Ethnic Diversity Still Lacking In Marketing Industry: ANA Study

NEW YORK (November 17, 2020) — ANA client-side marketers continue to make significant progress in achieving gender equality among CMOs, but in stark contrast there has been little headway made in improving ethnic diversity.

Those are the key findings in a new report from the ANA and the ANA’s Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing that combines the outcomes of three recent surveys of ANA and AIMM members.

The three surveys in the report, “A Diversity Report for the Advertising/Marketing Industry” covered:

1. ANA Member CMOs: Gender and ethnic diversity of the CMO/CMO-equivalent at 870 ANA member client-side marketer company members.
2. ANA Overall Membership: Gender and ethnic diversity of the overall ANA membership, representing 30,940 individuals who provided gender identity and 27,974 who provided ethnic diversity information.
3. ANA Board of Directors and Other Member Company Marketing Departments: Gender and ethnic diversity among the U.S.-based marketing departments of 40 ANA board and other member companies representing 15,419 marketers in total. This analysis includes information on sexual orientation and disabilities.

The study is a key initiative for the Society and Sustainability priority of the ANA Growth Agenda, which provides a compass for the industry to leverage marketing as a sustainable growth driver. A specific mandate for the Society and Sustainability working group is to achieve proportionate representation in the media and creative supply chain.

GENDER
CMOs/Senior Level

• According to the report, among the ANA member CMOs and equivalents (870 total), 52 percent of the top marketer positions are female, a percentage that increased from 47 percent in 2019 and 45 percent in 2018.
• Among the 40 ANA board of directors and other member companies, at the senior level (representing 5 to 10 percent of marketing department staff), the gender skew is 56 percent female, an increase from 52 percent in 2019 and 46 percent in 2018.

Marketing Department

• According to the report based on 30,940 individuals who provided gender identity, the ANA overall membership is 67 percent female and 33 percent male.
• The gender identity for the marketing departments among the 40 participating ANA board and other member companies is 63 percent female and 37 percent male.

ETHNICITY
CMOs/Senior Level

• Of ANA member CMOs and equivalents (870 total), only 12 percent of the top marketer positions are ethnically diverse.
• Among the 40 ANA board of directors and other member companies at the senior level (representing 5 to 10 percent of marketing department staff), 27 percent are ethnically diverse:
  • African-Americans/Blacks comprise 5 percent of the senior level, but are approximately 13 percent of the total population.
  • Asians comprise 8 percent of the senior level and are 6 percent of the total population.
  • Hispanics/Latinos comprise 8 percent of the senior level but are 18 percent of the total population.

Marketing Department

• Of 27,974 individuals who provided ethnicity, 26 percent are ethnically diverse.
• The ethnicity in the marketing departments among the 40 participating ANA board and other member companies overall is 29 percent multicultural in 2020, consistent with past studies. More specifically:
  • African-Americans/Blacks comprise 7 percent of the marketing department, but are approximately 13 percent of the total population.
  • Asians comprise 10 percent of the marketing department and are 6 percent of the total population.
  • Hispanics/Latinos comprise 8 percent of the marketing department but are 18 percent of the total population.

In both studies, the ethnic diversity at the CMO and senior levels was virtually unchanged versus prior studies and is well below the 40 percent diversity among the general population.

OBSERVATIONS, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS:

• As was the case in both the 2019 and 2018 studies, the data collected in the three 2020 reports is remarkably consistent.

• At the senior leadership level, female representation is now likely at an all-time high. The report noted that, based on ANA board and other member companies, 56 percent of senior level marketers are now female. Also, in the analysis of the CMO/CMO equivalent at ANA marketer company members, female representation is now 52 percent. In both cases, female senior-level marketer representation increased since last year’s study.

• Ethnic diversity remains poor from the senior level on down, especially for African-American/Black and Hispanic/Latino. The qualitative feedback received on key action steps that have helped improve diversity within the marketing department should be strongly considered.

• Marketers should proactively ask their suppliers about their diversity.

• Marketers should also use the ANA/AIMM list of Certified Diverse Suppliers for Marketing/Advertising as a resource for identifying diverse suppliers.

A copy of the full report can be accessed here.

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ABOUT THE ANA

The mission of the ANA (Association of National Advertisers) is to drive growth for marketing professionals, brands and businesses, the industry, and humanity. The ANA serves the marketing needs of 20,000 brands by leveraging the 12-point ANA Growth Agenda, which has been endorsed by the Global CMO Growth Council. The ANA’s membership consists of U.S. and international companies, including client-side marketers, nonprofits, fundraisers, and marketing solutions providers (data science and technology companies, ad agencies, publishers, media companies, suppliers, and vendors). The ANA creates Marketing Growth Champions by serving, educating, and advocating for more than 50,000 industry members that collectively invest more than $400 billion in marketing and advertising annually.

MEDIA CONTACT:

John Wolfe
ANA
Director of Communications
Office: 212.455.8011
Cell: 914.659.8663
Email: jwolfe@ana.net