E.l.f. Beauty’s ‘So Many Dicks’ campaign highlights inequity in boardrooms
E.l.f. Beauty is rolling out the next phase of its “Change the Board Game” initiative with a campaign across digital screens surrounding Wall Street in New York City.
Titled, “So Many Dicks,” the creative features bold headlines that call out statistics about current boards, inviting others to learn about how diversity can drive profitability for everyone. It will run through June 10 around New York City, specifically in the Financial District, including Fulton Street Station and The Oculus.
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“One of the most important things a diverse board does is bring in multiple viewpoints to make better decisions. At e.l.f. Beauty, empathy is part of our business model because it brings us closer to our community and the things people in the community care about,” said e.l.f. Beauty chairman and CEO Tarang Amin. “A diverse board also helps us stay culturally relevant among multiple affinities. It’s the unique combination and diverse school of thought that helps us lead innovation and brand demand in the industry.”
To create the data featured in the campaign, e.l.f. Beauty worked with Oberland to conduct research on corporate boards across the nation, learning that men named Richard, Rick or Dick serving on these public company boards outnumbered women and diverse groups.
“This campaign demonstrates the ROI of DEI in a way that gets people’s attention, hopefully compelling them to join our cause,” said Drew Train, chief executive officer, Oberland. “It is our belief that broad representation of the marketplace is part of a successful business plan, and an inclusive workforce and board gives the best context to achieve that.”
Additional data found includes:
- There were 566 men named Richard, Rick, or Dick (Dicks) serving on these public company boards.
- Black women and Asian women barely outnumber men named Dick, with only 806 Black Women, 774 Asian Women.
- There were only 283 Hispanic Women on these same boards, only half the number of “Dicks.”
- There are 19x more men named Dick than the 29 women of Middle Eastern descent on these boards.
- There are only 3 Native American Women serving on these boards compared to 566 men named Dick.
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“e.l.f.’s commitment to diverse representation isn’t limited to within the four walls of our company. We want to normalize diversity—and if it takes some e.l.f.ing in-your-face advertising to do it, we’re happy to put it on some of the biggest screens you can imagine,” said Kory Marchisotto, chief marketing officer, e.l.f. Beauty. “The aim of the data, the database and the compelling ad campaign is to invite others with us on this journey to drive real impact and help corporate boards more accurately reflect the world around us.”
