DUBAI: Industry body The Marketing Society announced its first gender equality program in the region, titled “Gender Equality Acceleration,” at an event held at the TikTok lounge in Dubai.
The event was attended by over 75 senior marketers and their teams.
The Gender Equality Acceleration Program aims to break barriers by increasing gender equality at mid and high levels of management in the marketing and communications industry across the UAE and the wider Gulf region.
“This initiative not only better educates both genders on how to find their voice to ensure there are equal opportunities at senior levels in all organizations, but, more importantly, provides an essential support network to build the self-belief of many women, giving them the strength to truly believe they deserve the recognition of a leadership role,” said Abby Lyons, co-founder and managing partner of House of Comms.
A key focus of this project is to make an actual impact — not just talk about gender equality without any real change. In order to achieve this, The Marketing Society will hold training, events, mentoring, policy changes, and other decisive actions to bring about real change.
For example, the body will work closely with different conference producers and event organizers to support them in having equal representation on panels by creating an accessible speaker directory that spotlights female experts in the industry. The goal is to have half of all speakers be women on panels across the marketing and communications industry by 2023.
The Marketing Society will also organize and host identified training and masterclasses with over 50 women by December 2022, and share best practices to inspire and empower businesses of all sizes to launch and follow the initiative.
Mohammed Ismaeel Hameedaldin, partner at Toughlove Advisors and chair of The Marketing Society Dubai, said: “Marketers are changemakers within businesses who can make an impact and make a difference.”
He added: “The time for talk is over, it’s about action and we look forward to supporting this through our planned activities and engaging the whole industry to speed up change.”
The Marketing Society is a global community that strives for a more diverse and inclusive leadership to shape, support, and steer the region’s top marketers. It is looking for more partners to join this initiative and work alongside the program’s founding partner, TikTok.