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JORDAN MCDOWELL

Title Strategy director   
Company McCann Manchester
Pronouns He/him

What does D&I mean to you?
It’s as simple and as enormous as ensuring everyone has a seat at the table. Diversity of thought, of spirit, of ideas comes from better inclusion of people, which in turn comes from greater equity; levelling the playing field to remove as many hindrances to participation as possible.

What’s your passion area in diversity? 
That’s easy. Women. I was raised by the most incredible women. My mother is one of those powerhouses you can’t help but feel privileged to know. In many ways, being raised by her clouded my understanding of the world and how it is for women. Nothing seemed to phase my mother, nothing could get in her way. And yet as I grew up, not only did I realise that wasn’t the case for many women, I also realised it wasn’t the case for my mother either. In my small way, I want to help more women get ahead in work.

 What is top of mind for 2024? 
Class, and particularly a better understanding of working-class people, which leads to a better and more authentic representation in the work our industry is responsible for. Class is at once intangible and ephemeral and yet British society is codified by its rules, which dictate how we live, see each other, and see ourselves. Our industry, supposedly obsessed with ‘understanding the customer’ has consistently proven the contrary. 

Which three words describe you best?
Driven. Loyal. Impatient.

Who should be on the next iList? 
Imogen Tazzyman, for her quiet tenacity and zeal, and Rebecca Ziantoni, for her less quiet determination to bring more people into our industry who would otherwise not be.

D&I: MY STORY

A colleague nominated me for leading our Day for Meaning (DFM) initiative. DFM is an annual event where McCann Worldgroup agencies focus on global equity, but I saw the need to localise the content, enabling discussions on racism and misogyny.

By involving charity workers, local leaders, and policymakers, we facilitated impactful conversations – and Manchester had the highest participation worldwide, showcasing the effectiveness of our approach. This led to a global rebranding of the initiative as Day for Moaning.