Adcolor’s Conference Shrinks, But Its Message Got Louder

The year following the 2024 election has been devastating for the communities represented by Adcolor, the ad industry group for diverse creatives.

The federal government has fired all DEI-related positions and is threatening states to do the same. Corporate America has eliminated 1,700 jobs with “diversity” or “DEI” in the first five months of this year alone. There’s an ongoing affordability crisis, and entry-level agency positions are being lost to AI and consolidation.

All of these issues have impacted Adcolor’s 2025 Ctrl+Alt+Lift summit, which took place Nov. 11-14 at Disney’s Coronado Springs hotel in Orlando. The 19th annual conference shrank dramatically in every way from 2024: Attendance was down 37% to 900, with 54% in advertising/marketing, 17% from entertainment/media, and 12% digital and technology companies. 

Sponsorships also dropped by more than a third compared to 2024, with over half of returning partners investing less than last year. All of the Adcolor staff at Ctrl+Alt+Lift volunteered their time due to budget constraints. 

Adcolor staff see this setback as temporary. “As we look to next year, we have already spoken to many partners who are excited to be a part of both year-round events and our 20th anniversary celebration,” said vp of partnerships Ana Leen.

Attendees also seemed determined to embrace the conference’s message that it’s never been more important to take control, cultivate new skills, and reach back to lift up your community. 

“There’s always going to be some evil queen, some jealous king, or spell cast over half the country that makes everyone go to sleep—AKA, not woke,” Adcolor founder Tiffany R. Warren told attendees. “I want each of you to remember that you are the main characters in this story.”

Keeping steady 

Despite the hostile political climate, the business case for inclusion is only getting stronger. Companies in the top quartile for gender and/or ethnic diversity on executive teams were 39% more likely to have above average profitability than those in the bottom quartile, according to a 2023 McKinsey & Company report.

2025 Adcolor Rockstar Award winner Ri-Karlo Handy has spent over 25 years in Hollywood placing diverse talent on production teams, most recently with Apple TV’s Acupulco, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, and the Michael Jackson biopic coming in 2026. 

“You can see in the ROI, the things that are the most successful have more people from more different backgrounds,” he told ADWEEK.

It is certainly more difficult these days to have equity conversations, said Elizabeth Lim, chief of staff and strategy at diverse talent management agency Kensington Grey. She added: “We have the numbers to prove that our voices make sense — literally make dollars and cents — for brands. If you can prove that, then the rest naturally falls into place.”

Black and diverse communities remain the drivers of market trends, and when the administration stops waging war against inclusion, the investments will return, said Black media mogul Richelieu Dennis, the 2025 Adcolor | ADWEEK Beacon Award winner.

“Stay the course,” he added. “Stay in the pocket, run the fucking play. If you’ve been creating value and you continue creating value, you have to find new ways to the end zone.”

Finding success in a dark time

But the way to that end zone is often not linear.

Adcolor emphasized that by presenting unconventional success stories across its stages.

LinkedIn influencer Jayde Powell tried five different corporate roles over seven years before striking out on her own with The Em Dash Co. in October 2022, “operating on vibes” with just a month of savings. Monique Rodriguez was a registered nurse before she started posting lifestyle content on social media, including mixing her own hair products, which led to fast-growing Black haircare brand Mielle.

And the host of this year’s Ctrl+Alt+Lift, reality TV star Rachel Lindsay, was a practicing attorney before going on The Bachelor, and now co-hosts the Higher Learning podcast on Spotify. “My advice is to ask yourself whose life it is that you’re living, and then do the things that you want to do,” she said. “Really use the power that you have within.”

If 2025 was a stress test, Adcolor showed exactly what resilience looks like under pressure.