FleishmanHillard Announces New Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leaders
Agency Releases Progress Toward 2021 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Goals
ST. LOUIS, May 19, 2021 — FleishmanHillard today announced five newly created roles and appointments in its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) office, along with its first-quarter DE&I progress. The new DE&I team will be responsible for accelerating the agency’s progress and widening the breadth of perspectives.
The appointments join Leela Stake (she/her) and Adiya Mobley (she/her), co-leads of True MOSAIC, the agency’s DE&I client practice. They include:
- Rachel Coleman (she/her), DE&I director, FleishmanHillard in Chicago.
Coleman is a former DE&I champion for the agency’s Chicago office who will manage several of FleishmanHillard’s transformation initiatives and share those learnings and best practices with DE&I counselors to adopt and apply for client counsel. - John Soriano (he/him), DE&I director, FleishmanHillard in Los Angeles.
Soriano has worked closely with DE&I champions across offices for the past several years and will now support the global scaling and development of a culture of DE&I in FleishmanHillard offices around the world. In this role, he’ll work closely with the agency’s DE&I champions to support, highlight and incubate new DE&I initiatives and experiences. - Francesca Weems (she/her), DE&I director, FleishmanHillard in San Francisco.
Weems leads the DE&I committee and fellowship program in the agency’s San Francisco office, along with shaping our clients’ executive visibility platforms. DE&I leadership runs through her and, as such, she will steer FleishmanHillard in shaping its global DE&I strategy, perspectives on key DE&I topics and thought leadership. - Chavonne Jones (she/her), DE&I storytelling managing editor, FleishmanHillard in New York.
Jones is a storyteller and media relations expert whose ability to craft the narrative and get attention on the stories that matter is unmatched. She will step into the role of managing editor for FHPerspectives, weaving a central strategy and looking for storytelling opportunities across the agency’s global network and DE&I work. - Cheyenne Cameron-Pruitt (she/her), DE&I program manager, FleishmanHillard in Sacramento. Cameron-Pruittis a DE&I champion for FleishmanHillard Sacramento, fellow mentor and an originator of Remix Your Algorithm, a program to help broaden individuals’ perspectives. She will serve as the storytelling project manager.
“As FleishmanHillard moves DE&I to the center of our business, we’ve identified key roles within our organization to help ensure continued DE&I momentum and accountability,” said Adrianne C. Smith (she/her), chief diversity and inclusion officer, FleishmanHillard. “This group will help us stay focused on our ambition, support the advancement of the agency’s DE&I progress and help us better serve our clients.”
In February FleishmanHillard announced an ambitious DE&I plan to put DE&I at the center of the agency and mobilize its community. To begin the plan’s activation during the first quarter of 2021, FleishmanHillard has:
- Hired diverse colleagues for 40% of open positions (as designated by “Race” in the United States EEO data)
- Developed a DE&I Taskforce, comprising 17 leaders representing all regions, that supports and guides its DE&I work
- Incorporated 110+ colleagues into True MOSAIC
- Counseled 85+ clients on DE&I journeys through True MOSAIC
- Hosted six internal #LosetheWhisper sessions to share and learn about other perspectives
- Conducted Unconscious Bias and Inclusive Leadership training for 370 colleagues this year
- Contributed 24,400+ hours of pro bono service, the equivalent of more than $5.1 million in fees, to its communities through FH4Inclusion since its launch in 2016
- Earned recognition from the Human Rights Campaign as a 2020 Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality and was named one of the 2020+ Top Companies for Executive Women by Working Mother Media, representing the 12th consecutive time the agency has been selected to the “Top Companies for Executive Women” list, and the sixth consecutive time the agency has ranked in the Top 10
“We will continue to measure and assess the progress of our DE&I journey, staying true to our commitment to our people, business and communities to become the most inclusive agency in the world,” Smith said. “There is still a lot of work to be done, but as FleishmanHillard celebrates its 75th year, now is the moment to stand up and commit to the agency we’re going to be for the next 75.”
About FleishmanHillard
FleishmanHillard specializes in public relations, reputation management, public affairs, brand marketing, digital strategy, social engagement and content strategy. FleishmanHillard was named 2020 Campaign Global PR Agency of the Year; 2019 PRWeek U.S. Outstanding Large Agency; 2019 Holmes Report North America Large Agency of the Year; ICCO Network of the Year — Americas 2017-2020; PRovoke Media Greater China Consultancy of the Year 2020; PRWeek UK Best Places to Work 2020; Human Rights Campaign Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality 2018-2020; and NAFE’s “Top Companies for Executive Women” 2010-2020. The firm’s award-winning work is widely heralded, including at the Cannes International Festival of Creativity. FleishmanHillard is part of Omnicom Public Relations Group and has 80 offices in more than 30 countries, plus affiliates in 50 countries.
About Omnicom Public Relations Group
Omnicom Public Relations Group is a global collective of three of the top global public relations agencies worldwide and specialist agencies in areas including public affairs, marketing to women, global health strategy and corporate social responsibility. It encompasses more than 6,300 public relations professionals in more than 370 offices worldwide who provide their expertise to companies, government agencies, NGOs and nonprofits across a wide range of industries. Omnicom Public Relations Group delivers for clients through a relentless focus on talent, continuous pursuit of innovation and a culture steeped in collaboration. Omnicom Public Relations Group is part of the DAS Group of Companies, a division of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) that includes more than 200 companies in a wide range of marketing disciplines including advertising, public relations, healthcare, customer relationship management, events, promotional marketing, branding and research.