by Matthew Jones

Historically, Gene Wright has kept people out of trouble.  Over the past two years, Wright has served as Leo Burnett Company’s Director of Administrative Compliance and Small Business Liaison Officer.  He has seen significant strides taken by government agencies, clients and other ad agencies to increase minority-owned business participation throughout the marketing and communications industries.  Wright says compliance is no longer solely about keeping the government and special interest groups off companies’ backs.  Diversity has steadily become an essential part of the modern business model.

“Today, the push is coming from clients, too,” says Wright.  “I get calls from all over the agency now, from account teams trying to stay one step ahead of the game.”

A Commitment to Inclusion

Wright’s background lies in contract work, which kept him very close to the legal environment surrounding all types of business dealings.  A graduate of Morgan University , Wright has spent the last 20 years helping clients develop productive, mutually beneficial partnerships.

Wright’s vast knowledge of contracts landed him squarely in the government compliance arena.  With the ever-changing legal environment, compliance experts need to be up-to-date on the latest requirements and guidelines.  When Leo Burnett began landing large government accounts such as the U.S. Army and U.S. Postal Service, Gene Wright was asked to help keep the accounts in strict compliance.

Wright’s primary role includes contract review of all government accounts held by Leo Burnett.  One of the most sensitive areas that Wright monitors is the participation of minority-owned businesses and other Small and Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs) on government accounts.  Federal agencies typically set goals for the participation of (SDBs) on contracts awarded to prime contractors.  Wright sees to it that Leo Burnett meets or exceeds the goals established in each contract.

The federal government has been a powerful advocate for the use of minority-owned businesses and other SDBs.  Federal goals are typically higher than the self-imposed goals set by the private sector.  However, the advertising industry is discovering that many private sector clients are becoming just as aggressive about minority involvement on their accounts as the public sector.

“Clients are getting increasingly demanding,” said Wright.  “Now, there are teeth in the contracts.  Large clients, as well as the Federal government, may assess financial penalties if agencies don’t meet their minority-owned business participation standards.”

Meeting New Challenges

Clients and agencies that are serious about their commitment to minority-owned businesses are not always finding it an easy road.  To start, even doing an internal audit can raise some serious challenges.

“The first smart question to ask is ‘what are we doing already,’” said Wright.  “But actually getting an answer to that question may be difficult.  It’s hard to be accountable if you can’t track your activity.”

Reporting minority participation is a relatively new activity for many advertising agencies.  For years, the industry had little interaction with minority communities and with minority businesses.  Consequently, ad agencies have been slow to join established minority advocate organizations such as the National Minority Supplier Development Council, which certifies minority vendors and assists them in getting contracts with the Council’s large corporate members.

“Moving forward, I see agencies changing the way they track their spending, and their vendors.  And once it becomes instinctive to track, it will start becoming instinctive to spend more money with minority-owned businesses,” said Wright.

Beyond the need for effective auditing procedures, other obstacles persist.  A question of confidence often arises when it comes to utilizing minority-owned businesses.  In addition, it can be difficult to pursued agency buyers to move beyond established relationships and procedures.

“People like to work with vendors they’re familiar with,” said Wright.  “If they’ve used Joe Blow for printing for the past five years, a large business, it’s hard to get them to look at anyone other than Joe Blow Printing.  The culture itself can be an obstacle for change.  There needs to be a plan for this type of change.  Most agencies don’t have that.  At Leo Burnett, there’s me and Don Richards [senior consultant].  Together, we are working with client teams to start and sustain that process.”

Smart agencies are using every resource they can get their hands on to achieve greater diversity.  Institutions like the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO), an association of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, (HBCUs) can be invaluable when looking at pairing agencies with educational institutions that are capable of performing work that is typically subcontracted to small or large businesses.

“HBCUs are an excellent resource for academic and scientific services,” said Wright.  “Primarily research – which agencies conduct a lot of for all of their clients.  By contracting with an HBCU, an agency would receive credit for minority participation as well as creditable results.”

Looking Toward Tomorrow

So what is the solution to creating a culture of inclusion within the marketing industry?  The answer boils down to one word: leadership.

When top management steps in and says, ‘this has to happen,” account teams are often quick to pick up the phone and get things moving in the right direction.  The trouble, as Wright sees it, is that the top management of agencies are often slow to make the commitment – or in some cases, unwilling.

“Without the backing of top management, it can be like pushing a big lead ball uphill,” said Wright.  “Only management can feed and change the culture.  In the marketing community, they have the opportunity to step up and influence the process.  It remains to be seen whether management’s influence will be enough.”

The reality is agencies that fail to stay ahead of the curve will be forced to catch up if they want a shot at large, profitable government accounts that have mandated inclusion built into the contracts. 

“I’m glad that things are changing.  I will be honest – if this job was solely about keeping agencies out of trouble, it would be analogous to the role of a policeman.  But, because I can actually see a cultural difference, that makes it all worthwhile,” said Wright.

And don’t expect the pendulum to swing the other way any time soon.  According to Wright, this is a movement that has legs.

“It’s here to stay.  And it’s getting stronger.”

The End