M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment 'Step Up' DE&I Specialism

M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment has created a new Diversity, Equality and Inclusion offering ‘Step Up’.  Its aim is to to make passions more equitable by recognising that the worlds of sport and entertainment have systemic and  endemic barriers to inclusion for many marginalised groups.  The agency plans to work with brands to use their cultural positions and audiences to tackle these barriers in a credible way.

‘Step Up, according to the agency, is a natural evolution of the foundations that it has been building through establishing and building on its own internal DE&I strategy, as well as projects, initiatives and campaigns developed organically with client partners. In recent years, the agency has been responsible for many purpose-led campaigns in passions, including the ‘Cricket has no boundaries’ campaign for NatWest England Cricket team sponsorship, ‘Where Everyone Plays’ campaign for Coca-Cola’s partnership with the Premier League and most recently the powerful ‘Re-setting the dancefloor’ campaign for Ballantine’s True Music platform.

The decision to formalise this expertise through ‘Step Up’ follows a successful partnership with consultancy Utopia, who have played a pivotal role in establishing strategic and impactful culture-change programmes within the agency and across their work with clients. As a result of the partnership, M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment has developed a strategic process which ensures brands go beyond superficial claims to create real, long-lasting change which truly resonates with audiences. This is achieved through working with change-makers and people with authentic voices and lived experiences across different intersectional diversity dimensions, to understand genuine barriers to inclusion and create initiatives that will break down those barriers.

The agency’s commitment to making culture more inclusive extends beyond client campaigns. It can also be seen through support and alliances with organisations on the margins of sport & entertainment, including a pro-bono programme supporting black-owned enterprises, businesses and organisations within sport & entertainment, positions on women’s sports organisational bodies, as a well as an official partnership with Limitless Live, the UK’s first social purpose music festival.

Jodie Fullagar, Joint Managing Director at M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment said: “Having worked with Ballantine’s over the last year to champion diversity and inclusion within music culture, we have witnessed the positive transformations brands can provoke when there is a passion for meaning and purpose within the organisation. The worlds of sport and entertainment continue to be inherently un-inclusive; it is therefore a cultural and creative necessity for brands leveraging these passions for brand relevancy, to step up and build equity in and through the passions they represent. Brands must start participating in driving the change we all long to see; and we’re excited to be a part of this journey with our clients”