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60% of marketing millennials anticipate quitting by 2017

The B2B marketing profession is in danger of losing its newest generation of managers and potential future marketing leaders, new research has revealed.

According to the Hays UK Salary & Recruiting Trends 2016, an annual survey of over 20,000 employers and employees in the UK, over half (60 per cent) of millennials in marketing anticipate leaving their jobs within the next 12 months and a third (34 per cent) expect to leave within six months.

Aside from salary, career development is one of the main reasons given by millennials for why they expected to leave. Over a quarter (26 per cent) of this age group state they wanted to leave their current role due to a lack of future opportunities, suggesting businesses may need to provide more investment in training and clearer communication around progression.

More than a third (40 per cent) of millennials believe there is no scope for progression within their current organisation and over half (51 per cent) feel uncertain or negative about their career prospects.

Many marketing functions are already suffering from severe skill shortages in mid-level roles, with 71 per cent of marketers saying they expect to encounter a shortage of suitable applicants this year.

Clare Kemsley, MD at Hays Marketing, said: “Organisations should be more discerning in their approach to retaining and developing the millennial population within their marketing teams.

"While the new wave of younger millennials about to graduate from university will require training and support to transition into the commercial, fast paced marketing world of today, those millennial marketers with several years expertise will be actively considering their future and looking to take the next step, aspiring to leadership roles.”