IBM's Michelle Peluso and the ARF's Scott McDonald on Diversity

Peluso pictured at top is a believer in challenging the advertising business to step up diversity and female representation explaining that encouraging diversity especially in the CMO ranks will lead to more vitality in the industry moving forwardamp160 But there are challenges that need to be addressedamp160 quotThere seems to be very high and terrific representation of women in their early career but there39s a clear drop off in representation as you get to midcareer and operational levels and there needs to be something done about this to increase representationquot she declaredScott McDonald CEO of ARF finds quotthe worklife profile of the entire population is far more heterogeneous than in the pastquot but noted that quotmarketers and advertisers need diverse perspectives to come to terms with these invigorating complexities and to create innovative ways of communicating with their marketsquotI recently sat down with Peluso and McDonald pictured below to discuss these concerns and othersCharlene Weisleramp160 What is impact of the dearth of women in CSuite managementMichelle Pelusoamp160 Plain and simple it39s a huge missed opportunity in terms of what we know and studies tell us to be true the tremendous benefit that diversity brings to problem solving innovation and understanding consumer behavioramp160 So if there39s an absence of female representation in the CSuite that39s doing a disservice to the company and to societyWeisleramp160 Scott why more than ever is innovative thinking from a range of different people required in the ad industry Scott McDonaldamp160 The population is getting more diverse across all dimensionsamp160 Longer life expectancy means that we have more generations alive at one time than ever before and research indicates that generations vary more on many behaviors and attitudes than in the pastamp160 A quotminority majorityquot is expected soon in many of our largest statesamp160 Women continue to enter the workforce and move into sectors that previously had been maledominatedamp160 Delayed marriages and recombinant families mean that we now sort ourselves into a range of different lifestyles across our long life coursesWeisleramp160 How can more women be prepared nurtured and helped to advance up the corporate ladderPelusoamp160 Unlike 20 years ago with the exception of some areas of IT you see equal participation of women in business but then you see things start to drop off around midcareer womenamp160 We need to make sure these women have the flexibility the sponsorship and mentoring and the opportunities to propel forwardamp160 We need to make sure thereamp8217s thoughtfulness put in place and that we are shepherding their successWeisleramp160 Scott why is highlighting the contributions of someone like Michelle critical for encouraging diversity in the CMO ranksMcDonaldamp160 It used to be that CMOs oversaw ad budgets and came up with ideas for marketing campaigns amp160Increasingly they now manage complex CRM databases and data management platforms envision and execute events forge partnerships and leverage new technologiesamp160 Many of these newer dataintensive functions have historically been skewed toward males so it was a signal moment when IBM a large tech company named Michelle to be its first corporatewide CMOamp160 Her background spans the space from classical liberal arts philosophy politics economics to consumercentric digital marketing Gilt Group Citi to technology development Technology Crossover Venturesamp160 Her appointment should serve as an example to companies trying to fill equally difficult and demanding CMO positionsWeisleramp160 Michelle how has your career path contributed to your corporate ascentPelusoamp160 I think being willing to take risks and traverse industries to go from small companies to large companies and not letting myself remain in a comfort zone has really informed my careeramp160 My network of thought partners have all shaped how I think about the world and have brought me a diversity of learning that I could not have experienced otherwiseWeisleramp160 Scott how is the advancement of women important to the vitality of the industry moving forwardMcDonaldamp160 The days are long past when a couple of white guys could get together and come up with the best marketing ideas to bring to this wonderfully diverse American marketplaceamp160 Letamp8217s take a recent example from politicsamp160 Was it a good idea for Senate Republicans to appoint 13 white men to write their party39s version of the health care reform bill this summeramp160 Might that draft have been improved by a bit more diversityamp160 To me the question answers itselfamp160Weisleramp160 Michelle who were some of your mentors and how did they help youPelusoamp160 I39ve found that mentors are everywhereamp160 If you have that mindset people all around you are doing things you can learn fromamp160 Sandy Moose whotook me under her wing when I was at BCG and Citigroup39s Manuel Medina Mora both taught me a lotClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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IBM's Michelle Peluso and the ARF's Scott McDonald on Diversity

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Charlene Weisler

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IBM's Michelle Peluso and the ARF's Scott McDonald on Diversity

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Charlene Weisler

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