, the 4A’s is hyper-focused on bringing practical diversity, equity and belonging education and resources to ad and communications professionals. Fenwick says that the conversation surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion is, for many agencies, necessarily intertwined with their other talent and workplace priorities. “A lot of [agencies] are ... still working out what that future of the workplace looks like,” he says. “Agencies are thinking long term [about], ‘How do we create environments of belonging in the hybrid world that allow people to be their best selves?’”
Equity, Fenwick argues, should serve as the center of the wheel for agencies looking to evolve. “Equity is the most important piece. Equity is about creating fairness and equitable opportunity for everyone [in a way that] really encompasses the diversity, inclusion and belonging pieces. You need equity in place to make [belonging and inclusion] happen.”
The 4A’s has begun sharing updates about its programming updates with its various councils and committees and will spell out its plans in further detail at its Talent@2030 Conference on March 22 and 23.