By: Kai Weidie, senior vice-president of diversity, equity and inclusion, Dentsu Media US
Dentsu has been working towards a unified culture, one where we recognize and celebrate our uniqueness. Our business resource groups have grown significantly in this area over the past few years, providing us with an opportunity to better serve our entire organization, helping us to learn and most importantly, unlearn history, biases, and stereotypes.
This Black History month, our Mosaic identity group – within our larger multicultural business resource group – developed monthlong programming centered around the ‘Power of Belief’. Our group put together a meaningful experience that celebrates the diversity within our organization and inspires our employees through our annual micro-action calendar. Featured on this calendar, we will host a series of events focused on bringing together our employees to learn more and do more by celebrating diversity, inspiring creativity, and encouraging wellness and sustainability.
This week, we asked our BRG leads to answer, “What does being part of the Mosaic Identity Group mean to you?” Here’s what they had to say:
“The Mosaic means family. We can feel the richness of fellowship every time we meet with our members and truly SEE each other. I will always work thoughtfully to empower and amplify the culture at dentsu and beyond.” - Filecellia Sampson, Internal Communications & Culture Manager, dentsu Media
"To me, being part of The Mosaic means being part of restoration in progress. There is an internal restoration for me and also restoration of community with other Black individuals." – Garrett Kellogg, Manager, Studio Production, dentsu Creative
This month, our tentpole event will be hosted by Gia Peppers, award-winning on-air talent, entertainment journalist, content creator and podcaster. She will moderate a panel discussion with Black leaders across Dentsu to share their career journeys, insights, and experiences of being Black at work. This session will be an opportunity for us to learn from their journeys, be inspired by their ambition, but also take a step back so we can ensure that the hurdles they had to jump through can be a little shorter for the next generations to come.
We understand that Black History Month isn't just one month, but a year-round celebration and our More than That podcast series with Gia Peppers is all about showcasing Black excellence beyond February. Going into its third year, we’re proud of this long-standing partnership with ADCOLOR, Group Black, The National Association of Black-Owned Broadcasters, General Motors, Procter & Gamble and Kroger, and our ongoing work to create representation across creative, equitable media, unbiased data via CXM.