Weber Shandwick Wins Best PR Firm Diversity Initiative at 2016 Diversity Distinction in PR Awards
NEW YORK, Sept. 23, 2016 — Weber Shandwick, one of the world’s leading global communications and engagement firms, was honored with the Best PR Firm Diversity Initiative award by the PR Council and PRWeek at the annual Diversity Distinction in PR Awards. Judith Harrison, senior vice president of Diversity & Inclusion, was also recognized with Honorable Mention in the PR Firm Diversity Champion category for her work in advancing diversity and inclusion at Weber Shandwick and across the public relations industry. The Diversity Distinction in PR Awards honor industry champions who facilitate greater diversity and inclusion within organizations and public relations.
– Judith Harrison Receives Honorable Mention as PR Firm Diversity Champion –
This is the fifth award win for Weber Shandwick at the Diversity Distinction in PR Awards since the program was established six years ago, including four Best PR Firm Diversity Initiative honors and one Best Community Initiative honor.
The PR Council and PRWeek highlighted Weber Shandwick’s multi-level employee engagement programs as contributors to the firm’s success, including master classes for global executives, annual Diversity Day/Weeks across 12 offices and quarterly educational seminars. Additionally, Weber Shandwick has grown its Diversity Council from 118 to more than 175 in the past year. On Weber Shandwick’s efforts in this area, one Diversity Distinction in PR Awards judge noted, “It continues to raise the bar and produce results. It’s a model for all to follow.”
Harrison, in receiving Honorable Mention as a PR Firm Diversity Champion, was described as a “simply outstanding leader” by one Diversity Distinction in PR Awards judge. Harrison leads Weber Shandwick’s Diversity & Inclusion Council and fosters effective partnerships with several industry organizations focused on advancing diversity and inclusion, including The Lagrant Foundation and Ron Brown Scholar Program. Harrison helped facilitate the launch of ColorComm’s Chicago and New York chapters. She also initiated and advanced the PRIME program at Weber Shandwick, which aims to increase diversity in PR by recruiting students from historically black colleges.
Weber Shandwick has also been honored with IPG’s Inclusion Award for Inclusive Talent Cultivation, the Advertising Age Best Place to Work distinction in 2014 and 2015, and was also ranked a Best Place to Work by PRWeek in 2013 and 2014.