Like every company, Ketchum is on a journey. When it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion, we’ve taken some positive steps, but we have significant progress to make. We recognize our responsibility to do our part towards building a more inclusive and equitable society, but for too long our culture hasn’t adequately reflected the communities we serve or provided an opportunity for everyone to feel seen, safe, heard and valued.
We view our journey toward systemic change not as an evolutionary excursion, but as a revolutionary road — one that starts within but that extends to our clients, our partners and our industry peers. We hope you will join us on this journey.
Some of our writing and thinking on this process is reflected below. If you’d like to talk further about what this revolutionary road means for us – and what it can mean for you – please get in touch.
Is Yours an Inclusive Brand? How Communicators Can Make a Difference
Representation matters. That was the overarching theme of a Pride communications panel on inclusive brands that I had the privilege of moderating for 150+ Ketchum employees earlier in June, part of a month-long Pride programming series at the agency. As communications consultants, we have an opportunity – a mandate, really – to counsel our […]
Does Corporate America Have the Fortitude for True DE&I?
In the wake of the 2020 police murder of George Floyd, which reignited a national reckoning on racial justice, corporations and brands were seemingly quick to answer the calls for greater transparency and accountability. One organization after another announced wide-ranging social justice and diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) commitments, promising a sea change. But only […]
Gen Z in the Workforce: Key Takeaways for the Future from the Judges’ Table
In the last few years, a pivotal shift has taken place in the working world: Gen Z has jumped into the workforce. That’s right. Gen Z is old now. Well, not “old” per se, but they’re no longer tweens and early teens. The eldest are a few years into their career and many are in […]
Health Equity Internship: An Inaugural Experience for an Inaugural Intern
It’s safe to say, you never know how far sharing a simple hello will take you. That is how I found my beginnings at Ketchum. Near the end of my undergraduate education, I developed an interest in public health marketing and communications. I recognized the value of using these disciplines to educate and inform the […]
Our Take: SXSW Food Industry Trends
History of SXSW 2022 SXSW began in the 80’s as a local music festival in Austin and transcended into what many of us know today as one of the greatest connectors. It brings together everyone from creatives and celebrities, to start-ups, government officials, industry experts and activists – many of whom are working to build […]
International Women’s Day: Designers Break Down #BreakTheBias
Imagine a gender equal world. That’s what International Women’s Day organizers invite us to do as the end goal for taking up this year’s challenge — #BreakTheBias. In some ways, it feels as if women are more present and vitally important than ever before. Globally, 70% of frontline healthcare workers are women. It’s a woman […]
Black History Month: Black Futures and Progress in PR
As Black History Month comes to an end for another year, the conversations, actions and progress for equality must continue. Below, three Ketchum employees discuss what Black Futures means to them and how they think the PR industry needs to progress in order to be more inclusive. Channelle Russell, Intern, Marcom Ashley Sangster, Specialist, Talent […]
Black History Month: Advancing Black Health and Wellness through Health Equity, Environmental Justice and Sustainability
Black History Month is a chance to celebrate Black achievement, provide a fresh reminder to take stock of where systemic racism persists and give visibility to the people and organizations creating change. Every year a theme is selected. This year’s Black History Month theme is Black Health and Wellness. The theme reflects the urgency and focus being […]
Black History Month: Black Futures – What We Want for Our Children’s Future
In honor of Black History Month 2022, parents at Ketchum reflect on the futures they want for their children as they navigate the world around them as Black Americans. Rayanne Zackery, Vice President & North American DE&I Council Leader, Ketchum I think parents of all races have similar hopes for our children and future generations: […]
2021 Year in Review: Ketchum’s Most-Read Blog Posts
If 2020 was the Year of Unknowns, 2021 has been the Year of Uncertainty. At times it has felt like one step forward, two steps back. We’ve seen a year marked by the highs of COVID vaccine availability, the reopening of shops and restaurants, the emotional reunions of families, and the evolution of how co-workers […]
Health Equity Strategy: Social Determinants of Health Take Center Stage
A fresh look at why organizations should shape their health equity strategy and tell their health equity story. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of people across the country were forced to think more deeply about their own health, the health of their communities, and the systems intended to keep them healthy. This […]
3% Conference – Ketchum Attendees Salute a Decade of Difference in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
“If we don’t clean our filter, it becomes the window through which we see the world.” – Bertice Berry, PhD., sociologist and author, quoted from her “Focus on the Light” keynote at the 2021 3% Conference. Earlier this month, a team from Ketchum had the pleasure of collectively “cleaning our filters” while attending the 2021 […]
Our fears were realized. Women in the workforce have left at alarming rates.
