The Covid pandemic may have decimated marketing budgets as well as jobs, but with the recovery under way technical skills are the highest in demand, including data analytics, CRM and user experience, as firms look to rebuild their operations.
That is according to a survey of more than 700 marketing professionals by recruitment firm Hays and the Chartered Institute of Marketing, which also reveals two-thirds (67%) of firms are recruit marketers in 2021.
Good job too, as six in ten marketers are planning to change jobs this year. Of those, three-fifths say they will be looking for a new role that enables hybrid office-home working, while one in six (17%) say they plan to look for a new role based completely remotely.
Over four in ten say they plan to prioritise upskilling, and two in ten plan to pursue an entirely new career path to find a role with a greater purpose.
Hays Marketing managing director Clare Kemsley said: “We’ve seen increased opportunity for marketing professionals since the start of 2021, and mirroring our research the intention is there to hire for employers.
“Today’s job seeker is very different to just six months ago. It’s vital therefore that employers appreciate how the pandemic has changed job seekers’ priorities and refresh their hiring strategy. Doing this will help them draw in the talent they need to put their organisation on the road to recovery.”
Like many industries, the pandemic has made marketers reappraise their roles with job satisfaction for marketers significantly impacted; some 35% say their job satisfaction has worsened since its outbreak.
A third (33%) of respondents say they are dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with their current role, with half of those citing a lack of career progression as the main driving factor. The next two top reasons for job dissatisfaction are a lack of career development opportunities (45%) and a lack of job security (44%).
Meanwhile, 81% of respondents report concerns over the wider economic climate and employment opportunities during the next two to five years.
But only 4% of respondents say they would prefer to work fully from the office in the next 12 moths. More than four in ten (42%) say they want the majority of their working week to be remote, with some time spent in the office, while some 26% prefer a 50/50 split.
Chartered Institute of Marketing chief executive Chris Daly commented: “It’s clear that as lockdown eases, and with the roadmap to recovery providing further clarity to brands and their marketing activities for the year ahead, that marketers are looking to new beginnings.
“Whether that be investing in their professional development, an increased focus on wellbeing or a change in the way they work moving forward, 2020 has given them a period on which to reflect and rethink.”
Related stories
Nearly half UK workforce lack essential digital skills
Data, digital, and tech chiefs see salaries soar by 55%
Junior data roles paying more than doctors and dentists
Firms fight it out as stampede for digital talent begins
Marketers are chasing fewer jobs but signs of recovery
Brits eye careers in digital and data as job cuts loom
It’s easier to find a Yeti as marketing vacancies dry up
