It’s been hard to miss the fact several female creative leaders have left their positions without a job to go to over the last year. I’m not claiming that statement qualifies as a sophisticated analysisi. However, a disproportionate number of women have departed in this way versus men, given that the latter continue to make up the majority of senior creatives.
Life happens, of course. For companies and their staff. Sometimes, the role people were sold is not the one they see once the wrapping is off and they have had a proper chance to inspect it. Moreover, creative appointments are not for life, and it is a business leader’s job to ensure they have the right shape of team for their clients. Companies might also be forced to make cuts to keep solvent. But still.
So, I was dismayed – but emboldened – when someone pointed out the gender stats by senior job function in the IPA Census. The data is available in the full report but not included in the press release most analysisi is based on. The IPA provides the gender breakdown for 10 specialisms. Of them, creative leadership (which includes chief creative officers, executive creative directors, heads of creative department and creative directors) is the only area to report a decline in the proportion of women in both of the last two years. The figures fell from 30.2% in September 2022 to 27.0% in 2023 and again to 25.6% in 2024.
What I find most worrying about the stats is that they include creative directors, the executive creative directors and chief creative officers of the near future. Not only is there the issue of what the numbers mean for the work and workplace of agencies right now, the pipeline is also compromised.
The individual stories I’ve heard while looking for context to these industry-wide stats are depressingly predictable. Women returning from maternity leave finding they are no longer given the prestige briefs to work on. Leaders who speak up or complain being sidelined. Agencies requiring their staff to spend more time in the office is undoubtedly a factor, too, given many of these executives are likely to have caring responsibilities. This is backed up by research last year that found female creatives are under-appreciated, overlooked, and misunderstood.
Someone I discussed this issue with likened their feelings on the matter to the older women who hold signs saying: “I can't believe I still have to protest this shit” at marches. One of the most depressing views someone told me was that it isn’t that creative departments became better places for women to build careers and have since fallen backwards. Instead, things didn’t materially improve in the first place. It was a mirage. Agencies covered up for systemic problems with tokenistic hires they didn’t support and nurture.
When I asked, a spokesperson for the IPA declined to comment on the creative stats but highlighted gender representation at the C-suite, head of department and manager levels have increased overall. But it is that latter point which makes the situation in creative departments so pertinent.
IPA does not currently have any dedicated training for female creative leaders, and the spokesperson directed me to its more general Stepping into the Spotlight series. Similarly, Wacl’s programmes, such as the Talent Awards and the Talent Festival, are open to parts of the industryii. Bloom's work appears to be, too. Creative Equals Business is also multidisciplinary. The latter's Returners programme, which is back in May, does focus on creatives, but those have taken a career break.
I don’t highlight the generalised schemes to criticise them, but it would be interesting if they tracked the spread of job function of the people they supportiii. They could then, if they wanted to, hold places for parts of the industry where the need is more acute. Media buying, which is not broken down in the IPA figures, surely needs attention, too. The commendable recent launch of Women in Trading was much needed. The greatest burden, however, must be on employers. If only ad shops were as good at retaining women creative directors as they are at putting junior female creatives up for rising star awards.
In addition to the efforts of Bloom, Creative Equals, the IPA and Wacl, work is being done elsewhere. SheSays has launched a campaign today to recruit active allies in the workplace, citing research from Major Players that suggests there has been a 5% decline in women in the creative industries since 2021. Pregnant Then Screwed highlighted the motherhood penalty in a striking campaign last week. If you'll forgive me for ending on a positive note, given female representation among senior creatives improved in 2020 and 2021, maybe the recent stats are the blip. Or they could be if the industry focuses its mind.
And then, I won't have to write any more columns on this shit.
Maisie McCabe is the UK editor of Campaign.
i Including Campaign’s.
ii Wacl has a bursary with D&AD, but the creative charity was still looking into the data of its uptake at the time of publication.
iii Wacl said it was interested in doing so