WPP’s Wunderman Thompson, which found itself in the news over the sex discrimination case brought by five male former staff members, as added to its diversity and inclusion armoury with the appointment of Sufia Parkar (below) from McCann as EMEA inclusion, equity & diversity director.
Don’t really see where equity comes into it, but never mind.
Parkar says: “There are incredible things already happening here at Wunderman Thompson and I’m looking to build upon something fantastic. For too long, I’ve seen industry speak of DE&I as a regulatory hurdle when in fact it’s the opposite.
“When we have people with diverse experiences, diverse perspectives and diverse backgrounds, it inspires us to learn from one another. It unlocks new ways of thinking, of being more creative and being the best versions of ourselves. I can see that Wunderman Thompson is doing this in a way that deeply excites me and makes me want to be a part of the team.”
Wunderman Thompson owner WPP is still appealing the findings of a tribunal in the case of two of the five fomer staff, as far as we know.
Parkar won the UK’s inaugural IPA iList award, intended to “shift the culture within the industry” to lead to “better representation in creative work,” which is a bit weedy.
But she’s no doubt sincere in saying “incredible things” are happening at Wunderman Thompson. One reason, no doubt, is that clients are insisting on it and WPP’s diversity record is still patchy despite some manful efforts. Maybe we should rephrase that….
