By Our Staff

Dentsu Webchutney, the digital-led creative agency from Dentsu India, has launched a new talent development programme, The Ad Fellows Returnship. It is a 30-day back-to-work programme for moms created in partnership with Indian Creative Women, an independent forum working towards furthering diversity in creative teams across the Indian Advertising and Design Industry. For the record, the virtual learning programme will begin on July 1, 2021 and applications will be open from June 1, 2021 till June 10, 2021.

Speaking on the programme, Dentsu Webchutney team said: “We believe in the power of perspectives to make ideas stronger. Diversity in talent will always lead to more diverse work and following up on our success in making advertising open for everyone from Gen Z, to internet obsessives, to people in other industries, we’re excited to take this next step and welcome moms to Dentsu Webchutney. The program has been chartered by a passionate woman-strong team that believes more mothers need to put their lived experiences on the table. We’ve certainly got a long way to go ourselves but we’re very proud to partner with Indian Creative Women and take this much overdue step forward.”

Added the team of Indian Creative Women: “Women face several systemic and structural challenges that get in the way of them growing into senior leadership roles. Our industry isn’t doing enough to retain them, specifically mothers. A woman is still blamed if she quits the industry after becoming a mother. There’s simply no organizational support for her to succeed. Dentsu Webchutney’s The Ad Fellows Returnship is a small step in the right direction and should be a great example of what other agencies can follow. This program is hugely influenced by Harshada Thakurdesai, a creative mom and Group Creative Director from Team Indian Creative Women.”