Written by: Carolina Salinas, public relations and corporate communications graduate, Professional Development Inclusion & Equity Co-Chair, CPRS Toronto & Anjali Rego, Professional Development Subcommittee member
Diversity and inclusion have been an ongoing topic of discussion, where awareness has grown following the Black Lives Matter movement that originated in the U.S. However, there is still much work to do to combat racism, discrimination, and inequity within the Canadian public relations and communications industry.
Although systemic racism in the industry and society is not a new topic, talking about the elephant in the room within the public relations industry is a big step toward generating inclusion and diversity within workplaces. This was the topic tackled by CPRS Toronto’s most recent professional development event, held on Feb. 25.
The event was hosted and moderated by Gail Strachan, CPRS Toronto’s Director of Professional Development and Chair of Inclusion and Equity. Guest speakers included Rohini Mukherji, Vice President Integrated Communications, APEX Public Relations and Rob Ireland, Senior Vice President Hill + Knowlton Strategies (H+K). Each speaker and moderator gave insightful information on inclusion, diversity and equity in Canadian public relations firms and how PR professionals can generate a change among the society so that our employers include this topic in their core values.
Rohini and Rob began the conversation by highlighting that neither of them attended public relations schools. Despite not having traditional educational backgrounds, someone took a chance on them because of their transferable skills, which gave them a foot in the door into the world of PR. This view was confirmed by Gail’s experience as well, now in a completely different industry, Management Consulting, where she is able to leverage her legal background and communication skills in technology transformation projects.
Although an immigrant to Canada, Rohini shared her story as being atypical because she came to Canada as a student at the age of 17, when there weren’t many people of colour working in PR. With university education being an equalizer, she did not face the same barriers as other BIPoC individuals. Being aware of the barriers to entry, Rohini supports those around her who are entering the field.
“Breaking the glass ceiling is great, but we have to send the elevator back down,” she stated.
Despite being a White man, Rob had the opportunity to support the Black North Initiative, its board and committees when H+K Strategies was named the pro bono PR agency of record. To support the Initiative’s commitment to combating anti-black racism in society and Corporate Canada, Rob wore a Black North Initiative t-shirt to the event. He encouraged participants to also support this change of perspective within the PR industry.
“We need to listen and be able to relate to the communities we serve, and the face of our companies needs to reflect this. As a leader in a PR firm, we need to hire the right people with different lived experiences and thinking,” said Ireland.
Rob mentioned that PR agencies typically hire from PR schools, where students tend to be predominately White. Both Rob and Rohini agreed that Canadian public relations firms must commit to making leadership ranks more diverse, removing barriers to recruitment, retention, and advancement to improve the representation of BIPoC at all levels.
Gail mentioned that it is important to implement unconscious bias training, create safe spaces for employees from underrepresented groups, advocate for change with clients, and foster diverse representation in the content we draft on behalf of employees in our organization and our customers. She also mentioned the importance of making equity and anti-racism a focus topic within public relations firms and organizations.
When organizations hire someone who is a culture “fit”, Rohini proposed eliminating that requirement so that organizations are more welcoming of an individual.
“It is up to the organization welcoming them, not the individual being interviewed. That is on us,” said Rohini.
The interview process is the start of a relationship. As Rob stated, a relationship should start with dignity.
“We as employers need to create this open environment so people will feel safer being themselves,” said Rob. Gail added, “BIPoC individuals take measures to make White people feel comfortable during interviews. What are White interviewers doing to make candidates feel more comfortable?”
Before concluding, Rob encouraged the audience and candidates to take some action steps by asking future employers bold questions about how the organization supports inclusion and diversity. Run to the organizations that embrace diversity and this will force the other ones to do it,” said Rob.
After the chat, audience members asked questions, which led to interesting discussions about personal growth, new understanding and concerted effort to address a great employee experience in the PR industry. It was a golden opportunity where virtual attendees raised their voices and spoke candidly about their experiences.
The conversation wrapped up for the night, but the discussion continues.
CPRS Toronto plans to continue hosting professional development events, so stay tuned for those.