Advertising's 'insider culture' deters talent

Many working-class candidates and those outside the capital are deterred from pursuing a career in advertising because of their perceptions of the industry and because it is so London-centric.

Why it matters

It’s not the first time the industry has heard calls to look beyond its London bubble of like-minded people, but recent economic difficulties, coming hard on the heels of the UK leaving the EU, have made the situation worse. 

“Right now, because of the increasing socio-economic barriers to entry, we’re in danger of becoming a monocultural profession,” notes Michael Lee, chief strategy officer at VCCP. And that’s a problem, since great creativity doesn’t come from everyone thinking the same thing but instead requires drawing on a diverse group of people.

Additionally, If young people are’t considering creative careers because of their perceptions of the industry, that exacerbates an ongoing recruitment and retention problem and imperils any progress it has made on issues around diversity and inclusion.

Takeaways 

• A national survey of 2,000 16-24-year-olds found 18% (rising to 25% in some regions) feel that being unable to afford a move to London stops them from considering creative careers. 
• Only 35% of young people from working-class backgrounds outside London know somebody working in the creative sector, compared with 54% of people from more advantaged backgrounds in London and the South East.
• Two-thirds (67%) of young people who know someone in the industry can see themselves forging a successful career, compared to just 44% of those who do not know someone.
• Almost double the number of ABC1 young people in London and the South East (23%) can name a company in the creative sector compared with those from regional working-class backgrounds (13%).
• Qualitative research established several perceptions that act as barriers to entry, including: advertising’s “sales” reputation; a particular image of people who work in advertising; the lack of geographical presence of agencies; the huge pressures to deliver that mean many fear being out of their depth. 

Key quote 

“These survey findings reinforce our decision to open an office in Stoke, to create the visible presence that has enabled us to attract local talent that we’d otherwise have struggled to find into jobs. We think we’ve created a really effective model for other businesses to follow.

“But this can’t be our only approach. We’ve also implemented many changes across our company-wide, entry-level recruitment schemes as a result of the research learnings” – Michael Lee, Chief Strategy Officer at VCCP.

Sourced from VCCP, Campaign