DIVERSITY BI-ANNUAL REPORT: Q1 & Q2, 2023
At R/GA we remain committed to continued transparency and accountability as we work towards removing barriers for all underrepresented groups and creating a fair and equitable workplace that celebrates differences. We strive to embed diversity, equity and inclusion in everything we do — both in our company and in how we work. We want to show up for people, hear their stories, and learn from their experiences.
Expecting a few people in Talent, Operations, Culture or even DEI to change an entire organization’s culture is never going to be the answer. This is why we ask each R/GAer to focus on how we all contribute to either the problem or the solution with each decision we make. Creating an equitable and inclusive culture where each of us feels like we belong takes an inclusion mindset, awareness and intentionality.
Over the past several years we have democratized the role of DEI for everyone in R/GA because in order for us to make progress we need to show up and have uncomfortable conversations to discover new voices and perspectives. As R/GAers take the time to learn and unlearn, we know they are building their cultural competence and shifting from awareness to action.
In the past year, we built and deepened our inclusion work, creating local mentorship programs and hosting several global workshops around mental health, psychological safety, difficult conversations and cultural intelligence. These workshops ensure that R/GAers can demonstrate inclusive behaviors in order to build an environment where all R/GAers can perform at their best.
We will always focus our core principles on diversity, equity and inclusion — creating an R/GA where everyone can belong. We still have much to learn and steps to take. Ensuring our commitment becomes reality is what drives us forward.
WHO WE ARE
COMPOSITION OF US EMPLOYEES BY GENDER IDENTITY
Our employee database system currently only allows for male/female identity designation. We are continuing to enhance it to allow for additional gender identities.
Key Takeaways:
- US gender representation at R/GA shows female talent at 57.7% and male talent at 42.3%.
- So far in 2023, 70.6% of hires were female, compared with 29.4% male, resulting in the female proportion of new hires exceeding the current female representation.
COMPOSITION OF US EMPLOYEES BY RACE/ETHNICITY
- In this report, we focus on emerging trends for BIPOC talent in Q1 and Q2, 2023 for the United States. While we focus on the first half of the year, we also take a longitudinal approach to the data by looking back to 2018 for a more historical snapshot.
Key takeaways:
Increase in U.S. BIPOC Representation
- As of June, 2023, 39.1% of talent identified as BIPOC and 59.9% of talent identified as White.
- Since December 2018, 35.5% of talent identified as BIPOC. Since that time, we’ve seen a 3.6% increase.
- Between 2018 and 2023, the largest increase in the share of BIPOC talent at R/GA happened immediately after the pandemic, between December 2020 and December 2021, when we saw a 3.3% point increase (from 39.4% and 36.1% respectively).
- From December 2022 to June 2023, we saw a slight decrease in BIPOC representation from 39.8% to 39.1%.
Key takeaways:
- In 2022 we restructured R/GA which reflects changes to our data collection methods. This chart represents our US Leadership team.
- In Q1 and Q2 2023, 39.4% of leaders in the United States identified as BIPOC and 54.2% identified as White. 6.4% declined to answer.
Key takeaways:
Decline in Representation of Asian Talent in the U.S.
- Asian talent at R/GA represented 11.2% of the workforce in June 2023, accounting for a slight decrease since December 2022 where representation stood at 11.8%.
- If we look at the long term trend, 14.1% of R/GAers identified as Asian in December 2018, which represents a steady decline over a five year period. We are focused on representation of Asian talent at our agency, especially at senior levels.
Key takeaways:
Steady Increase in Representation of U.S. Black Talent
- Black talent at R/GA represented 11.0% of the workforce in June 2023.
- When we look at the longer term trend, we see Black talent representing 6.0% in 2018, with representation almost doubling at the agency since that time.
- Between December 2021 and December 2022 we see the largest increase in Black talent from 8.4% to 10.5%.
- This increase coincides with the creation and implementation of the Make/Change strategy that focused on removing barriers for Black talent at all levels of the agency.
Key Takeaway
Slight Increase in Latine Talent since 2018
- In 2018, representation was 9.8%.
- As with AAPI talent, Latine representation at R/GA was 11.0% in Q2 2023.
HOW WE FEEL
At R/GA we define engagement as “the extent to which employees feel passionate about their jobs, are committed to the organization, and put discretionary effort into their work.” When Talent is engaged and fully enthusiastic about their work, they are more likely to take positive actions to develop a culture of inclusion. We measure engagement through our annual Engagement Survey which we conduct through the Culture Amp platform in order to maintain confidentiality.
On average, there is a 78% response rate across our global offices. The survey provides an opportunity for our people to provide feedback on their experiences at R/GA. This is especially important for underrepresented talent, given our focus on retention.
When we look back to 2018, R/GA’s BIPOC community expressed confidence in the direction our agency was headed in and expressed pride in working here. Results of our Engagement Survey demonstrated that BIPOC talent felt empowered within their roles and surrounded by a supportive environment with teams they could be their authentic selves within and managers who cared about them and their careers.
However, like many others at R/GA, they voiced a desire for important improvements within the company, including more open and honest communication, equal opportunities for advancement and work that creates a positive impact in the world. This feedback helped guide some of our strategic initiatives over the past five years. We revised our Career Development Strategy and Mobility Program in 2019, developed our new framework for designing a more human future and developed our Make/Change DEI strategy organized around six activation pillars.
In 2022, and since launching these initiatives, BIPOC employees experienced their highest level of engagement since we first started measuring engagement in 2017, including increased intention to remain at R/GA for the long term. Impacting their engagement are their significantly more positive feelings regarding the strategic areas of focus we listed above.
- Our BIPOC community believes in our purpose and ability to make a difference in the world through the work done for our clients (+17%).
- Furthermore, there is more open and honest communication (+20%), as well as opportunities to grow at R/GA (+11%).
- As far as inclusion, R/GA’s BIPOC community expressed more positivity about their voices being heard (+12%), that we’re building diverse teams (+12%) and a greater sense of belonging (+10%) than in 2018.
WHAT’S NEXT
At R/GA we believe in progress over perfection because we know there is always work to be done.
This is especially true when it comes to our leadership across the industry.
Our agency is committed to several projects in Q3 and Q4 2023, including working with global market leaders to roll out our latest DEI goals.
For the remainder of the year our plan is to continue:
- Increasing representation using a long-term strategy focused on our sourcing and hiring practices.
- Supporting our Culture Collectives (BRGs): Asian Voices (AV), Black Employee Network (BEN), Kareem, LGBTQ+, Somos and Woman/Up continue to move the needle for culture at R/GA.
- Maintaining our key relationships with Executive Coaches, Facilitators and Inclusion Experts on mental health, psychological safety, cultural intelligence, inclusive leadership, etc. to build awareness and strategies for our people.
- Identifying opportunities to support clients with their DEI goals and projects for increased synergies.
- Offering a diversity of perspectives, thought and lived experiences amongst team members to the work we offer our clients.
