Publicis Groupe has named Geraldine White its new U.S. chief diversity officer, moving the former North American head of diversity and inclusion for Publicis Sapient to the top-level role where she will oversee the holding company’s ongoing racial equity and inclusion efforts.

As chief diversity officer of Publicis’ U.S. operations, White will be tasked with managing a range of DE&I initiatives, including the creation of more equitable and just policies for the agency’s multicultural staff, and helping the group pursue the goals laid out in its Seven Actions commitments last year.

“I look forward to continuing to advance the strong momentum we have made in our journey to place diversity, equity and inclusion at the center of our organization,” says White, whose new position is effective immediately.

“I’m honored to accept this role that reflects my continued commitment to creating a more inclusive and equitable environment for people across a broad spectrum of diverse experiences, with care and consideration across the multitude of identities, to enable us to deliver on our promise of ‘Viva La Difference’ for our teams, our company, our clients and the communities that we exist in,” she continues.

At her new post, White will help oversee the Brain Trust, a company-wide collective of talent “dedicated to developing and expanding diversity equity and inclusion initiatives,” according to Publicis, and will also helm the Talent Engagement and Inclusion Council.

White will work closely alongside Renetta McCann, Publicis Groupe’s chief inclusion experience officer, who will “remain focused on bringing our DE&I focus to our clients through the development of unique products and solutions that allow further connection with diverse and multicultural audiences in more authentic, salient ways,” the holding company adds.

“Geraldine is an exceptional talent with a history of impact across our DE&I practices and communities. Geraldine and Renetta’s collective leadership, vision and dedication will continue to propel our organization forward with momentum on this important front,” says Anne-Gabrielle Heilbronner, secretary general of Publicis Groupe, to whom White and McCann both report.

White may have her work cut out as Publicis presses to increase the multicultural makeup of its 21,000-strong American workforce, which was shown in internal data released yesterday to be just 5.9% Black and 8.3% Hispanic or Latino. And while the holding company’s U.S. diversity statistics have been slowly (but steadily) on the rise since 2020, there’s still a long road ahead before Publicis’ staff mirrors the racial makeup of the country at large.

It has made several healthy strides toward its Seven Actions commitments, which were first outlined last summer in a bid to help Publicis increase its transparency and lay the foundation for a more equitable work environment.

Since last year, Publicis Groupe has taken measures in the U.S. to improve diverse employees’ career experiences from creating a two-day Black Talent Summit, mandating bias training for its American employees and launching the Multicultural Talent Pipeline to help bring college students of color into the creative industries. 

The company has also committed at least 45 million euros, or nearly $55 million, to diversity, equity and inclusion investments over the next three years.

Prior to White’s appointment, the U.S. chief diversity officer position had been unfilled for several months after being vacated by Ronnie Dickerson Stewart, who left the role in January after about one year. Prior to her stint at Publicis, Dickerson Stewart served in a similarly diversity-focused role at Digitas for eight years, and has since been hired as the diversity, equity and inclusion marketplace and community lead at Zoom.