\#MeToo

180 Female Ad Execs Launch Time's Up Advertising to Combat Industry Harassment

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Gabriel Olsen

"Hey, Sisters, we know." That's how a group of more than 180 female advertising executives kicked off their letter of solidarity, announcing the formation of Time's Up Advertising. The initiative is an offshoot of the original Time's Up movement started by women in Hollywood and it too will address sexual harassment and systemic inequality in the workplace. Much like Hollywood—and well, most industries—advertising has long been very much a boys' club. Now, time's up.

The women of Time's Up Advertising come from some of the largest agencies in the world, which are in charge of campaigns for major global brands, as well as smaller, independent firms. They state on their new website: "Our mission is to drive new policies, practices, decisions and tangible actions that result in more balanced, diverse and accountable leadership; address workplace discrimination, harassment and abuse; and create equitable and safe cultures within our agencies." They came together at the end of January in the hope of addressing the rampant problems in the world of advertising. "As women in senior leadership positions in advertising, we’ve agreed that we have the power to change this business we love until it looks more like the industry we want to lead."

Time's Up Advertising

The group has also outlined specific action items: "committing to creating solutions that work, starting with examining the processes and policies that have failed us"; "identifying and mentoring people who represent diversity across the board and are ready to become agency leaders"; and "adopting progressive agency training and education that brings this discussion and its solutions out into the open with our agencies."

They'll also be raising funds for the larger Time's Up Legal Defense Fund, which helps women who might otherwise not have the means to fight sexual harassment in their own workplace.

This initiative, much like the one in Hollywood, can have an incredibly far-reaching impact. While many of us may not work in advertising, every single one of us is affected by its output. These are the people who create the commercials and images we are bombarded with daily on TV, online, and in magazines. As a society, we will always be better served when there is equal representation in the rooms where those kinds of decisions get made. And it's great to see that Time's Up Advertising is already tackling that issue head-on, even within its own ranks, writing in their letter of solidarity: "We look at the lack of diversity in this group of women and see the long-term effect of power structures that encouraged some of us to rise but held others back. We see you. We see your talent. We see the gap. We want share of voice and share of power for everyone." We can't wait to see what these creative women come up with when given more-equal footing.

So now perhaps the only question is which industry is ready to step up next?