Media’s got talent? that is the question…
With growing reports of acute talent shortages in the global media industry, The WFA & MediaSense recently asked brands, agencies and media owners to take part in a global talent survey – designed to delve into the underlying issues prompting this “crisis”.
MediaSense were delighted to reveal some of the key headlines and take part in a panel discussion onsite at Cannes.
Ryan Kangisser, Managing Partner of Strategy at MediaSense, kicked off the panel discussion on media’s shortage talent, where members of the panel (Gerry D’Angelo, VP, Global Media, P&G, Chrissie Hanson, Global CSO, OMD WW & Belinda Smith, Founder and CEO, Second Arrow) identified and dissected the underlying issues prompting the crisis.
Ryan pointed to over-specialisation as one of many. “If we’re moving toward omni-channel and customer-centricity, you need to be able to appreciate the entire ecosystem,” he says. Scarcity concerns around Data and Analytics, Measurement and E-Commerce have accelerated the need to find and retain talent in these areas, and the panellists agreed that with the right training, organizations can fill that gap with talent already existing within the organization.
Chrissie Hanson, Global Chief Strategy Officer of OMD Worldwide stressed the idea of having a major and a minor. “We want specialization and a focus, but we also pull you into various things because we want you to be able to expand career options.”
Gerry D’Angelo, VP of Global Media at Procter & Gamble also agreed that organizations need to create environments that are conducive with internal talent mobility. “We wouldn’t call it attrition, we would call it handover. We appreciate new and different perspectives and you get that when people take on new roles…you have to keep the system oxygenated.”
Belinda Smith, CEO and Founder of Second Arrow agency, who previously served as CEO of m/Six, says not enough of us are planning for attrition. “Look at how to transfer information: What is the ramp time, who are key staff members on that team? We need that delivered without chaos.”
The report launches shortly. Thank you to both the WFA and Omnicom for hosting and facilitating the session.