DE&I Forum

Open to Client-Side Marketers (Members Only)
and Marketing Service Providers (Platinum and Gold Members Only)

The focus on DE&I in the workplace and with suppliers is not a new one, but it has risen to the forefront as discussions around social injustice and lack of representation have ramped up over the past months.

In response to the increased interest among marketers, the ANA has committed to hosting regular DE&I Forums, a place where professionals can be briefed on current thought leadership, learn from case studies presented by market leaders, and network and share best practices with peers.

Committee Chair:

Carol Vella, Associate Director, Marketing - Diversity, Equity & Inclusion - Walmart 

Carol Vella is the Associate Director, Marketing – CDEI at Walmart. She leads DEI strategy related to external marketing communications and internal best practices for the marketing department, such as recruiting and training. A relentless advocate for diversity, she serves as the Walmart Ambassador for NextUp and on the Latinx ARG leadership team. Outside of work, she serves as a founding member of the City of Bentonville Diversity & Inclusion Taskforce, a foster parent and refugee co-sponsor.  She has a wonderful husband, Jason, also at Walmart, and two daughters, ages 8 & 10.

ANA staff managing the DE&I Forum is Karim Amadeo.

Discussion Topics

• Accuracy and representation in creative work
• Diversification of the marketing and advertising supply chain
• Diversifying graduate programs to diversify the workplace
• Driving systematic change within the organization
• From the workplace to the marketplace
• Incorporating diversity into the fabric of the organization and enhancing the culture
• Increasing diversity at the agency level
• New ways of ensuring diversity during the hiring practice
• The importance of Employee Resource Groups

Leadership Initiatives

Certified Diverse Suppliers Resource List
Finding diverse suppliers is a key challenge in supplier diversity. As a follow-up to the 2020 report, “The Power of Supplier Diversity,” ANA/AIMM began curating a list of diverse suppliers that work in our industry. The initial “Certified Diverse Suppliers Resource List” was issued in July 2020 and has been updated on a regular basis.

A Diversity Report for the Advertising/Marketing Industry - November 2022
The report reveals that representation of women in the industry overall and in leadership positions continues to be strong. Further, there has been an increase in the ethnic diversity of the marketing teams of ANA member companies — the most significant growth of ethnic diversity in the five-year history of this report! The overall ethnic skew of the marketing/advertising industry is now 32.3 percent diverse, up from 30.8 percent a year ago.

Guidelines for Buyers (Agencies and Marketers) When Doing Business with Diverse Media Suppliers - May 2022
The purpose of this guidance is to help buyers (agencies and marketers) and diverse media suppliers improve their ways of working together. This work was created by a cross-industry collaboration. The 4A's, the ANA, and AIMM, with input from our respective members, drafted the initial guidelines.

LGBTQ+ Marketing Inclusion Report - December 2021
This report provides an initial look at the state of LGBTQ+ marketing inclusion and representation among client-side marketer members. As more brands enter public conversations on societal movements, they are highlighting how to authentically support the LGBTQ+ community through their marketing campaigns. The report shows positive overall movement toward greater LGBTQ+ marketing inclusion in the advertising industry and provides key action items that can further enhance positive brand perception within the LGBTQ+ community.

And Now a Word from the Diverse Suppliers: The Supplier Perspective on Certification - December 2021
This research surveyed suppliers on the ANA/AIMM list of certified diverse suppliers. The focus was on certification, to understand its importance, benefits, challenges, ease/difficulty of the process, and more. The research found that there are multiple benefits of obtaining certification. Businesses are included in more RFPs, which provides additional exposure to corporate marketing departments, which leads to increased sales.

A Diversity Report for the Advertising/Marketing Industry - November 2021
This fourth annual report from ANA and ANA's Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM), based on three separate studies among ANA members, concludes that finally, there has been progress in increasing ethnic diversity in the advertising/marketing industry. The overall ethnic skew of the marketing/advertising industry is more diverse than ever, at 30.8 percent, yet despite the progress, there is still work to be done.

The Growth of Supplier Diversity - May 2021
A supplier diversity program is a proactive business program which encourages the use of women-owned, ethnic/minority-owned, veteran-owned, LGBTQ-owned, disability-owned, and small businesses as suppliers. “The Growth of Supplier Diversity” provides a deep dive into supplier diversity in marketing/advertising, covering areas including benefits, challenges, spend, goals, and measurement. The report is based on both quantitative (March 2021 survey with 112 respondents) and qualitative research. “The Growth of Supplier Diversity” is a follow-up to the 2020 ANA report “The Power of Supplier Diversity.”

The Power of Supplier Diversity - May 2020
A supplier diversity program is a proactive business program which encourages the use of women-owned, ethnic/minority-owned, veteran-owned, LGBTQ-owned, disability-owned, and small businesses as suppliers. This report covers the findings from quantitative and qualitative research conducted by the ANA. The purpose was to gain an understanding of the incidence of supplier diversity programs as well as benefits, challenges, spend, goals, measurement, influence, and more.

Upcoming Virtual Supplier Diversity Fairs 
Open to all, including nonmembers

• Tuesday, April 18 – Meet Diverse-Owned Production Companies
• Thursday, June 1 – Meet Asian-Owned Companies

Previous events:

• Wednesday, February 1 – Meet LGBTQ+ Owned Companies