IAPI has warned women are not reaching senior roles in the communications industry.
And the body which represents the commercial creative and communications sector say attitudes amongst more than half of men surveyed found they believed it is men who are being discriminated against.
The issues were raised at the body's annual Female Futures Fund conference on the theme of gender perceptions and their implications on brands.
IAPI CEO Siobhán Masterson said: “While women dominate our entry-level workforce by almost 2:1, we see a dramatic decline within senior roles, with double the number of men versus women over the age of 45.”
Ipsos B&A Directors Clare Kavanagh and Davina O'Donoghue shared exclusive new findings from their recent research on gender attitudes.
They found 56% of men believe efforts to promote women’s equality have gone so far that they now discriminate against men.
Ipsos B&A CEO Luke Reaper said: “Despite improvements over time, Ireland remains an unequal society with women still more disadvantaged on many key indicators: earnings, political representation, and senior roles.
"Results from the recent Ipsos B&A ‘Backlash’ and ‘Toxic Masculinity’ reports point to a significant struggle on the ‘equality project’ where men, especially young men, feel they are being asked to do too much to support female equality."
This presents a high stakes communication challenge especially amongst Millennials and Gen Z.
Representations of men and women need to move beyond outdated stereotypes and show, believable positive future roles in an increasingly equal society.
"Having brand bravery will be crucial, but brands must be clever too in how they approach this to take account of the changing climate.”
Linda Bradley, Head of Planning and Insights, Diageo Ireland emphasised the vital role of initiatives like the Female Futures Fund in fostering gender equality in leadership: “At Diageo, we are committed to nurturing an inclusive and diverse culture, as well as shaping market-leading policies and practices because it is both the right thing to do and helps our business to grow.
"We believe a business that includes everyone is a better business.
"We champion inclusion and diversity across our entire business – with our employees, our suppliers, our brands, and within the communities in which we operate, which is why we are so proud to partner with IAPI on this Female Futures Fund, working to ensure Ireland’s creative industry attracts, retains and promotes strong female talent.”
Applications for 2025’s Female Futures Fund open on Thursday 6th March.
