Almost half of black communications professionals are more likely to receive written or verbal praise for their efforts in the workplace than a pay rise, bonus or promotion, which are the gateway to more senior leadership roles, a research reveals.

The ‘One step forward two step black’ report, published by the UK Black Comms Network, which aims to increase the number and seniority of black comms professionals, found that recognition and promotion is something that happens less frequently for black employees (80%), and is significantly higher than national average (31%). The report found that, in the last 12 months, 45% of black communications professionals had received a pay rise and thirty one per cent had received a bonus.

Respondents shared examples of occasions when their talent and contribution had been overlooked by management. Several respondents had been asked to train a junior colleague who subsequently became their manager. Others noted that when their work had won external awards it had not been referenced or recognised internally by colleagues.

According to Kamiqua Pearce, CEO of the UK Black Comms Network, the problem is that ‘hiring black’ and focusing on numbers doesn’t address the structural inequalities within a company.

“There is little benefit in creating a more diverse talent pipeline if the talent is then bottlenecked. This leads to a brain drain, and is one of the reasons that the face of senior leadership teams have remained largely unchanged. We want to work with the wider industry and existing initiatives to ensure that more Black talent is retained and able to thrive,” she says.

The lack of recognition and promotion has caused many to question how far they can progress within the industry, with just 8 per cent believing that it is highly likely that they will become the most senior communications professional in their organisation.