Planner Survey Results 2008

Account Planning Survey Results

June 2008

The 411

• Fourth year to conduct the planning survey.

• Called upon planners to participate and pass on a survey.

• Bloggers again helped spread the word.

• Topics included the now usual suspects like salary, experience, and satisfaction,along with this year’s special questions around negotiation from both boss andemployee points of view, blogs we read, and planning style.

• 798 completed surveys (compared to 466 last year) from March 14 - April 8.– 56% Men/44% Women– 461 from USA/337 from outside USA

Some overview info (in percentages)

Company Types

Size of Departmentat office location

Agency Type

Participants by Title

Avg. Size of Deptat office location

Large:29% have20 or more

Medium:10.9 planners

Small:5.5 planners(21% are one-

persondepartments)

Some overview info cont. (in percentages)

What would you say is yourcompany’s reputation in the industry?

How is planning perceivedat your company?

Officers and management (in percentages)

Are you an officer at your company(i.e. VP, SVP, EVP) ?

Is the Head of Planning at your company part of the executivecommittee (i.e. top management)?

Heads of Planning

Group Planning Directors

Sr. Planners

Planners

Asst. Planners

Recruiters

Did you use one?

The last time I asked this question in 2006, 41% said yes. Also, there’s nosignificant difference between the US and outside the US on this.

Hall & Partners was able to show a correlation between higher salaries and using arecruiter.

Senior Planner and up are the ones being placed by recruiters, which makes sense.

What’s your planning style? (in percentages)

We all need to be able to do a little bit of everything,but what’s your dominant type?

I think these styles are true because few people resisted them. The “others” includehybrids of a couple or are perfectly balanced all of the above. A couple of digital andcreative styles, but not sure what you meant. Leave a comment on the blog andenlighten us.

How does your department operate?

Describe how collaborative your planning department is within the department. Are you working asa lone wolf on your accounts? Do you have two or three or more planners per account to work

with? Is it set up in a way that you can learn from other planners on other accounts?

This one was hard to code. Some people talked about how collaborative the two orthree planners on an account are or aren’t. Others talked about how they mustdeliberately seek cross-pollination among accounts. Then there is the collaborationthat is present or missing among creatives, planners and account.

Folks generally seem to think two planners on an account is “well staffed.” Smallerplaces have more lone wolves or see themselves as consultants. Freelancers feel likelone wolves too.

Sitting with your department seems to foster collaboration across accounts andmany planners have four or more accounts they are working on.

Top 15 blogs we read

Number of mentions

The perfect company?

If you could work anywhere, in any position that would utilize yourplannerly skills in some way, where would you choose to work?

(number of mentions)

Lots of mentions of wanting to work on political campaigns, the UN and thinktanks. A few mentions of starting own business or getting out of advertising atGoogle, Apple, or Nike.

Planners on the move (in percentages)

Number of years at current co.USA

How likely are you to changejobs this year?

All planners

39%

Stability increases as your job ascends.Only 39% of GPDs have been with theircompany one year or less. 34% of Headsof Planning have logged a year or less.

“Very likely” to change is up 6% this year.

Number of years at current co.Outside USA

Our collective experience negotiating (in percentages)

Thinking about your current job, when you received your offerwhich of the following describes the process you went through?

Interestingly, there are no significant differences among men and women or amonglevels. Other includes certain titles or promises of a review a9er 3 or 6 months.

Negotiating from the bosses’ POV

291 people surveyed have responsibility for hiring and negotiating.Here, they share some of the hiring practices at their company:

Strongly Disagree Strongly Agree

Negotiating advice from bossesConsider the total package. Think about where the job is going. The vacation time. The other benefits.

Get everything in writing.

Don’t come off as entitled and push too hard for big salaries when you are junior.

For your first job, take what you can get.

Sadly, you have to jump around to make more money.

Women need to be stronger, firmer and ask for what they want even if it’s uncomfortable.

Articulate your value.

