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In the summer of 2020, longtime Portland designer Audrey Desler was paying attention to promises creative, advertising and marketing agencies made to embrace diversity, equity and inclusion and create positive change.
In the summer of 2020, longtime Portland designer Audrey Desler was paying attention to promises creative, advertising and marketing agencies made to embrace diversity, equity and inclusion and create positive change.
Desler was also paying attention when studies showed that these shifts in attitude and aspiration weren’t permanent.
That’s when she and a group of volunteers from the American Institute of Graphic Arts’ (AIGA) Design for Good program created The Transparency Initiative, which seeks to foster equity in Portland’s creative industry.
“We were asking, ‘Is there a way that AIGA can help foster transparency and make it easier for people and creative agencies to engage in DEI policies and practices?’” Desler said. “Most creative agencies in the US are owned by men, and most are white. We wanted a way to make DEI work so easy for agencies to engage in that it’s hard to say ‘no.’”
The group sought out Anne Sinkey, director of DEI strategic planning and center leadership at the college’s Center for Advancing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Business (CADEIB).
In addition to consulting services, CADEIB provides DEI courses, organizational assessments and public programs across industries and organizations.
Early on, Desler and The Transparency Initiative knew they wanted to survey Portland-area creative agencies to understand which ones were putting DEI policies and practices into place.
Sinkey helped Desler and the group develop a framework to survey the agencies as well as Portland creatives about their DEI efforts as well as their careers and experiences in the workplace.
“The first step was helping them hone their intention and what they wanted to do,” Sinkey said. “We also talked about how surveying agencies and creatives could be beneficial and part of a more robust initiative.”
As a consultant, Sinkey helped the group’s volunteers with some of the finer details of their initiative, as well. Sinkey made recommendations about what language to use in the surveys and how to streamline survey questions. She also recommended a cadence for surveying agencies and creatives that would help the group document real changes in the industry.
“She gave us incredible insights for us to formulate how to move forward,” Desler said. “Because of Anne’s background in the work, she had advice on things we might have overlooked.”
Desler’s goal, which is ongoing, is to paint a clearer picture of creatives’ experiences and whether creative agencies are fostering equity in the industry.
The Transparency Initiative launched their first surveys in fall 2022, both for agencies and Portland creatives. While only 11 agencies participated in the survey, the group was able to create a report based on responses from creatives, which they posted to their website in September 2023.
Currently, The Transparency Initiative’s 2023 survey for creatives is open, and the group is planning a 2024 survey for agencies.
Throughout, Sinkey has been integral to The Transparency Initiative’s goal. “Anne’s expertise gave me courage and confidence to do this work,” Desler said.