A year after my post on the difficulties working mothers were facing at the beginning of the pandemic, more women in the workforce than I could have imagined have left. According to a March 2021 U.S. Census Bureau survey, women made up roughly 80% of those who left the workforce at the onset of the […]
The Uncomfortable Truth About Implicit Bias in Pediatric Care
Providing the best care for the greatest number of people means confronting biases we don’t even know we have With the number of children hospitalized with COVID growing rapidly, it is important to confront the uncomfortable truth about implicit bias in pediatric emergency settings. The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted a major wake-up call about racial […]
Don’t Just Be an Ally to Your New Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer. Be A Partner.
Let’s face it: stepping into the role of Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) is no easy feat. The resurged attention on the Black Lives Matter movement in the summer of 2020 accelerated a recent trend: LinkedIn found that the number of people with job titles associated with leading diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) efforts at their […]
The Luxury Fashion Industry: The Balancing Act of Artistic Credibility and Corporate Expectations
New York Fashion Week came to a close this past weekend, and like many industries, between COVID-19 and a rapidly changing social and political climate, the luxury fashion industry has had to break with traditions and reimagine itself and its relevance in our new world. Finding your footing in an ever-changing landscape is not unique to luxury fashion or, for that matter, any company or […]
True Equity Means Accessibility for All
Last week marked the Americans with Disabilities Act anniversary – a law signed 31 years ago as a result of a decades-long fight from the disability advocacy community that legally recognized for the first time the exclusion of people with disabilities as discrimination. To mark this historic date the FDR Memorial Legacy Committee held its […]
Accelerating Change in Health Equity
The global pandemic made public health everyone’s business — and it exposed how underserved communities are not just disproportionately impacted by disease, but often less able to access the care, services and resources for treatment and overall health. This transformational shift in health equity awareness has driven businesses, governments and organizations to address social determinants […]
Strong Roots Can Produce Beautiful Leaves
It’s funny how in our industry today, the word on everyone’s lips is “culture.” Having grown up in a multi-generational, moderately religious, bustling Indian household in the Midlands, culture was no stranger in our household. I was always surrounded by colours, smells, textures and stories which were heavily influenced by the vibrancy and mythological origins […]
Letting Go of Impostor Syndrome
Before I started my career at Ketchum, I often experienced the fear of failure and self-doubt that are associated with impostor syndrome. I had several jobs and internships where I felt inadequate. I remember constantly worrying whether I was actually qualified or just lucky. I’d find myself afraid that my managers, colleagues and even friends would […]
Pride Month 2021: Evolving the Celebration
This June, millions of people will join together for Pride Month 2021, the nation’s largest LGBTQIA+ celebration. Pride Month has traditionally been a time for parades and other events held in support of the LGBTQIA+ community and in commemoration of the Stonewall Riots. This uprising became a tipping point for the emerging gay rights movement […]
A New Definition of Resilience for Asian American Women
My grandmother taught me a definition of resilience that’s familiar to many Asian American women. I was five years old and living in Korea. My father had moved to the U.S. to study, my mother had moved into the hospital with my sick brother, and I was being bullied as the new kid in my […]
George Floyd, One Year Later: Key Communications Considerations
UPDATE—April 16: Each new act of police violence against the Black community now raises the bar exponentially for corporations to evaluate how they will or won’t respond. As if on cue, at the halfway mark of the Chauvin trial, this past week saw three more extraordinarily painful incidents of police violence, two involving Black men […]
Ketchum’s Women Leaders Raise their Voices for Gender Equity
Women’s History Month wraps up today. Like so many of these commemorative moments over the past year, 2021 was a flashpoint for the conversation about change. For the past month, Ketchum has celebrated progress, expressed gratitude for the strong female leaders we partner with, and simultaneously raised our voices around distressing examples of the work […]
How Financial Services Can Better Invest in Women
When Equal Pay Day in the U.S. falls on the final week of Women’s History Month a year into an economic crisis that has affected women disproportionately more than men … well, there might just be a few things to talk about. Especially when it comes to the financial services sector, which historically has lagged […]
Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable with Workforce Diversity Data
Over the past several months, you may have seen headlines in top-tier business media about companies releasing workforce diversity data. In some instances, these companies shared the data in tandem with new representation commitments. Some companies have boldly connected their commitments to executive pay and bonuses, while others are investing in their employees by focusing […]
How We #ChooseToChallenge on International Women’s Day
International Women’s Day 2021 arrives in a world that feels fundamentally different from last year. In every corner of the globe, the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the fabric of our lives—and women have been disproportionately affected, largely as an amplification of existing gender inequalities. According to a recent report from Glint, women are experiencing an […]
