As we approach 20 months of living and working in a global pandemic, the data coming out amid this new She-cession points to troubling setbacks for women in the workforce. More women have lost jobs than men, more are considering leaving the workforce or downsizing their careers and more are disproportionately shouldering pandemic-era burdens, including childcare responsibilities. According to the World Economic Forum, it will now take 135 years to close the global gender gap instead of the 99 years previously projected pre-pandemic. 

Knowing the data is important. The landscape has dramatically changed, especially for women, and we must pay attention. But the real question we need to be asking ourselves is, what are we doing to address this? 

The pandemic has made clear the need for major course correction across organizations and industries to support, recruit, retain and advance women. Being relevant and remaining a leader in the marketplace means not being afraid to change, instead embracing it. After all, our industry thrives on change and disruption; both of which often lead to innovation. 

As diversity and inclusion (DEI) advocates, corporate leaders and individuals must ask what we need to be doing differently to right wrongs, to be more diverse and inclusive, to earn back the gains lost during the pandemic and to build on them. 

When we asked ourselves at WICT — Women in Cable Telecommunications — what we should be doing to meet this moment, we realized it was time for action, time for change within our own walls. And while WICT has always adapted our business model to ensure we remain relevant, WICT’s name has not kept pace with the times. As a result, Women in Cable Telecommunications no longer speaks to the full breadth of who we are and where we are headed. Recognizing that meant it was time to dig in and let data inform some sound decision-making, because at WICT, we love data! 

Engaging some of the top branding experts there are, we met, we gathered, and we listened. In doing so, we realized we not only needed to evolve our brand to build a stronger WICT; we knew we had an added obligation to be more inclusive than ever given how much ground women lost in the workplace during COVID-19. 

We also know that the more women we can connect and support now, the better for our industry, and frankly the better for the communities our member companies serve. This introspection helped us realize that for all the benefits WICT provides to our members and the industry at large, there is one thing that reigns supreme - it’s all about our network.

So, starting Oct. 20, Women in Cable Telecommunications is The WICT Network: Empowering Women in Media, Entertainment & Technology. We are being intentional with our name, logo and actions widening the circle of our network. 

Women want to be connected to one another and data shows wide developmental networks help female leaders rise in their careers. We are in a position to help make that happen. So we’re going to do just that.

Updating our brand and name isn’t a revolution. It’s an evolution. For over 40 years, The WICT Network has provided an unparalleled peer-to-peer and B2B network through member resources, educational events and diversity research. We’re still doing that and more. Our new name and tagline is a reminder that we’re also going to be doing more than ever to reflect the companies and individuals we serve.

Change like this isn’t about optics. It’s about something far more fundamental — the business case for diversity, equity and inclusion. Prioritizing women in your workforce isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s good business. The data is very clear. Diversity in organizations increases innovation, profitability, recruitment, retention, employee satisfaction and more. According to McKinsey’s Diversity Matters, company profits and share performance can be close to 50% higher when women are well-represented at the top. And that’s just one of many studies. The WICT Network website will point you to an abundance of compelling research demonstrating that workforce parity is the bedrock for becoming a better, stronger, more profitable company. 

While our new name and logo is an exciting step in our evolution, there is so much more for all of us to do. The pandemic did a lot of damage in a very short amount of time, so it is reasonable to believe we can undo the damage in just as short a time. We’ve made a course correction within our own organization. Ask yourself, is there more you can do within yours?

NAMIC, WICT and The Walter Kaitz Foundation on Monday (Sept. 19) will partner to offer a panel discussion on the successes and challenges of women of color in business, one of several conversations on inclusion within the cable industry during its annual Diversity Week.

The week’s festivities — which will include Women in Cable Telecommunications’ day long Leadership Conference and Touchstones Luncheon on Monday, the National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications’ 30th annual conference on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the annual Kaitz Foundation fundraising dinner Wednesday evening — will be highlighted by a Monday afternoon, jointly presented general session titled “Leadership Lessons for Women of Color.”

The event will feature some of the industry’s top female executives providing insights and strategies on how to transcend the challenges facing women of color in the workforce and make it to the top of their respective fields, according to the organizations. Slated to appear: Monica Diaz, vice president of diversity, inclusion and wellness at ESPN; Tamara Franklin, executive vice president of digital for Scripps Networks Interactive; Susan Jin Davis, senior vice president of operations and compliance for Comcast; and Michelle Rice, executive vice president of content distribution and marketing for TV One.

Dr. Ella Bell, associate professor of business administration at Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business and founder of nonprofit organization ASCENT-Leading Multicultural Women to the Top, will moderate the panel, which will provide a strong, informative kickoff to the rest of the Diversity Week activites, Maria Brennan, president and CEO of WICT, said.

“We will be presenting a perspective from women of color and looking at what are the common denominators of these powerhouse women in the industry who have really overcome the statistics and really risen through the ranks inside the media world,” Brennan said.

Overall, executives from WICT, NAMIC and Kaitz said that the industry’s focus on diversity during and beyond this week continues to make good business sense as its subscriber base becomes more diverse.

“Whenever we talk about diversity we couple it with inclusion because there’s nothing inside of the research that says diversity and inclusion is bad for business,” Brennan said. “It’s quite the opposite — if you ignore the research and the data, you would be doing so at your own risk and probably at your own peril.”