Never tell your current salary. You deserve what your skills and talent pull in that market, not what looks better nextto your old salary.

Negotiate hard. The salary disparity among my team is because some played hardball to get hired and some did not.

Don’t keep going back and forth. I did my best for the counter offer.

Highlight how you contribute to generating revenue. You will set yourself apart.

Never put out the first number.

Advice for new planners trying to land a job?NETWORKTalk to people who used to work where you want towork to hear the truth.Informational interviews are the way to go. Juniorpositions are rare.

GET EXPERIENCEDon’t work in advertising.Get an internship.

HAVE A POVDon’t be scared to speak up.Develop your own perspective. Believing that youare valuable will do wonders for convincing potentialemployers that you are.Blog.

BE INTERESTINGRead interesting stuff.Be interesting enough that I’d want to have dinnerwith you.Dynamic and interesting is always better than safe.I also like to see some background in the socialsciences (psychology, sociology, anthropology) ormore creative venues (dance, theater, music).Studying abroad also shows that you're well-roundedand have had the opportunity to see things from adifferent point of view.

FOCUS ON THE RIGHT PLACEFocus on places that actually care about planningand realize the value/need.Do not enter as an account person and try to moveto planning. Start in creative and move to planning.

PERSEVEREStick with it. If you really want it, someone will cutyou a break.Be hungry.

BUT DON’T BE ANNOYINGForget the old advice about persistence. If I have metyou and want to make you an offer, I'll stay in touch.Emailing and calling twice a month is nothing butirritating.

HAVE A CLUEFor pete's sake, know the agency you are talking toand be passionate about them.Show willingness and readiness to work hard onboring crap. Tell me you're not afraid to look at datatables for 11 hours a day if you have to.Learn about the business world first - you're in noposition to offer advice to large corporations becauseyou think you know about consumer trends.Knowing whether cupcakes are coming back or notwill not help GM sell more units. Sorry.

Salary results

Key to reading salary info• Salaries are shown as bell curves (ok, bell triangles) - averages in addition to the 75th

and 25th percentile.• For example, when you see a number listed under 75%, this is the average of

the upper 25% of the set, the number under 50% is the mean for the whole set,and the number under 25% is the average for the bottom 25% of the set.

• Past years’ averages are in the upper right corner.

• I continue to divide among small, medium and large shops in the USA.

• Absolute minimum and maximum salaries are shown next to the “total” curves.

Asst. Planner results - USA

LargeAgency(n=17)

SmallAgency(n=15)

MediumAgency(n=24)

TOTAL(n=56)

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%

Min= $30K

Max = $70K

$39,580Years in planning

Years working

1.33.5

2005 Avg.

$39,0671.23.4

2006 Avg.

$46,294$36,000 $57,250Years in planning

Years working

1.32.5

1.33.9

1.34.5


Years working

1.32.2

1.73.1

1.83.2


Years working

1.31.3

1.62.6

2.34.3


Years working

1.31.9

1.63.3

1.94.9

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%

$38,2191.52.7

2007 Avg.

Planner results - USA

LargeAgency(n=32)

SmallAgency(n=58)

MediumAgency(n=40)

TOTAL(n=130)

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%

Min= $30K

Max = $140K


Years working

1.34.9

2.65.9

3.89.9


Years working

2.33.6

2.55.3

2.75.4


Years working

2.14.5

2.75.0

3.46.3


Years working

2.13.7

2.65.3

3.37.1

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%


Years working

3.25.8

2005 Avg.

$60,1982.95.5

2006 Avg.

$60,3112.64.9

2007 Avg.

Senior Planner results - USA

LargeAgency(n=37)

SmallAgency(n=45)

MediumAgency(n=35)

TOTAL(n=117)

