FEMMES FORWARD //Leveling the [Creative] Playing Field by Anne Rey In 2018, the Global Talent team was look- The results to date have been im- Director of Social Impact ing at data regarding gender representa- pressive with a 73% retention rate Programming & Content, Havas tion across Havas. As part of this process, and a 60% promotion rate. they determined that women at the senior manager/director role were not While all were pleased with the suc- advancing to the next role at the same cess, the number of women in senior pace as men. As the team dug deeper, creative roles was still lagging. The conducting many interviews, they deter- data showed that while women were mined there were a variety of reasons for making it to the creative director level, this difference – ranging from new life they rarely progressed to the more stages such as partnership and starting senior leadership positions of group families to ambition and confidence Creative Director, Executive Creative gaps. Sharing these insightswith Chair- Director, and Chief Creative Officer. man and Global CEO of Havas, Yannick But why? Bolloré, he declared, “Creativity has always been linked to power. The agency doors have al- “I want Havas to ways had men’s names on them. Theseries Mad Men depicts this beauti- become th e destination fully. Ogilvy, Leo Burnett, Wieden are some of the surnames of the men who where women can founded the world’s major agencies,” says Laura Florence, ECD at Havas grow their careers.” Health & You Brazil and Co-Founder of MOREGRLS. YANNICK BOLLORÉ President and CCO of Havas Chica- go, Myra Nussbaum added, “It starts with simply telling young women cre- From there, the Femmes Forward atives that they can reach these titles. program was born with a focus on the Many women also lack confidence to advancement of senior manager and say out loud that they want to be an director-level women within the group. ECD or CCO. I certainly did.” A comprehensive program, it covers “It wasn’t until a close skills training, leadership assessments, inspiration from speakers, networking, coworker told me I’d be community building, the design of the now hybrid (virtual + onsite) program CCO one day that I began aimed at offering a comprehensive experience rooted in self-reflection, to see it for myself.” confidence building, senior leadership exposure, and career advancement plan- ning.Fast forward five years later and MYRA NUSSBAUM almost 400 women senior managers/ directors from 34 countries have par- ticipated in Femmes Forward women’s advancement program. WOMEN IN CREATIVE LEADERSHIP 5.7% 24.8% Includes Group Creative Director, Chief Experience Officer, Executive Creative Director and Chief Creative Officer roles, 2021 - 2023.