WPP Hires LJ Louis as Global Talent and Inclusion Officer

People often leave their jobs because they don’t envision themselves advancing to a more fruitful or prestigious position. And in a climate where employees are taking control of their own career paths, LJ Louis is responsible for reassuring staff in the WPP community—specifically diverse talent—that promotions are on the horizon. Louis joins the holding company's executive suite from WeWork, where she held a similar position as chief talent and inclusion officer. In addition to optimizing retention alongside global director of people listening Mariana Saintive Sousa, Louis is responsible for upholding the company’s DEI commitments from June 2020, embedding diversity into every talent recruitment conversation and using her background as a self-proclaimed “retired mathlete” to analyze how well these initiatives are working. She will report to chief people officer Jennifer Remling. https://twitter.com/readmark/status/1273230031662301184?s=20&t=9I_vtN-M4MQn2dolpyPpMQ “The intentionality of coupling talent and inclusion is going to be the gold standard for our DEI work,” said Louis, who warns against focusing on “talent and then diversity by asking ‘Oh by the way, how many diverse people do we have on the slate?’” Real commitments over empty promises At her previous role, Louis implemented a DEI scorecard, which she will put into practice at WPP to hold herself and the company accountable. She was attracted to the holding company due to its "long-term commitment to anti-racism," citing initiatives like Elevate, a program for Black women in the company that pairs them with a coach to set career goals and objectives over a six-month period, which often lead to promotions. “A lot of companies made big splashy announcements in summer of 2020, but WPP is clearly walking the talk,” she said. https://twitter.com/WPP/status/1529042590598832131?s=20&t=tr0H0k241XPVSE-ilMO9DA Putting everyone to work Louis also emphasized the importance of cross-departmental and cross-agency inclusion efforts, especially when dealing with a company with 100,000 employees. WPP is committed to recognizing efforts from one agency and applying it across the network. When diverse Group M employees asked for an employee relations separate from the business to consult during conflicts, the holding company instituted a board that acts as a “safe, unbiased place” for staff to raise concerns, according to Remling. https://twitter.com/WPP/status/1524427042506293249?s=20&t=tr0H0k241XPVSE-ilMO9DA Remling said that since chief executive officer Mark Read stepped into his role in 2018, collaboration has been a central theme across the company. WPP has made some progress diversifying its leadership team, but still has room for growth as 40% of executive leadership at WPP are women, an increase from 37% in 2019, and 3.9% identify as Black or African-American, which rose from 2.9% in 2019. To keep those numbers rising, Louis stressed the importance of making diversity a top priority for every employee. WPP could not provide its retention rates, as it's working on a data collection system across its agencies. “We can’t isolate the office of inclusion,” she said. “It shouldn’t have the only people who move the needle.” What to Keep in Mind When Revamping DEI Strategies

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

With a New Global Chief Talent and Inclusion Officer, WPP Explains Its Plan to Keep Diverse Talent

LJ Louis joins from WeWork

Emmy Liederman

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Emmy Liederman