Jelani Gibson is an associate strategist at The Shipyard and an Ohio State 2021 graduate. Credit: Courtesy of Jelani Gibson
A newly minted partnership draws on Ohio State students to improve Black representation in the marketing field.
The Black Advertising Strategic Communication Association at Ohio State and The Shipyard, a Columbus-based marketing agency, have partnered for the past two years to create internship and job opportunities for Black students. Over the course of the next five years, CEO of The Shipyard Rick Milenthal hopes to hire 40 to 50 additional interns.
Richard Dixon, a fourth-year in marketing and intern at The Shipyard this summer, said Black voices matter in advertising agencies and that Black lives make up a lot of aspects of the market.
“Black lives, Black dollars, Black experiences — if they want our money, they have to be able to market to us. We don’t often fit into the lens that white people envision. They have to study and do their research,” Dixon said. “They need us in these offices, rooms, committees, jobs and careers.”
Milenthal said agencies need to diversify staff in order to speak to all of America, not just a part of it.
“I’m not holding ourselves out on this issue any better than anyone else, which is why we need change,” Milenthal said. “It’s foolish to pretend there’s no bias by all of us — it’s not realistic. And so, diversifying an agency makes an agency much better in changing that point of view.”
According to the Association of National Advertisers, 3 percent of chief marketing officers and equivalents are Black, 88 percent are white, 5 percent are Asian, and 4 percent are Hispanic. Osei Appiah, BASCA faculty adviser said providing people of color professional experience needed to gain entry-level jobs such as internships is vital.
Although BASCA currently partners exclusively with The Shipyard, Appiah said he hopes to expand the internship program. He said he wants to include additional campuses and provide leadership to other businesses. He said BASCA is negotiating with a few other local companies, including Paul Werth Associates, a public relations and marketing agency in Columbus.
Appiah founded BASCA in 2012 to create a partnership between students, faculty and professionals. Appiah said he has worked with Milenthal to find ways to diversify advertising agencies across the country, including through the internship program with The Shipyard founded in summer 2020.
Appiah said Milenthal also sought to make real change for Black students in the area of systemic racism after the murder of George Floyd.
Jelani Gibson, associate strategist at The Shipyard and Ohio State 2021 graduate, said Black representation in advertising agencies is crucial and beneficial for business.
“At the end of the day, America is a melting pot. Black people have been a part of America from the get-go,” Gibson said. “This is extremely important because if Black people are not inside of these industries, businesses are missing a major demographic, a major target audience, and putting themselves at risk for offending not only Black people, but people of other races and ethnicities as well.”
Milenthal said he is proud of what The Shipyard does and hopes to continue pushing for change in diversifying companies.
“These young people are a gift to us, and they are a gift to the industry. They just need some help to have the business connections and have the exposure to the business world,” Milenthal said. “It’s going to matter to our clients, and it’s going to matter to how effective we are. It’s going to matter to these young professionals that are going to grow into great leaders in our industry.”
