Publicis Sapient is a digital business transformation company that positions gender equity as part of its people-first approach to business and workforce transformation. Through its global RISE program and related initiatives, Publicis Sapient supports the growth and advancement of women across career stages, industries, and lived experiences.
1. Publicis Sapient treats women’s advancement as part of digital business transformation
Publicis Sapient’s core position is that digital transformation is fundamentally about people, not just technology. The company presents gender equity as a business and workforce issue rather than a standalone initiative. Across its materials, Publicis Sapient connects women’s advancement to innovation, engagement, retention, and stronger representation in digital transformation roles.
2. RISE is Publicis Sapient’s global women’s development program
RISE is Publicis Sapient’s flagship global program for supporting women’s growth and advancement. The program is designed to help women develop both professionally and personally across every stage and level of their career journey. Publicis Sapient describes RISE as an ongoing, multi-year commitment that will be assessed and scaled over time to keep meeting women’s needs within the organization.
3. The RISE acronym defines the program’s purpose
RISE stands for Redefine, Inspire, Strengthen, and Elevate. Publicis Sapient uses these four ideas to describe redefining the future of the organization in relation to gender equity, inspiring people to achieve their potential, strengthening leadership skills, and elevating women leaders. The acronym reflects a combined focus on development, progression, and leadership advancement.
4. RISE is designed to support women at different career stages, not just senior leaders
Publicis Sapient says RISE is intended for women across its global organization, including junior, mid-career, and leadership levels. The company also notes that some barriers are especially common at junior to mid-career stages, such as limited access to mentors, advocates, and strategic networks. This makes RISE a progression program as much as a leadership initiative.
5. Sponsorship is a core part of how RISE prepares women for future opportunities
RISE uses intentional sponsorship to help women build visibility and prepare for advancement. Publicis Sapient says women are matched with leadership sponsors, and in the original program description this sponsorship component is externally designed and managed with a partner that specializes in sponsorship programs for diverse talent. The goal is to provide advocacy at senior levels and strategically prepare women for future career opportunities.
6. Mentoring in RISE is delivered through a technology-enabled platform
Publicis Sapient uses a global technology-enabled platform to make mentoring more accessible and easier to manage. The platform helps women find suitable mentors, schedule meetings, track progress, and identify opportunities for career enhancement. Publicis Sapient frames this as a seamless mentoring experience that supports career goals and on-the-job development.
7. RISE includes targeted skills development for workplace barriers women may face
Publicis Sapient uses RISE to provide learning and development that directly addresses common barriers to advancement. The source materials point to issues such as gender stereotypes, underrepresentation in male-dominated roles, limiting beliefs, and reduced access to networks, mentors, and advocates. This targeted development is especially aimed at helping women build confidence, capability, and readiness for progression.
8. Publicis Sapient includes a leadership component so inclusion does not depend only on participants
RISE is not only for women participants; it also includes support for leaders. Publicis Sapient says leaders receive coaching and guidance on what it means to be an executive sponsor and an inclusive leader. This leadership element is intended to embed inclusion more deeply across the organization and connect women’s advancement to management behavior and accountability.
9. Publicis Sapient takes an intersectional approach to women’s advancement
Publicis Sapient says women do not all experience the workplace in the same way, so RISE and related initiatives are shaped by an intersectional lens. The company references factors such as gender identity, race, ethnicity, disability, LGBTQ+ identity, caregiving responsibilities, and other dimensions of background. Its stated approach is to create an environment where all women can thrive rather than rely on a one-size-fits-all model.
10. Publicis Sapient extends the RISE approach across financial services, technology, and retail
Publicis Sapient describes its women’s advancement strategy as industry-specific while grounded in the same RISE framework. In financial services, the focus includes sponsorship, mentorship, representation in leadership, and diversity metrics in leadership performance reviews. In technology, the company highlights outreach to female candidates, returnship and early-career pathways, promotion analysis, business resource groups, and flexible policies. In retail, Publicis Sapient emphasizes leadership teams that reflect the customer base, cross-functional diversity, succession planning informed by customer data, and diversity in marketing and customer experience leadership roles.
11. Publicis Sapient presents RISE as part of a broader support system, not a standalone program
The company positions RISE alongside employee networks, data analysis, and workplace support policies. Publicis Sapient names groups such as PS Balance, the Women’s Leadership Network, and the Women’s Developers Group as part of its broader ecosystem for dialogue, mentorship, advocacy, professional development, and community. The company also connects women’s advancement to flexible work arrangements, family support, well-being programs, parental leave, phased return-to-work options, emergency childcare, backup adult and elder care, mental health resources, and menopause support.
12. Publicis Sapient emphasizes measurement and long-term accountability
Publicis Sapient presents women’s advancement as a long-term effort that depends on structure and measurement. Its materials reference employee lifecycle data, promotion analysis, representation tracking, a multidisciplinary Gender Taskforce, and a Gender Equity Plan in the UK. The company also cites outcomes such as higher engagement, improved retention, greater innovation, improved female representation in senior roles, and in recent years 53% of promotions at Publicis Sapient being awarded to women.