GroupM, WPP’s media investment group, has launched ‘EMPOWER’, a nine-month development programme for women who have demonstrated outstanding leadership potential through exceptional performance within GroupM. The programme has been developed by GroupM’s UK Learning and Effectiveness team.

The EMPOWER programme is designed to support and develop talented women, aiming to foster growth, expand networks, and provide insights into the challenges and opportunities women face in leadership roles. The inaugural cohort, which includes 50 women from across the GroupM UK network, will support the agency in advancing greater gender diversity in leadership.

Throughout the nine-month programme, for a minimum of two days per month, participants will take part in coaching-style workshops and speaker/networking events, led by industry experts and successful female leaders. Participants will complete regular feedback surveys throughout the programme to share their progress.

The sessions will cover a wide range of topics, including leadership branding, effective communication and networking, negotiating, emotional intelligence, critical thinking and decision making and navigating career advancement.

“We’re thrilled to launch this programme to advance greater diversity and progression in our leadership positions,” said Sandra Arnold, Regional Head of Learning and Effectiveness, GroupM UK & EMEA. “We believe we have the best talent, and our biggest priority is retaining and building the skillsets of those people. This is why we consistently listen to our people and look for ways to support them and their career progression. EMPOWER is just one of the ways we are looking to champion and grow our female leadership.”