Why a Diverse Workforce is Essential in Today’s Media Landscape -- Radha Subramanyam

MyersBizNet supports and promotes diversity in media advertising and entertainment through its Communities with Purpose Women Advancing 1stFive Media AllStars Media Legends and Future Men We are pleased to have Radha Subramanyam sit on Women Advancing39s Executive Council leading Diversity Initiatives for women in media With Radha39s leadership Women Advancing recognizes diversity as a priority for the future health of society and supports development of resources to advance diversity in media marketing and entertainment iHeartMedia recently held the first iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina which brought together Latin musicamp8217s biggest names including Ricky Martin Pitbull Becky G Alejandra Guzmamp225n and many othersFor many Fiesta Latina was groundbreaking The Los Angeles Times described it as amp8220the rare festival that understood that it39s pointless to cordon off Latin pop into a separate musical universe in LA The concert showed the real future of Latin pop in Americaamp8221 But for iHeartMedia which reaches almost 40 million Hispanic listeners per month more than any other radio or TV outlet in the US the event wasnamp8217t just about being groundbreaking It was also about listening to our consumers and in turn giving them exactly what they wanted to hear and seeThe iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina is the perfect example of the importance of knowing your consumer especially for companies looking to tap into the tremendous buying power of minority groups and women In todayamp8217s ubercompetitive consumerdriven media landscape companies must utilize every advantage when it comes to attracting and keeping consumers Unfortunately many of these companies are overlooking the significance of who they hire and promoteWhen organizations proactively promote a diverse workforce benefits include broader audience penetration and employee retention Executing a diverse environment benefits companies through greater growth advancement and opportunities for all employees As the diversity chair for Women Advancing which focuses on connecting female professionals in the media marketing and advertising industries this subject is especially important to me It is a topic we often discuss at our events which have up to 30 diversity among attendees well above the average for media industry gatheringsOf course the idea of a diverse workforce has been at the forefront of workplace discussions for years now and weamp8217ve made great strides with all underrepresented groups especially women According to the United States Department of Labor Womenamp8217s Bureau women made up just 47 of the total workforce yet comprised 515 of all workers in highpaying management professional and related careersWe should applaud these statistics especially compared with those from a generation ago but we also must acknowledge that there is a long road to travel before we can truly congratulate ourselves on a job well done Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently apologized for his controversial remarks suggesting women not ask for pay increases and instead have amp8220faith that the system will actually give you the right raises as you go alongamp8221 Unfortunately the system is extremely flawed A US Census report from just two years ago found that women make 77 cents for every dollar their male counterparts bring homeJust as disconcerting is a 2012 study examining top leadership positions at Fortune 500 companies that was conducted by Catalyst a nonprofit organization focusing on women in business For the third year in a row women only held 143 of Executive Officer positions and for the fifth consecutive year twothirds of Fortune 500 companies had no minority women on their board of directorsThis begs the question why We can no longer use the excuse that there are no viable candidates There are but what are we doing to find and nurture them Media executives need to take a good look in the mirror and ask why we are still failing when it comes to employing women and people of color in high level positionsEven if executives arenamp8217t noticing the lack of women in decision making positions the younger generation is definitely well aware of inequality in the office A 2013 Pew Research study found that 75 of Millennial women and 57 of men believe that the US needs to continue making changes to achieve gender equality in the workplace With Millennials a generation more ethnically diverse than their predecessors expected to comprise 75 of the workforce by 2025 according to Business Insider their opinion mattersPart of embracing a multicultural inclusive and forwardthinking environment is being committed to attracting and retaining a talented and diverse workforceThere are steps we can take to ensure our employees more accurately reflect the rich diversity of the clients and marketplace we serve including Think Beyond Quotas Start looking at hiring the best person for the job Make sure your Human Resources department gives you a wide range of candidates and donamp8217t let preconceptions get in the way of hiring the best candidate Focus on Quality not Quantity Discard the oldfashioned view of the ninetofive desk job With todayamp8217s technology your workforce can be just as effective maybe even more so working remotely This is important for all groups whether itamp8217s working mothers Baby Boomers needing to care for elder parents or Millennials striving for a better worklife balance Celebrate Differences Acknowledge your workforceamp8217s diversity by creating a broader sense of inclusiveness This could take various forms such as pot lucks that reflect each employeeamp8217s heritage or celebrating holidays like Rosh Hashanah Ramadan and Diwali Invest in Employees Itamp8217s not enough just to hire more minorities and women You must give them proper training and mentoring to help them reach their full potential Theyamp8217ll appreciate the investment Although salaries will always hold some level of importance a study of college students by PricewaterhouseCoopers discovered that training and development was the most highly valued benefit for employees even higher than cash bonusesAs global companies we need to welcome respect and most importantly celebrate our diversity and harness the various talent perspectives and skills that each and every person brings to the team By coming together collaborating and sharing each unique perspective it opens the door to new insights and innovation and is a powerful formula for successRadha Subramanyam is President of Insights Research and Analytics for iHeartMedia She is a seasoned media and entertainment executive with a significant track record as a thought leader in Media Research and Consumer Trends She is one of the few executives who has touched all media platforms including television digital radio and social media Radha is known for her translation of research and insights into actionable strategies and results for the companies she works for as well as their clients and partners Radha can be reached at radhasubramanyamiheartmediacomRead all iHeartMedia39s MediaBizBloggers commentaries at iHeartMediaCheck us out on Facebook at MediaBizBloggerscomFollow our Twitter updates MediaBizBloggerThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaBizBloggerscom management or associated bloggers MediaBizBloggers is an open thought leadership platform and readers may share their comments and opinions in response to all commentaries

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Why a Diverse Workforce is Essential in Today’s Media Landscape -- Radha Subramanyam

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