Lack of professionalism is hurting industry, CIM claims

The Chartered Institute of Marketing is calling for the introduction of consistent, industry-wide standards that hold business functions accountable, following widespread concerns over the professionalism of many in the marketing sector.

CIM’s latest research, surveying over 500 business decision makers indicates a level of doubt towards certain divisions. It found that 1 in 10 believe their marketing colleagues act unprofessionally, nearly three times the level identified among finance and legal professionals, while nearly half (45%) of business leaders have reservations about the level of professionalism across marketing, HR and sales.

Concerns over marketing’s professionalism are highest among small business leaders, with a fifth of respondents (18%) ranking it as the lowest business function, with medium sized firms (50 to 249 employees) coming in second at 15%.

The findings indicate that smal-l and medium-sized businesses are suffering from a lack of professionalism, highlighting the importance of investment in ongoing training and professional certification.

In fact, professional development and training ranked the highest for improving professionalism across all business functions, with nearly two-thirds of respondents (63%) recognising its value. A fifth (22%) of respondents also viewed external certification or qualifications as a way of improving professionalism across all business functions.

As businesses face increased economic pressures, findings point to the need for short term investments in training and certification, in order to prevent costs in the long term.

With respondents citing wasted budgets (39%), reduced team morale (36%), poor campaign outcomes (33%), and loss of brand trust (23%) as the most common issues marketing teams face due to a lack of formal qualifications.

To curb this trend, nearly two-thirds (63%) of business decision makers identified ongoing professional development and training as a way to improve professionalism across all business functions.

In fact, those in the marketing sector themselves identified reduced team morale (45%) and poor campaign outcomes (36%) as key impacts of when encountering unprofessional marketing teams, underscoring the urgent need for formal training.

These challenges highlight the importance of a global marketing framework to standardise skills, improve performance, and drive consistent, successful outcomes across teams, the CIM claims.

CIM chief executive Chris Daly commented: “These findings highlight a critical challenge for the marketing profession. With marketing being ranked as the least professional when compared to those such as legal and accounting functions which benefit from credited, professional certification and increased legislation it’s clear that there is an urgent need for a global professional marketing framework. The data clearly shows that a lack of formal qualifications not only affects team morale and campaign effectiveness but also leads to wasted budgets – an issue businesses can’t afford, especially in today’s economic climate.

“Investing in ongoing professional development and certification isn’t just about boosting credibility; it’s a strategic move to improve performance, drive better outcomes, and ultimately protect business resources. Marketing is a vital growth driver, and enhancing its professionalism should be a priority for organisations of all sizes.”