Written by Kieron JohnsonFunctional support
Latasha Gillespie, Head of Global Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility at Amazon MGM Studios, enters the BBC Executive Lounge to speak about spearheading inclusivity in entertainment.
Latasha Gillespie knows that inclusivity isn't one-sided. At Amazon MGM, a film and television production and distribution studio, she strongly believes that representation needs to be both in front of and behind the camera.
The company is the first in the entertainment industry to Policy guide and playbook Under Gillespie's leadership as Global Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Officer. These resources are completely publicly available and are intended to guide leaders both at Amazon MGM and across business environments to ensure diverse and accurate storytelling.
“Our policy guide and handbook codify the DEI efforts we have made internally. We are working alongside other business leaders in developing a practical approach to DEI. I've done most of the heavy lifting,” she told the BBC.
Gillespie's work is at the crux of society's efforts to achieve diversity, equity, and inclusion. The term “DEI” is gaining increasing attention. Opposition from some powerful figures in the American corporate world. Gillespie knows this landscape is as politically charged as ever. But instead of being enraged by her challenge, she gained even more energy.
Gillespie speaks to the BBC about his outlook on representation, the role of data in diversity and his plans to move the entertainment industry towards a more inclusive future.
executive lounge
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What does DEI look like for your organization, and what are the biggest barriers to achieving it?
Organizational DEI promotes the fair representation and participation of all employees, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability, etc.
The biggest obstacle to achieving that is the mindset people sometimes have when they hear the words “diversity,” “equity,” and “inclusion.” They mistakenly believe it focuses only on race, gender, and social justice.
In fact, DEI is a core growth strategy for increasing the profitability of businesses and organizations by identifying customers and global expansion opportunities. It also helps companies understand their customers, potential customers, and markets so they can develop products and services that meet their needs.
You created and launched Amazon MGM Studios' Inclusion Policy Guide and Playbook. This expanded the company's DEI efforts for content and works. How did that idea come about?
After the murder of George Floyd and the ensuing uprising against racial injustice, it was important that our efforts not be performative. While these efforts are well-intentioned and important, it was not the time to donate to charity or start another mentorship program.
In this case, we recognized that we had to dismantle corporate systems, processes, and structures that have historically discriminated against minorities and other marginalized groups. Based on this, we decided to make our internal DEI commitments public, allowing us to be held accountable. Thus our policy guide and handbook was born.
A policy guide can be likened to a comprehensive DEI mission statement. This is a broad overview of the ambitious DEI goals we have set, and how we are held accountable for achieving them. A playbook, on the other hand, is more like a DEI manual. This is a detailed step-by-step resource for businesses and organizations that have worthy DEI goals but aren't sure how to achieve them.
of Playbooks are open source documentsThis allows third parties other than Amazon MGM Studios to contribute to its development. How did you create the playbook, and what was the driving force behind the decision to open source it?
To create our playbooks, we ask our partners, creative executives, and content creators to review our playbook templates, tell us what's likely to work, what doesn't, and show us exactly how to do it correctly. I made it easy to understand. We knew that this handbook would only be effective if we worked together.
we [made the document public] Enable business leaders who don't have a specific DEI framework in place to use, study, or modify the playbook to suit their purposes. This way everyone can benefit from it. After all, a rising tide lifts all ships.
How is data supporting DEI initiatives at Amazon MGM Studios?
I work at a data-driven company. This is important. Because, as the saying goes, “what gets measured gets done.”
We collect data to understand not only what's happening in front of the camera, but importantly, what's happening behind the camera. It's great to see diverse representation on screen and get a glimpse into the lived experiences of others, but when there's little or no diversity at the decision-making seats behind the camera, may negatively impact the credibility of the lived experiences depicted in . screen.
Diversity behind the camera can also have a big impact on who you see on screen. For example, our data shows that when there is at least one woman on a film set in a high-level decision-making role, such as director, producer, or screenwriter, The percentage of women in the main cast is 50%, compared to 42% without women. Has a high-level decision-making role. Similarly, if she has at least one black writer in the writers' room, she will have 34% black representation in principal cast roles, but if there is no black writer, she will have 11%. .
Amazon MGM by numbers since the release of the handbook
The term “woke” is associated with hypersensitivity toward minority groups and other marginalized communities. How do you deal with this interpretation in your daily work?
I don't enjoy the whole “woke” movement. Our DEI strategy is to focus on the customer and even ask ourselves if we are focusing on the customer in an unbiased way. Therefore, I am focusing my team's efforts on answering his one key question. The question is, “How can we authentically show our stories of love, joy, and challenges to all our customers around the world and make sure they're delighted?”
For us, DEI is not about being woke. It's about asking yourself if you want to grow as a streaming company. Because if you do, you need to know that, for example, people of color between the ages of 18 and 24 consume 8 hours and 11 minutes of streaming content every day. As a commercial organization, it makes good business sense to target any demographic that will bring you this type of viewership.
Hiring of Chief Diversity Officers has declined significantly, with recent job cuts including; They were among the first roles cut.. What steps can be taken to close these so-called “revolving doors” of executives?
First, companies need to change their perception of the chief diversity officer's job. [CDOs]. You should recognize that partnerships with CDOs are an integral part of your core growth strategy, including expanding your market reach and increasing your ability to attract and retain new customers. This informed perspective can lead to higher CDO retention rates.
And secondly, companies need to address issues such as: High rates of CDO burnout. Clear leadership support must be provided to CDOs, who are typically under-resourced. In some cases, you may have to protect your humanity at work, which can lead to burnout. These efforts may make it less likely that CDOs will voluntarily leave their companies early.
How do you foresee the future of DEI?
As the world, humanity, our challenges, and more importantly our opportunities evolve, I see DEI evolving as well.
If you think about the work we do to support the transgender community, for example, we're having conversations with and about that community differently now than we did 10 years ago. Similarly, biracial people are becoming a larger part of the population, and 10 years from now we will be talking about that demographic differently than we are today.
At the end of the day, I believe DEI will always remain an important part of the conversation. People always ask me, “Shouldn't our goal be that one day we won't need a CDO?” I always answer: “Will there ever come a time when we won't need a chief financial officer?”
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity