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Helen Lin just became Publicis Groupe’s new chief digital officer (CDO)—and her appointment is more unique than it should be.
- Lin’s been with the agency holding company for 14+ years, serving as CDO for Publicis Media for the past two.
Zoom out: At Publicis Groupe, the percentage of BIPOC employees shrinks as you climb the corporate ladder, whereas the proportion of white employees only grows.
- For instance, 16.4% of mid-level Publicis employees identify as Asian, but only 10.7% of senior leaders do.
- 81.8% of the agency’s senior leaders are white, as are 69.5% of mid-levelers and 64.8% of entry-level positions, per the agency holding company’s July 2020 US diversity report.
And it’s not just Publicis—other major agency groups like IPG and Dentsu followed the same pattern in their July diversity data.
My takeaway: Entry- and mid-level industry employees deserve to see faces that look like theirs getting C-suite promotions—especially when they're as accomplished as Lin.