Slice Communications Announces Diversity Advisory Council
Diverse Business Leaders will Consult Agency on Equity and Inclusion in Client Work, Employee Training, and Community Events
November 2, 2020 (Philadelphia, PA) – Slice Communications, an agency focused on getting people to pay attention, today announced it has formed a Diversity Advisory Council made up of business leaders with diverse backgrounds and life experiences. The Council will begin work this month, focused initially on consulting on messages, campaigns, and creative content for Slice’s current clients. It will also be engaged in recruiting and training for the agency’s growing team as well as providing guidance on the events and content the agency produces.
“As a certified woman-owned business, we always valued diversity, equity, and inclusion, but we struggled to apply those values to our agency in a way that was systemic and sustainable,” said Cassandra Bailey, CEO of Slice Communications. “Under the leadership of Dana Schmidt, our VP of Strategy, we began looking at this problem seriously back in February. The civil unrest that followed the murder of George Floyd and so many others made us sure that we need to invest in doing something, not just saying something. We’re extremely grateful to those who have agreed to join the Council and share their insights, expertise, and experiences with us and our clients.”
Additionally, Jo Tiongson-Perez, council member and Director of Marketing and Communications at University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, had this to say: “When diverse perspectives informed by cultural, socio-economic, or other different types of backgrounds are brought to the table, you suddenly gain multiple angles with examining issues and solving problems. The space moves from being an echo chamber to active discourse, inciting authentic change.”
Other members of the Diversity Advisory Council include Larry Benjamin, Director Of Communications/Interim Director Development at Mazzoni Center; Michelle Bodden, Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA); Lloyd Freeman, Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC.; Melanie Hidalgo-Britt, Chief Revenue Officer for Coded by Kids; Hassan Moore, Supplier Diversity Manager at Temple University; Diana Lu, Coordinator, Germantown Info Hub; Avi Patel, Chief Marketing Officer at Fulton Financial Corporation; Melony Roy, Director of Digital News at WHYY; Haniya Shariff, Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion at Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA); Derrick Stokes, Senior Corporate Media Relations Specialist at AmeriHealth Caritas; and Dineo Mpela-Thompson, Esq., Chief Marketing Officer at Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP. All members of the Council are subcontractors to Slice Communications and are compensated for their time and efforts.
“We explored how small and medium-sized agencies were addressing the issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in their companies and in their work for others, and we couldn’t find anything that was truly baked into the business model in a sustainable way,” said Dana Schmidt, VP of Strategy for Slice Communications. “So we decided to create something new that we hope others will replicate. As a marketing communications community, the work we do has a tremendous impact on the words we use, the images we see, and the ways companies interact with people. We have a responsibility to ensure that our work does not hurt people, but instead, includes and empowers them.”
Click for more information about Slice Communications and the Diversity Advisory Council.
About Slice Communications
Slice Communications is an integrated communications agency with fully dedicated public relations, social media, and email marketing teams that get people to pay attention to brands. The agency also puts its expertise to work in the form of recruitment marketing. Visit slicecommunications.com for case studies, blogs, webinars, job opportunities and to learn more about Slice’s team of communications professionals.
