An overview on the impactful achievements our MarComms department made in advancing Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) in 2024.

Interesting in reading some 2023 highlights? Check them out here!

Thank you to Amy Sylla, our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Lead, for compiling this 2024 IDEA Highlights Recap:

As a reminder, MarComms decided to focus on 8 IDEA Strategic Objectives. Here are some top highlights for each team: 

Audience Research Team

• The Competitive Analysis team teamed up with the Indigenous Office to explore how other organizations have acknowledged past wrongs related to racism and discrimination, and how they have progressed since then.  

• The team carried out several important surveys to better understand the underserved communities in Canada, particularly those aged 30-49:

  • Representing CBC Brand, they collaborated with Ethnicity Matters/CulturaliQ to survey people who self-identify as South Asian, Indigenous (First Nations, Metis, Inuit), Chinese, Black, or Filipino in British Columbia/Alberta (West) and Ontario. This helped gather insights on awareness, usage, motivations, perceptions, consumer attitudes, and potential growth areas.  

  • They also supported CBC Local News Teams in Quebec and Atlantic Canada with research to understand the diverse communities in those areas and their local news and information needs. This involved targeted surveys in various communities, along with data from Statistics Canada and Environics Analytics.  

• The team successfully received funding from the 2024 Reconciliation Fund. In the coming year, they will conduct a quantitative survey using sensitive and culturally appropriate research methods, along with plans for analysis and interpretation of the findings. They will also receive online training on culturally safe approaches.

Creative & Brand Team

• They developed a new CBC Brand Style Guide that focuses heavily on making design accessible. They have also added an Accessibility Resources page in the guide (pg 22) with links to help readers better understand accessibility.  

• They created a CBC Brand Book that outlines our story and values. Inclusion is emphasized as a core value (pg 8), and they provide guidelines on the tone of voice for CBC. A key aspect is the importance of using simple, clear language.  

• With help from the P&P team and HR, they held an open call for creative talents, like Art Directors and Designers, to broaden their freelance talent pool and welcome new and emerging artists. The response was outstanding, with one thousand applications. Although they haven't interviewed everyone yet, they have met with some candidates and plan to bring an art director/illustrator from this open call on board in the new year. This will give them the chance to work with and learn from a diverse group of candidates.

Marketing + Local Communications Team

• The team documented important collaborations with outside vendors and partners to create campaigns that reach underrepresented communities. This documentation showcased how much MarComms is already doing to promote inclusivity and highlighted their ongoing commitment to this cause. Looking ahead, there’s an opportunity to build on this even more by using interest-based data to share programming more widely.

• In 2024, the team made progress in supporting the National Indigenous Strategy (NIS). For the first time, they tracked how their community engagement efforts matched up with NIS goals, resulting in 42 partnerships and engagements—about 15% of their local communications work—centered on Indigenous groups or organizations. This directly contributes to the NIS commitment to fostering positive relationships with Indigenous Peoples.

• As they plan for 2025, they’re improving their community engagement strategy by adding ways to track the target audiences in each market. This will help them identify where they need more partnerships and strengthen connections with underserved communities in the future.

Operations Team

• The team helped CBC take part in the Blaxpo recruitment conference, where 10 candidates submitted their resumes, and 6 of them were connected with recruiters from different departments. Additionally, 13 candidates joined the speed networking event. This participation led to over 500 views on CBC's Corporate LinkedIn page and showcased current MarComms job openings.

• The team launched an orientation session designed to help new employees feel more included and get aligned with the team’s culture and goals:

  • They created resources for managers, like templates and FAQs, to help them better support new team members.

  • They also set up a special external Onboarding website and introduced surveys at 3 and 6 months after hiring to gather feedback on the new hires' experiences.

• They created an improved Retrospective Process for reviewing MarComms post projects, using a survey to collect feedback from the team and partners. They summarize the feedback and work together to plan actions for future projects, starting with the Olympics as a test and currently expanding it for the Junos shoot and MTSK.

Public Relations, Partnerships & Events Team

• The team worked in partnership with Radio-Canada and the Canadian Paralympic Committee for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, issuing a press release that garnered wide media attention. The release was picked up by outlets such as Canadian Press, Daily Hive, and Canadian Running Magazine, sparking significant interest. The team’s outreach led to over 30 interviews with CBC’s Paralympic broadcast team, highlighting the network's commitment to accessible and inclusive programming.

• In September, the CBC Events team attended the annual Meeting Planners International Conference in Ottawa and were able to take part in multiple sessions related to accessibility in events. They walked away with many actionable ideas to increase physical accessibility in their own events, along with nuanced information on how best to address accessibility for those who are neurodiverse, an area previously unexplored in their accessibility training thus far.

• On December 11, CBC PR teamed up with Thunderhaus — a management and content creation company that supports and represents Indigenous, queer, and racialized content creators — to host an exclusive screening of the first two episodes of North of North for a near sell-out audience of influencers. They drew on Thunderhaus’s expertise and deep personal relationships with many Indigenous influencers and changemakers to invite the right mix of guests. The event and episodes were incredibly well received, with influencers lined up outside the theater and responding positively throughout the screening. The event was hosted by indigenous.tv and featured a Q&A session afterward, allowing influencers to meet the creators and stars of the series. This was a first-of-its-kind event for the PR team aimed at generating excitement for North of North before its January 7 premiere by collaborating with influencers from across Canada, especially those with significant Indigenous audiences, to connect with both broad and specific audiences in a new way.

Scheduling & Content Planning Team

Strategic Objective 2 (Choosing EDI)

• The team developed several resources to improve internal communication and foster team cohesion. These included a cheat sheet, key contacts list, and an organizational chart, all of which helped facilitate collaboration between teams.

• The team delivered programming that celebrated underrepresented groups on key celebratory dates. Notable contributions included:

  • 20+ hours of Indigenous content during June.

  • 6 hours dedicated to Truth & Reconciliation Day (Sept. 30).

  • 30 hours for Black History Month (Feb. 2025).

  • 6 hours of programming for International Day of Persons with Disabilities (Dec. 6).

  • A collection of ASL-led content and a TV special for Dino Ranch and Silly Paws.

• The team worked with regional partners to ensure that local programming was highlighted in prime-time slots, helping to further showcase diverse Canadian communities.

Across the department

• Accessibility Champions: MarComms developed a group of Accessibility Champions who underwent 6 weeks of training. These champions meet monthly to share insights and discuss ongoing accessibility projects, continuing to upskill and educate their teams on accessibility best practices.

• National Indigenous Strategy (NIS) - Words from Kerry and Gabriela: "It’s encouraging to see the momentum and support for the NIS across MarComms. Our initiatives are designed to encourage learning and foster understanding of Indigenous audiences. Special thanks to Stacee for developing internal events and collaborating with Learning and Development on the Indigenous Canada course, as well as to Mary, Jessica, Sharon, and Erin for their contributions to advancing Indigenous programming."