Added Kaitz Foundation executive director David Porter, “Diversity Week is a critical industry effort that allows us to recognize excellence while fostering leadership development and networking opportunities for our employees.”

Here are some of the highlights of Diversity Week:

WICT Leadership Conference: Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner Kersee and Comcast Corp. senior executive vice president and chief diversity officer David Cohen will be the guest speakers at the opening general session of the conference, which will feature several keynote speeches, master classes, talks, interactive roundtables and think tank discussions.

“What’s unique about the Leadership Conference is that we deliver the teaching in many different learning platforms, and we do that because everyone learns differently,” Brennan said. “By breaking up the formatting and the content, we have the best chance of ensuring that people assimilate the information and it sticks with them.”

The Leadership Conference’s tent-pole event, The Touchstones Luncheon, will feature as its keynote speaker Danai Guira, co-star of AMC’s hit series The Walking Dead. During the luncheon, WICT will honor Kathleen Finch, Scripps Networks Interactive chief programming, content and brand officer, as its Woman of The Year. The organization will also highlight its Women to Watch honorees, Laura Gentile, ESPN’s senior vice president of espnW and Women’s Initiatives, and Mary McLaughlin, Comcast Cable’s senior vice president for the Beltway region.

NAMIC Conference: NAMIC will field a star-studded lineup of speakers for its conference. The two-day event will kick off Sept. 20 with a general session keynote address delivered by Reggie Love, former assistant to President Barack Obama, NAMIC said.

ABC News’ 20/20 co-anchor Elizabeth Vargas will be the special guest speaker for NAMIC’s 2016 L. Patrick Mellon Mentorship Program Luncheon, in partnership with WICT and Kaitz.

Music industry icon and New Edition/Bel Biv Devoe member Michael Bivins will discuss his career and BET’s upcoming New Edition biographical miniseries during the conference’s Excellence in Multicultural Marketing Awards presentation, according to NAMIC.

In between the high-profile keynoters, the conference’s theme, “Diversity 3.0: Innovation Through Inclusion,” will be executed through sessions aligned with three educational tracks of Business Solutions, Leading and Learning, and Content and Imagery, said the network.

“NAMIC is honored to present such a distinguished line-up of speakers and session facilitators. Our sincere thanks is extended to this year’s planning committee co-chairs and all of the sponsors that have provided support for this milestone 30th anniversary conference,” said Eglon Simons, NAMIC president and CEO.

Kaitz Foundation Dinner: Inclusion, impact and inspiration are the themes for Kaitz’s Sept. 21 annual fundraising dinner, which is on track to raise more than $1.6 million to fund diversity-themed programs and organizations within the cable industry. CNN’s Weekend Edition anchor Fredricka Whitfield will host the gala, which will feature on-stage appearances from dinner co-chairs John Martin, Turner chairman and CEO, and Tom Rutledge, Charter Communications chairman and CEO, as well as Michael Powell, CEO of the NCTA – The Internet & Television Association.

Kaitz will honor A+E Networks with its Diversity Champion Award and The National Association of Latino Independent Producers with its Diversity Advocate Award, Porter said.

The cable industry has seen an increase in the percentage of women and people of color in management and senior level positions, according to new employment studies from Women in Cable Telecommunications and NAMIC.

The results of WICT's PAR Cable Telecommunications Industry Diversity Survey and the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communication AIM (Advancement Investment Measurement) report also warned of increased turnover rates that, if not addressed, could cut into management gains for both women and people of color.

The findings of the two surveys were revealed during a joint WICT and NAMIC town hall meeting Tuesday morning (Sept. 29) in New York.

The PAR survey reported that the percentage of female executives and senior-level managers increased by 4% since the last PAR report in 2013. Promotion rates in the manager and executive/senior manager levels were higher for women than for men, according to the survey.

For people of color, the percentage of executives and senior level managers increased by 1% since the 2013 NAMIC AIM report -- mostly from increases within cable MSOs and programmers, NAMIC officials said.

The number of entry-level and mid-level managers of color increased by a modest 1% since 2013, according to the NAMIC AIM survey.

While women gained in numbers in upper management positions, WICT's PAR report said the actual number of full-time female employees declined by 1% in the past two years. The survey added that an increasing turnover rate projects a decline in the representation of women at the manager level and above over the next five years, according to the survey.

“There is progress in a number of important areas for women; however, there is more work to be done,” WICT president and CEO Maria Brennan said. “The key driver that will significantly enhance representation of women is increased workplace retention. Overall, the survey illustrates the need for WICT and our industry to remain resolute in our commitment to creating more opportunities for women.“

Promotion rates for people of color continued to decline since 2013, and turnover rates remain higher than those of their white counterparts, according to the survey. Most notable are the differences at the executive and senior manager levels, where the promotion rate for white employees is twice that rate for people of color, according to the survey.

"While there is evidence that our industry is committed to increasing multi-ethnic diversity, continued vigilance and commitment will be essential as we move forward,” Eglon Simons, president and CEO of NAMIC, said. “The high rate of turnover and poor rate of promotion being experienced by professionals of color threaten to undermine hard-fought gains.”