VCNI Ups Wincie Knight to VP Role

Wincie Knight has been promoted to VP of global inclusion strategy at ViacomCBS Networks International (VCNI).

In this expanded role, Knight will continue to drive the company’s commitment to building a strong, inclusive culture that embraces diversity, inclusion and belonging. She will join the UK Cluster Senior Leadership Team, oversee the development of insights-driven strategic plans for diversity and inclusion across VCNI, and partner across the business to implement integrated solutions that drive innovative and inclusive business behaviors at all levels of the company.

Knight will lead and empower a team to deliver diversity and inclusion objectives in the U.K. and Europe, Israel, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, and work closely with the company’s senior leadership and the Office of Global Inclusion to ensure an aligned approach across ViacomCBS Networks International.

Based in London, Knight will report to Marva Smalls, executive VP of global inclusion at ViacomCBS and executive VP of public affairs, kids and family entertainment brands at ViacomCBS Media Networks; and Maria Kyriacou, president of VCN UK, Australia and Israel. Knight started at Viacom in 1999 and joined the Office of Global Inclusion team in 2014 as senior director of global inclusion strategy. She spearheaded Viacom UK’s first Inclusion Week in 2018, which was then expanded in 2019 to all of ViacomCBS’s offices in more than 30 countries.

She also played a key role in commissioning a Caerus Executive report to examine the experiences of Black, Asian, Minority, and Ethnic (BAME) employees at Viacom UK in an effort to elevate accountability and transparency and to ensure equitable work environments for all employees. Additionally, Knight championed the importance of mental health by launching an employee-led mental health initiative with VCN UK employees trained by Mental Health First Aid England, to serve as mental health ambassadors to the VCN UK office.

Knight was recognized as a 2020 British LGBT+ Awards Top 10 Corporate Ally and was named a BAME Workplace Hero by the Investing in Ethnicity Awards in 2018.

Marva Smalls said: “Wincie has been a longtime asset to our Global Inclusion team, and her work has helped transform ViacomCBS’ international diversity and inclusion strategy. ViacomCBS is committed to championing a culture that’s diverse, equitable and inclusive, and that creates a sense of belonging for all employees. Having worked with Wincie for 20 years, I am confident her appointment will further our mission to embed a vision and strategy that places inclusion, equity and belonging as the core of our company culture and business.”