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%

Min= $40K

Max = $185K


Years working

4.47.8

5.310.3

7.312.4


Years working

3.96.6

4.78.9

7.311.4


Years working

4.97.7

5.09.3

6.211.1


Years working

4.27.4

5.19.5

6.612.3

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%


Years working

5.39.5

2005 Avg.

$94,3475.99.9

2006 Avg.

$104,0846.09.7

2007 Avg.

Group Planning Director results - USA

LargeAgency(n=34)

SmallAgency(n=24)

MediumAgency(n=20)

TOTAL(n=78)

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%

Min= $68K

Max = $310K


Years working

7.111.6

9.315.9

11.018.9


Years working

6.010.2

10.415.1

13.016.4


Years working

7.214.2

8.413.7

8.714.8


Years working

8.513.8

9.214.7

8.813.5

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%


Years working

8.612.0

2005 Avg.

$157,3109.913.7

2006 Avg.

$163,3829.714.2

2007 Avg.

Head of Planning results - USA

LargeAgency(n=14)

SmallAgency(n=28)

MediumAgency(n=20)

TOTAL(n=62)

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%

Min= $60K

Max = $300K


Years working

8.812.0

9.914.9

13.018.0


Years working

5.812.6

12.715.6

23.615.6


Years working

6.311.3

10.315.3

12.619.9


Years working

6.912.1

10.315.9

13.920.6

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%


Years working

9.614.0

2005 Avg.

$172,18811.115.3

2006 Avg.

$167,4219.315.8

2007 Avg.

Grad school - do it for yourself or to break into planning

3.2

1.2

$53,300

Asst. Planners with Bootcamp(n=5)

3.33.1Average years working

1.41.7Average years in planning

$37,222$43,860Average Salary

Asst. Planners with BAsOnly (n=26)

Asst. Planners withMasters (n=25)

5.06.44.7Average years working

2.52.82.5Average years in planning

$61,605$64,368$53,479Average Salary

Planners with BAs Only(n=60)

Planners with Bootcamp(n=19)

Planners withMasters/MBA (n=51)



$104,766$91,700$96,603Average Salary

Sr. Planners with BAsOnly (n=51)

Sr. Planners with Bootcamp(n=15)

Sr. Planners withMasters/MBA (n=51)

Grad school cont.

13.7

8.4

$168,223

Group Planning Directors withBAs Only (n=43)

15.9Average years working

10.1Average years in planning

$174,586Average Salary

Group Planning Directorswith Masters (n=35)




Head of Planning with BAsOnly (n=35)

Head of Planning withMasters/MBA/PhD

(n=27)

Planner U

What schools or training programs do you think produce goodplanners? (number of mentions)

Over 50 mentions each for “planners are born not made” and “life experience”which is likely why having a grad degree doesn’t mean you’ll make more money.Many also recommended a degree in liberal arts or social sciences without naminga place. And there were one and two mentions for many, many schools.

The New York factorThis comparison is difficult because “not NY” includes San Francisco, Boston, and other expensivemarkets. There aren’t enough responses from any other markets at any level to compare. But Icontinue to believe you don’t get a true cost-of-living salary bump from agencies in big markets.Then again, most of our jobs are in big(ger) cities.

Not(n=88)

NY(n=29)

Not(n=91)

NY(n=39)

Not(n= 48)

NY(n=8)

9.7

5.1

$93,069

5.4

2.7

$56,955

3.0

1.5

$42,146



$107,276$62,293$48,375Average Salary

Sr. PlannersPlannersAsst. Planners

Not(n=42)

NY(n=19)

Not(n=51)

NY(n=27)

16.7

10.1

$170,873

15.2

9.6

$164,051




Head of PlanningGroup Planning Directors

The Male/Female comparison

Cell sizes are getting bigger and the trend continues: mid- to senior-level women are being paida lot less.

F(n=55)

M(n=62)

F(n=73)M (n=57)F

(n=36)M

(n=20)

9.1

4.7

$92,475

5.0

2.6

$57,263

3.2

1.5

$42,597



$100,241$60,645$43,825Average Salary

Sr. PlannersPlannersAsst. Planners

F(n=31)

M(n=31)

F(n=41)

M(n=37)

16.8

10.7

$167,994

15.5

9.9

$154,552

15.214Average years working



Head of PlanningGroup Planning Directors

General salary thoughts - USA

• Asst. Planners’ average salary is now over $40K a9er the direct requestlast year. Seems fair to me.

