Advertising, media and marketing agencies rally for industry-wide diversity and inclusion census

Australian advertising’s first-ever industry census – the Create Space Census – is taking place today, with hundreds of agencies and individuals across the country set to take part.

Leaders and professionals from agencies such as Special Group, Ogilvy Australia, M&C Saatchi, Leo Burnett, CHE Proximity, Host Havas, The Monkeys, TBWA, BMF Australia, Digitas Australia, WhiteGREY, R/GA, Innocean and Howatson&Co have rallied the industry to participate and share their thoughts and experiences of workplace diversity and inclusion as part of the anonymous industry-wide census – which is being overseen by Advertising Council Australia and Kantar, one of the world’s leading research agencies.

Says Jasmin Bedir, CEO of Innocean: “Diversity is a fact. Inclusion is a choice. Armed with the data from this census, the reality of the industry’s status quo will no longer be anecdotal, it will be irrefutable. And we can no longer delay taking action.”

Says Simon Wassef, chief strategy officer, WhiteGREY: “Create Space is a chance for everyone to objectively answer the questions that will give us the cold hard data from which we can make a plan. A plan that, bit by bit, will help us dismantle an old structure that was designed to serve a select group at the exclusion of others, and build an entirely new one that is designed to include everyone.”

The confidential census will provide a true representation of the demographics and experiences of professionals across the sector, uniquely combining data on gender identity, social and ethnic backgrounds, mental health and family status with experiences of inclusion at work, revealing strengths, pinpointing gaps and highlighting priorities for focused and immediate action.

Industry leaders who have pledged their support are reinforcing their commitment by giving staff 30 minutes to complete the census in a bid to highlight the gaps and opportunities that exist for greater representation and inclusion across the sector.

All Australian advertising, media and marketing services professionals are invited to take part, with the census now available to complete at createspacecensus.com.

The census will establish a true record of the make-up of Australia’s advertising’s workforce and will provide a vital benchmark for D&I progress.

Its results will be used to inform a Create Space report and action plan that will launch in 2022, and which will tackle priority areas of inequality and under-representation with actionable steps, supported by industry working groups and a commitment to measuring and reporting on progress every two years.