Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives

IGNITE, launched in 2020, is a 15-week creative internship improving diversity in pharma advertising.

Partnering with Creative Access, UAL, and D&AD Shift, it offers hands-on agency experience, mentorship, and live briefs while paying the London Living Wage. Now in its 5th year, IGNITE has recruited 20% of its interns into the creative team, shaping a diverse and award-winning department. Igniters have won various creative awards in the industry, such as London International Awards and New York Festivals.

IGNITE has driven meaningful change, fostering inclusivity and cultural understanding, and setting a benchmark for industry diversity and equity.

Judges Comments

This is more than a programme, it’s an important, trailblazing initiative to help open the door to candidates that might not otherwise have had the opportunity to work at McCann. It’s a simple message, yet the results speak for themselves; with a sizable recruitment rate from the programme into their creative team, and bringing material change across the agency. How great to see a DEI programme working effectively for people and the organisation!

Judges were delighted to see a growing internship that is laser-focused on providing opportunities for people from different backgrounds. And equally pleased that the impact measures are impressive. The programme itself is extremely well-designed, covering all the bases of the creative process, as well as ensuring equity for its candidates, for instance by paying London Living Wage. McCann have obviously realised that they are more innovative with diverse voices around the table, bringing valuable insights, cultural nuance and life experience—all of which can be seen in the exciting and award-winning campaign examples that have come from this new talent.

A brilliant enterprise that will have a legacy, and the fact that it has made so many full-time hires afterwards is amazing. Job well done.

Eliza McHugh, Costello Medical

Challenge the Impossible.

This was the inspirational message Roche wanted to communicate to their marketing team working on the launch of Evrysdi, a drug to treat spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

Roche partnered with Naked Eye and Eddie Ndopu, an award-winning humanitarian and disability activist, to tell this story. Diagnosed with SMA at age two, and given a 5-year life expectancy, Eddie defied the odds and became a global advocate for sustainability, disability, and social justice. His story of hope and resilience has reached over 100,000 Roche employees in over 100 countries, embodying the message of achieving the extraordinary despite limitations.

The #BeYou campaign is an enduring, multi-modal initiative that fosters a deeper sense of belonging and psychological safety at Takeda UK & Ireland, empowering employees to bring their authentic selves to work.

#BeYou reflects a commitment to DE&I as a key driver of employee wellbeing and organisational success. Motivated by the 2023 Employee Survey results, #BeYou debuted in June 2024 with a memorable launch at Takeda’s annual conference. Featuring humorous, light-hearted videos of employees’ children as “honesty experts”, and interviewing colleagues about what makes them unique, the launch set the tone and was followed by further engagement activities.

Pi Healthcare collaborated with Pfizer to address healthcare inequity in Sickle Cell Disease. The project highlights the importance of systematic, comprehensive global mapping across 3 regions, 17 markets and 833 organisations to identify stakeholders and understand the landscape, which has allowed Pfizer to make informed decisions to enhance healthcare access and awareness.

We identified stakeholders working to combat health disparities and uncovered organisations driving policy change, supporting research, and fostering patient communities. The focus on improving healthcare for populations affected by systemic racism—paired with the dedication to amplifying patient voices—emphasises a strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.