Recently I got into a discussion with a friend, a Creative Director, and another colleague who is a Person of Color. We were talking about how clients occasionally started asking for the quota — to have a woman in the room if the product is for women or to have a Person of Color in the room if the product is targeted at PoC. To me, this sounded delightful, and above all, logical. I felt that things were finally moving. If the money (clients) is asking for things to change, things will change. My PoC colleague then told an anecdote where he was pulled into a meeting only to depict the diversity of the team. As the project wasn’t his he spent the whole meeting silent, as a plant. My CD friend then expressed concerns about the quota as a method that is potentially only creating further segregation — it feels forced. I have heard many people arguing that quota feels artificial and that it even creates positive discrimination. My friend, CD, also happens to be in a position to hire people and feels strongly about not discriminating against anyone based on gender, origin, or race. That is why in the hiring process he strictly bases his decisions on the best portfolio. Let the best candidate win. That may sound right, but…
The conversation then continued for a while, and the PoC colleague and I joined forces to explain how implicit bias and discrimination work and are active today in the creative industry. It is happening in progressive cities like Amsterdam, so I can only assume the same goes for the other major creative centers. I am not a PoC, I am an Eastern European woman, I belong to several minority groups and my passport closed a few doors for me and articulated many life and career decisions as it did not allow for many options. So I am talking about racism, of which I cannot attest from personal experience, but I can about xenophobia or misogyny, and I believe, all of us, discriminated groups, share similar experiences to some extent. To quote my pessimistic friend: “For us from Eastern Europe, it is even worse! While it is discussed about People of Color in the media, we are nowhere in the conversation. We are not even recognized as being discriminated against. Outside we look the same but we are treated very differently!”. Or to come back to the story of my PoC colleague, I would not be invited even as a plant to the meeting. I disagree with my friend that we have it worse, as I wouldn’t go into the pitfall of comparing discriminations. However, we, the oppressed people should always recognize and support each other.
How does Implicit Bias work exactly?
Let’s say we have two people at the beginning of their careers. One is called Sofija Stankovic, who comes from Eastern Europe, and the other one is called John Smith, who comes from the UK. They both were excellent students and are eager to start their careers. They apply for a job interview. The matter of fact is that apart from portfolios, employers base their decision on “gut feeling” especially in the creative industry. This is no secret or a surprise, even most successful businessmen brag on their gut feelings. In conversations, I heard many times CDs or studio owners saying they base their decisions on guts.
When hiring, apart from CV and portfolio, people want someone with a great personality and someone they will feel comfortable around and who they can connect to. You don’t wanna hire a weirdo.
Both Sofija and John are at the beginning of their careers, both former excellent students.
Even the name suggests — John, very familiar, a guy whose name you can pronounce without dilemma, you might be a fan of the same football club, you have probably visited the city that he’s from (South London or East? Ah, you lived close to Leeds? Oh yes, I’ve been to Brighton many times…), the conversation just flows, he will be great at after-work drinks, you have a good feeling about him…
Sofija on the other hand (why is a “j” in there? How is that pronounced?) is not a football fan (what are the clubs in Serbia anyways?… and what is the capital again…?). What was Serbia famous for, except for the war? Kosovo? That’s an awkward subject, let’s not go there. Maybe we can quickly switch to Croatia, a close country that I visited on my holiday, but wait, is it ok if I mention Croatia or am I just going to seem uneducated? Come to think of it, how close is Croatia anyway? Am I insensitive to this topic? This conversation is not going so well…
OK, so both John and Sofija interview a lot, it is not easy for either of them. But let’s say that after many interviews, John finally lands a job at his 10th interview. Good for him. Employers find it harder to connect to Sofija and she is always in second place, she’s really good and has nice work and talent, but there is always a John who is simply an easier option, more familiar, and as an employer, you do not want to deal with the unknown. They are both beginners, equally inexperienced, but the fear of the unknown prevails — Johns get the job. Now one option is that Sofija will give up at her 17th interview as she realizes it takes more than usual to get the position compared to her male EU peers. It is demotivating. If that happens her career and mental health will go downhill. And she might bounce back after some months or years. However, our Sofija is a fighter. She persists, she continues and lands a job on her 20th interview. You, the reader, now think: ok, big deal, she got the job with more effort. Now it’s good? No more injustice?
Now things are just starting. So it took John 2 months to land a job, while it took 4 months for Sofija. This does not seem drastic in the mentioned time-frames but as that principle is repeated over and over again throughout their careers John will soon end up in a much better position than Sofija. Each step will take longer for Sofija, she will spend more energy and have a slow-moving, diluted career. Not to mention the effect this has on self-confidence. The interview was just a warm-up, now they both should pitch to clients and the same thing happens. The clients are from UK, US, France, they are mostly not PoC, they are mostly men and they were hired by Johns who felt more comfortable next to them than next to Sofijas. Now they repeat the pattern. Still, our Sofija managed to land two big clients in her first year at the company, she grew a thicker skin and became more resilient. They say you should compare yourself to your past self, as she does, and she feels proud of what she achieved and has gained wisdom, patience, and resilience. Good for her.
Now our John has in the meantime gained the trust of 4 major clients in his first year! Wow. Impressive. He just seems to click. He is on his way to becoming another white male Creative Director like all others that were before him. Imagining him in this role just feels natural and expected, there are no surprise factors, there are no “buts”, and nothing feels uncomfortable. After such a fantastic year, more trust is placed in him, bigger opportunities are given to him and he has a chance to propel his career further, without second-guessing. He did not develop a thicker skin and compare himself to himself, he is by all standards supported and successful. Things are smooth as butter. Next year, John lands even more successful pitches and the following one even more. His colleagues trust him, as clients do, he trusts himself, and the stars are aligned.
