Ep 169: Justin Thomas-Copeland - In 15

Edited highlights of our full conversation.

Justin Thomas-Copeland is the CEO of DDB, North America. He’s a dynamic, charismatic leader with a long history of building successful businesses and creating change.

It would be great if the state of society allowed us to end the story there. But for all of his many, many accomplishments, Justin’s appointment generated attention because of one characteristic that is incredibly rare among CEOs of major companies. He’s black.

In fact, rare might be an exaggeration. For instance, the Fortune 500 contains four black CEOs. That’s down from its all-time high of six. If the leadership of Fortune 500 companies simply reflected American society, there would be 67.

It is beyond absurd, beyond outrageous that we even have to say this out loud. Things need to change. And Justin Thomas-Copeland is a change agent.

We talk too often about leaders guiding their people through periods of change. But in a business fueled by its capacity to unlock creative thinking and innovation, change is not a temporary state but a permanent one. A company needs to be different tomorrow. It needs to know more and understand better. It has to have a higher tolerance for risk, a greater appetite for exploration and deeper self awareness. And that needs to be true every day.

And what makes all that work is showing up as a leader with what Justin describes as the right intent. A set of values and beliefs that withstand the short term set-backs that get in the way, and which overcome the skepticism, the suspicion and the fear that greet most leaders who are trying to lead systemic change.

The lack of diversity among the senior leadership of American business is a systemic issue.

Changing it will require determination and trust at an unprecedented scale. It will require leaders who have the right intent.

What’s yours?