2018: Passion. Purpose. Progress.

One year ago, we were vigorously recruiting companies to be part of the industry’s first measurement-based initiative to create a more diverse and inclusive workforce. The initiative is called IDAC: Inclusion and Diversity Accountability Consortium, and we launched in December 2017 with 11 inaugural participants. IDAC was a manifestation of our mission, which is to pave the way for women – all women – to lead at every level of marketing, media and tech.

What a difference a year makes. As we close out 2018, I am exceedingly proud that IDAC has gained broad industry endorsement from agencies and marketers, as well as associations like 4As and IAB. It is 20 participants strong and gaining momentum with the recent addition of Kellogg and HP as IDAC partners. We have conducted six spirited roundtable conversations to confront barriers and learn from the successes that many IDAC companies are achieving. And in October we published the results of our first annual benchmarking study. The mission is far from accomplished, but the industry has taken a vital first step toward #inclusivebrands, and the progress is, for the first time, measureable.

In Q1 2019, we are going to bring the dialogue to the West Coast as we host our Q1 Thought Leadership roundtable in LA.

Our commitment to inclusion and gender parity also fueled our 4th Annual Multicultural Alliance Bootcamp this past Summer. The sold-out session sparked joy and inspiration for many members and guests, and the energy was so infectious we are hosting the 5^th annual Bootcamp in Chicago on March 13^th (hosted by VML).

The success of IDAC, Bootcamp and so many other initiatives (mentoring, networking, leadership development training and loan relief), would not be possible without our amazing Corporate Alliance partners. We began offering corporate partnerships in 2016 to organizations intent on leveraging She Runs It as an employee benefit, and we now support 25 companies, including our newest CAP companies Turner, Viacom and Hulu. We are also very grateful for our 100% 2019 renewal rate with current partners. Thank you!

What 2018 proved to me is that passion plus purpose equals progress. I hope that our entire community can carry this spirit into the holiday season and into 2019. Our mission is not accomplished, but we are moving in the right direction and the journey is made easier and more enjoyable thanks to each and every one of you.

Happy Holidays.