VMLY&R UK joins a power line-up of organizations recognized for commitment to the Ethnicity Agenda and good work being done.
Celebrating at the House of Commons, the twenty-five organizations, including Paramount Global, HSBC, BNY Mellon, BT Group, Tesco Stores, KPMG LLP, were acknowledged for leadership and commitment to improving racial diversity while creating cultures and implementing inclusive policies that are benefit ethnic minority representation.
All twenty-five have achieved significant progress in the Government backed Maturity Matrix created by Investing in Ethnicity which is applied across six categories: board and organizations, policy & data, culture and inclusion, network groups, employee life cycle and external impact. Companies are also judged on D&I strategy and strategy around ethnicity
“Companies that put diversity front and centre perform better than those that do not. The maturity matrix gets companies talking about how to do just this and provides a blueprint for building a more inclusive and successful company” said Dawn Butler, MP.
Comments Debbie Ellison, Chief Digital Officer, VMLY&R Commerce, “DE&I has always sat at the heart of our company. So, we could not be prouder of this recognition for all our people who make a difference every single day. The reality is – none of us should underestimate the importance of measuring progress. Investing in the Ethnicity Maturity Index is a valuable tool that more business should be using.”
Abi Westfield, VMLY&R Equity, Inclusion & Belonging Manager, added, “We’ve come a long way in addressing challenges faced by our people and our clients. We’re on our way - with more to be done. As the sole agency recognised – as an industry we need to power up collaboration for more significant impact.”
In 2022 VMLY&R launched its UK Inclusion Experience Practice to systematically change how companies function. Debbie Ellison was named a Yahoo/ Empower Ethnic Minority Executive Role Model for the third consecutive year. In 2021, VMLY&R Commerce UK was named Diversity & Inclusion Company of the Year by The Drum.