The past year has seen a flurry of statements and initiatives from healthcare organizations newly aware of the industry’s poor record on diversity, equity and inclusion. A new study by the ANA and its Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing has found that some of these efforts have started to bear fruit, but deeper systemic change is still needed.

2021 marks the fourth year that ANA / AIMM has released the report, which tracks gender and ethnic diversity among its members’ client-side marketing teams. The overall figures are pointing in the right direction: in 2021, just under 31% of these employees came from various backgrounds, compared to 28.5% in 2020 and 27.6% in 2019.

In healthcare marketing, some of the advancements are likely coming from much more conscious efforts to reach a larger candidate base, according to Julia Missaggia, executive vice president of people and culture at CMI Media Group and Compas.

“The need for talent has opened the eyes of hiring managers, so they are more open to hiring non-traditional health marketing talent or talent completely outside the industry in general,” he said. she explains. “They also have a greater willingness to train and integrate these people to make them succeed.”

Of the employees on the teams examined in the report, 11.7% were Asian, 8.9% were Hispanic / Latino, and 6.6% were black. While the report noted an increase in the number of Asian and Hispanic / Latino employees in recent years, there has not been a significant increase in the percentage of black employees. In 2021, ANA began including native Hawaiians / Pacific Islanders, who make up 0.3% of the industry, in the report.

In short, the results show some traction, but not enough. That’s why Mary Stutts, head of Global Inclusion and Health Equity at Real Chemistry, believes that diversifying the healthcare marketing workforce is just the tip of the hat. iceberg.

“I think there are more diverse patients and people who are featured in our marketing campaigns and featured in the campaigns, and there has been some increase in hiring a workforce. diverse work in our marketing ecosystem, ”she said. “But there is a lot of room for improvement, because you can’t stop at the diversity.”

Stutts pointed out that inclusion – which she defines as ensuring that people of color feel valued, celebrated and respected – requires more than just filling roles with people of color. Inclusion, she said, means these employees have the same access to opportunities as white employees. In this sense, the healthcare marketing industry has a considerable job to do.

“A lot of people hire a diverse workforce and they think they’re done,” Stutts explained. “But if you look deeper, people of color stay in the lowest positions. You don’t see this upward trajectory, so you don’t see true inclusion. “

The ANA report found that senior-level positions were the least diverse, and entry-level, administrative and support positions were the most diverse. Almost 72% of top employees were white, while only 5% were black.

To close this gap, Stutts stressed the importance of training senior executives to lead inclusively and implementing more rigorous career development advice and mentoring for people of color. Regular conversations with employees about where they see their careers in five years and how managers can help them achieve those goals will be integral to improving retention.

“Be intentional in how you’re going to measure your success and how you’re going to hold your leaders accountable,” Stutts said. “Define metrics, set goals, and do your 360-degree reviews to see what the real experiences of people working in your organization are. Don’t just rely on your immediate direct reports to tell you what’s really going on. You have to go out and talk to people.

This story first appeared on MM + M.