New York, NY - April 11, 2014 - Merlin Bass, Senior Director, Tax Technical at the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG), was honored at the 44th Annual Black Achievers in Industry Awards Gala on March 20th at the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel, hosted by the Harlem YMCA.  The award honors the achievements of black professionals nationally.  Bass was recognized for his professional achievements, contributions to the community and for serving as a role model to the next generation of leaders.

Merlin has been the National Co-chair of IPG's Black Employee Network (BEN) for the past six years.  As National Co-Chair, he plays an integral part of helping IPG achieve its goal of being among the world's most inclusive companies.  Some of Merlin's responsibilities include co-leading all of BEN's employee and community outreach programs; recruiting African American senior executives to participate in BEN programs; developing relationships with Agency HR teams and connecting agency multi-cultural account teams with BEN consumer insight panels; and fostering relationships with community organizations and local BEN chapters.

Merlin holds a BBA in Accounting from Bernard M. Baruch College, a J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law and an LL.M in Taxation from New York University School of Law.

"We are pleased to honor Merlin with a 2014 Black Achievers in Industry Award for his extraordinary community leadership and professional accomplishments," said Tiffeny Forrest, Vice President of Operations, YMCA of Greater New York. "This annual gala applauds exceptional black leaders nationwide and celebrates their role in nurturing our next generation of leaders."

Since 1971, this annual event has paid national tribute to the corporate leadership and community service of black achievers in industry and continues to serve as a vehicle for the Harlem YMCA, corporations, and local organizations to partner and provide mentoring programs, scholarships, and other opportunities. These collective efforts fuel a future-leader incubator for the youth and teens of the Harlem community.

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About Interpublic

Interpublic is one of the world's leading organizations of advertising agencies and marketing services companies.  Major global brands include BPN, FCB (Foote, Cone & Belding), FutureBrand, GolinHarris International, Huge, Initiative, Jack Morton Worldwide, Lowe and Partners, MAGNA GLOBAL, McCann, Momentum, MRM//McCann, Octagon, R/GA, UM and Weber Shandwick.  Leading domestic brands include Campbell Mithun, Carmichael Lynch, Deutsch, Gotham Inc., Hill Holliday, ID Media, Lowe Campbell Ewald, Mullen and The Martin Agency.www.interpublic.com.

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Contact Information

Tom Cunningham
(Press)
(212) 704-1326


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