2020 Silver Medal Recipient- Renetta McCann

Keeping the Silver Medal Award Pillars as the cornerstone, join us for a memorable experience where we get to see the different aspects that make Renetta McCann such an important person in our industry and the world.

Renetta sits down with Ilia Calderon, Univision National News Anchor, to talk about Diversity and Inclusion. This is the topic Renetta is most passionate about and what she is focused on right now.

Ilia Calderón, is the first Afro-Latina weekday evening national news anchor and discusses racism in her new memoir: “My Time to Speak: Reclaiming Ancestry and Confronting Race.”

Chicago Advertising Federation has the pleasure of announcing our next Silver Medal Honoree, Renetta McCann, Chief Inclusion Experience Officer, Publicis Groupe. McCann is the 25th professional and fifth woman to earn this illustrious honor. She has been recognized as one of the leading innovators and most influential executives in the advertising, marketing, and media industries, with a global reputation for not only building brands but also the organizations and leadership to sustain them.

In a year of ever-changing circumstances, this year’s recognition and celebration will be a little different. We couldn’t be more excited to share details for the Legacy & Leadership 3-Part Series honoring Renetta McCann and her impact.

Renetta McCann has been recognized as one of the leading innovators and most influential executives in the advertising, marketing, and media industries, with a global reputation for not only building brands but also the organizations and leadership to sustain them. Renetta works to drive inclusion at all levels of the organization, with an emphasis on ensuring that the company’s clients are benefiting from the many strategic advantages that diverse teams deliver.

This discussion will be focused on sharing some thoughts addressing today’s rapid changes affecting our industry specifically as technology and demographics evolve. This conversation will be set through the lens of our current landscape: Covid19 Pandemic and addressing Diversity and Inclusion as Black Lives Matter bring forth a deeper look into our industry. These leaders will share their past experiences, how they arrived to where they are today, what their biggest obstacles were and how they overcame them. Let’s reimagine the future together by learning what advice these prevailing women want to share with future generations, join the movement for a call to action for those sitting in influential positions to shape a positive outcome post Pandemic to close the gap on diversity & inclusion.

About Renetta McCann

Renetta McCann has been recognized as one of the leading innovators and most influential executives in the advertising, marketing, and media industries, with a reputation for not only building brands, but also the organizations and leadership to sustain them.

She began her career at Leo Burnett, and, after a long tenure, she became the CEO of Starcom MediaVest Group Worldwide. Under her leadership, client billings exceeded $26 billion and the global workforce rose to over 6,000 people. Most recently, she served as the Chief Talent Officer for Leo Burnett as well as Publicis Communications N.A.

Throughout her career, she’s been a volunteer and contributor to many industry and civic organizations. Currently, she serves on the Exec Committee of the Chicago Community Trust, the Marketing Committee of the Robert and Ann Lurie Children’s Hospital, and the Legacy Giving Committee of the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago. She is a frequent name in the press. In 2002, she was selected Ad Woman of the Year by the Chicago Advertising Federation, and she received a Matrix Award in 2006 from NY Women in Communications. She has appeared on the pages of Ad Age, Business Week, and Chicago magazine. In 2014 the American Advertising Federation honored her with a Diversity Achievement Award for her contributions as an Industry Influential, and she was recently featured on Adweek’s list of Inspiring Women Who Have Broken Down Advertising’s Most Persistent Barriers.

After nearly 30 years of communications management and leadership, she went back to school, earning an M.S. in Learning and Organizational Change from Northwestern University.

She worked as an executive coach and organizational change consultant before rejoining Burnett in the fall of 2012. Currently, she is an adjunct lecturer in the MSLOC program, teaching a course on organizational design. Renetta has also served as a Corporate Director of Tribune Publishing. She lives in Chicago with her husband Kevin and children, Ella and Alexander.

About the program

The annual Silver Medal Award program was created in 1983 to recognize a distinguished member of the Chicago advertising community for their contributions to the advertising profession, mentorship, support for the broader community, and their accomplishments.

Past Honorees