April 29, 2025
Eric Austin is main the inclusive advertising and media approaches at Procter & Gamble.
Eric Austin, a proud alumnus of Tennessee State College, is a dynamic pressure behind the worldwide advertising and media initiatives of a few of the high physique care manufacturers.
For the previous 25 years, he has been a pioneering voice for branding notable manufacturers resembling Pantene, Head & Shoulders, and Olay, amongst others. As vice chairman and advertising innovator at Procter & Gamble, Austin’s affect might be seen in any respect of those world-renowned corporations inside P&G’s portfolio.
Nevertheless, his success was not constructed in a single day. He appears to his HBCU alma mater for shaping his imaginative and prescient and sharpening the talents he wanted for company management.
“It was a serious turning level in my life,” he shared with Watch The Yard. “The yard felt sacred—I knew the college had a wealthy historical past, and I used to be proud to be part of it.”
As a first-generation faculty scholar, Austin’s matriculation may have led to emotions of isolation and loneliness as he labored towards his future. Fortuitously, that was not the case for him at TSU. Whereas transferring in, he and his household crossed paths with TSU’s Dean of Architectural Engineering, Dr. Walter Vincent.
Vincent spoke sincerely with the anxious mother and father and incoming freshman, promising to take care of the younger man. It turned an emblem of hope and heat discovered at many traditionally Black schools and universities (HBCUs), offering a way of reduction for Austin as he started his educational journey.
He later thrived on the college, turning into a member of the Rho Psi Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. in 1992. Impressed by his brother, who was additionally a member, and Dr. Vincent, Austin gravitated to the fraternity’s values of brotherhood and friendship. His expertise becoming a member of Omega Psi Phi helped him as he entered his skilled profession, shaping his management and dedication to perform any objective.
Though initially beginning within the IT division at P&G, Austin transitioned into model administration, the place his passions higher aligned. Now, he has led the shift to extra inclusive storytelling of their advertising method.
Whereas a trailblazer in promoting, Austin nonetheless appears again at his HBCU for instilling an ordinary of success. He has leveraged this expertise to assist set up numerous media campaigns and Widen The Display screen, a platform designed to fight stereotypical representations of Black folks in visible content material. Nevertheless, he additionally understands that HBCUs are important to making a pipeline of inventive game-changers in media.
“HBCU tradition is important to the success of American tradition,” he mentioned. “These colleges must middle that power in how they market themselves to draw college students, funding, and sponsorships.”
Understanding the affect of HBCU college students, Austin additionally led P&G’s “This Is How We HBCYOU” marketing campaign to additional this relationship with the model and this sector of younger adults. Not solely is P&G’s marketing campaign with HBCUs selling Black excellence on a worldwide scale, nevertheless it additionally highlights higher alternatives for future leaders to emerge from these establishments.
@proctergamble That HBCYOU power was unmatched final 12 months, and we’re able to do it once more! 📚🎉 Recent begins, contemporary feels and contemporary laundry — we’re right here that will help you develop up and present up this semester! ✨ That is #HowWeHBCYOU ♬ authentic sound – Procter & Gamble
Austin encourages different corporations to observe go well with of their multicultural advertising. In his opinion, step one is to take an genuine curiosity and funding in these communities to attach with their distinctive tales.
“I need to depart a legacy of inclusive advertising,” he mentioned. “To encourage others to interrupt limitations and see themselves within the work we create.”
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