Meanwhile, our thick-skinned Sofija did not stick out with her two projects in the first year of employment. It’s good, but it is not WOW, you know what I mean? Not like Johns out there. Maybe give her another year to prove herself? Fighting harder for every pitch, for every opportunity takes more energy. It is tiring to educate people to open their minds and look beyond implicit bias. She does fight and persist, but the trust of her colleagues and clients simply do not come as often, they are not a given. The trust has to be earned again and again. Who has ever seen a successful Eastern European woman in the place of a renowned Creative Director? The connection is simply not there. If she were a performance artist (like Marina Abramovic), coming from exotic Balkans, then sure, yes. Teach us, you witch. But in the corporate or leadership world? What can an Eastern European woman teach us about? She stays for a couple of years in that middle right there, close to success, but never propelled as the career of our dear John. When people place you in mediocrity, it is the hardest one to escape from.
Now, a few years passed and they both want to get a job at my friend’s prestigious company, the CD from the beginning of the story. He interviews them both. He looks beyond origin (he has actually been to Serbia and loved it!), he is open-minded, but he simply looks at the portfolio. And who can blame him? Saying that this is a wrong approach just feels… wrong. He even connects more to Sofija, she has a rich personality and is not interested in football just like him, but unfortunately, she also has a weaker portfolio and self-confidence. Now, both John and Sofija are in their thirties, however, she had a diluted career while he thrived on the principle that “success breeds success.” Hiring her would be positive discrimination, right? No!
Now you, the reader, ask: “So you suggest he should hire a weaker applicant just because they were historically discriminated against? That is unfair!”
Yes, please hire people for quota. Please allow that Person of Color, that woman, that trans person, or a disabled person because by doing so you will be part of the systematic, historic change. Educate your clients by placing trust in minority groups. That is your legacy, not having 5% bigger ROI. If you, as an employer don’t make that leap, don’t expect a change to happen globally. Don’t expect an equal and truly inclusive society.
The argument of this positive discrimination being unfair is downright ridiculous in the greater scheme of things. We have a history filled with men taking credit for female work as they were not able to sign their scientific or artistic work, we have a history of most EU countries being colonialist and slave owners of PoC until practically yesterday, and we have a history of disabled people being killed or excluded from society in the most brutal ways. It is centuries-long bias, oppression, and discrimination, and now you are telling me that you will do injustice by hiring a less obvious applicant in the name of this social change? I strongly believe that when people are empowered and trusted with big tasks whatever the difference in the past portfolio, they will be motivated to grow, thrive, and learn and they will earn every penny. How do I know this? My lack of opportunities as a Balkans woman has led me to create my own business and hire others. If you recognize motivation you just need to give people a good opportunity and you’ll be surprised how quickly the lack of a fancy portfolio can be compensated.
BTW, not every opportunity is equal
As founders of our company TeYosh we were often booked to speak at large conferences. I was astonished and thankful to have such big opportunities. We were crucially different and smaller than other presenters, large names that worked for TikTok, Dropbox, Amazon and others. I am super grateful and happy for these opportunities. However, while the talks seemed to be working for our colleagues, the talks did not land as many client opportunities for us. They ensured more conference talks. With time I understood how easily that trust was placed in us. It’s a one-time commitment! Yes, the conferences are big, but worst-case scenario, we’ll have a bad presentation and the festival will never call us again, while they can still claim to have an equal, inclusive roster of 50/50 males and females. Here’s your quota, happy? However, the risk of decision-makers is almost non-existent in this case. It is an easy commitment and a shortcut to depict the Creative Industry as being equal and full of opportunities for minorities. The real, well-paid positions, big returning clients, and constant opportunities did not come as easily or as often to us. We were often in second place, just about to work for that famous singer, Big Tech company, renowned fashion designer… it almost happened, we pitched excellently… but there was always a John Smith, someone who just seemed as a more logical fit. In 2023 alone we had four major clients that almost happened and would have been that crucial push of career, but they did not at the very last second. Now that I think of it, I honestly don’t remember a single time a PoC or another woman has taken that pitch from us, it was always a John Smith. Looking at it from a weirdly different angle, it is a success, albeit not the one I would put in the portfolio.
The year 2018, I was at the client’s big marketing presentation and they were presenting about the diversity they would introduce in their ads. Happy gay couples, Black people, it was almost hard to spot a white cis male (like every Netflix show). The full conference room we were sitting in did not look like that at all. Nor did the agency that was hired to come up with the creative and film the diverse jolly ad. I then raised a hand and asked how many people behind the camera belonged to minority groups. It was a cheeky question, as I knew the agency who was filming this ad, and the answer was — almost 0. I remember that agency distinctly because when I entered it, it felt like I entered a gym: tall, muscular, Dutch guys. Out of the big group, one was gay, and one had Indonesian roots. No women. They just felt more comfortable like that. What a fantastic working environment for Sofijas, right? The point is, that this agency was filming ads for a decade for this major client, they had a stable collaboration and client’s trust. All the minorities in front of the camera formally had a chance: they acted in this fantasy world, a depiction that is presented as real in ads and Netflix shows, where representation and opportunities are equal, but in reality, they are not. Acting in ads is a one-time commitment. Obviously, the makers of these ads feel comfortable with the entitlement. Otherwise, they could say: now this has to change, we can’t be a bunch of white dudes behind a camera filming a colorful bunch for a fake presentation of our day and age, can we?
People are totally fine with the discrimination as long as it’s not blunt. We live in the 21st century, and no one will say openly: I don’t hire you because you are a minority. Implicit bias thrives on this indirectness. I say this has to change. Put minorities on payrolls and give them real opportunities. Recognize the implicit bias within you. Educate yourselves on discrimination and educate your environment.