• Sr. Planners and GPDs at medium- and small-sized firms turned out tohave the biggest disparities (lower salaries) this year compared to theircousins at the large shops.

• Why are the more senior ladies pulling in less?

A word on the world

• We had 337 completed surveys from the rest of the world

• There were 73 from the UK, but not enough from any other country to do aseparate analysis

17Did not specify22Spain6Mexico8France

1EU (did not write country)4South Africa7Malaysia4Denmark

Saudi Arabia

Russia

Romania

Portugal

Pakistan

Norway

New Zealand

Netherlands

1

10

14

3

1

2

1

8

Latvia

Japan

Italy

Indonesia

India

Hungary

Guatemala

Germany

1

7

12

2

15

1

1

10

1Asia (did not write country)1Croatia

1Venezuela5China

73UK20Canada

3UAE1Bulgaria

1Thailand38Brazil

2Turkey8Belgium

5Sweden10Australia

5Singapore5Argentina

UK averages In US $$$

Did everyone use the currency converter???

Asst.Planner(n=5)

SeniorPlanner(n=14)

Planner(n=24)

GroupPlanningDirector(n=3)

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%


Years working

1.02.0


Years working

2.04.3

2.64.7

2.35.2


Years working

5.511.0

5.611.0

6.813.5


Years working

6.718.3

25% 50% 75%

25% 50% 75%

UK averages cont. In US $$$

Head ofPlanning(n=21)


Years working

8.812.8

9.813.7

11.016.5

25% 50% 75%

Additional Compensation - USA (in percentages)

Please select each of the additionalelements of compensation that you receive

“Other” included free food/alcohol, working part-time, flexible hours, technologyreimbursement, relocation, stock options, on-site massages, public transportationcoverage, mileage, and overtime.

Additional Compensation - Outside USA (in percentages)

Please select each of the additionalelements of compensation that you receive

“Other” includes pensions, working from home, dividends,massages, study leave, and expatriate housing.

How do we feel about our jobs? (in percentages)

How much do you like your current job?

Up from 7% last year.

Is the job less fun? Seems to be in line with more people looking tochange jobs.

Satisfaction with compensation by title - all

43%

49%

47%

40%

42%

Fair

9%24%20%3%Head

6%20%20%5%Group Director

5%19%24%5%Senior

2%14%36%9%Planner

3%10%39%6%Assistant/Junior

ReallyAwesome

SomewhatBetter Than

Fair

SomewhatUnfair

CompletelyUnfair

n=798Not all add up to 100 due to rounding

Very few people feel totally screwed, and unfairness decreases as weascend it seems

How we deal - all

Which best describes how you feel about your job most of thetime? (percentages)

Almost all of the “other” mentions were from our friends outside the US, sayingthey feel bored, looking for more challenge, under utilized, that it depends onthe project, get energy from stress, or stressful times don’t last forever.

Personal info

Gender Split US (percentages) Gender Split Outside US (percentages)

Personal info - all

Which best describes your ethnicity? (percentages)

Personal info - all

How many children do you have? (percentages)

Female planners are less likely to have kids. In the US, 21%do. Outside the US, 12% do.

Personal info cont.

Of the 24% of planners with kids: Who takes care of themwhile you are at work? (percentages)

Accents are just interesting

US Accents (percentages) Outside US Accents (percentages)

Accents currently do not correlate with a higher salary. It’sa small group, but maybe we can see past the sexy accents

and pay people based on their brains. Novel thought.

Closing thoughts

• There was a huge increase of participation again this year. Thank you,as always, for contributing. This is a ton of work, and I am verygrateful to Hall & Partners for the extra analysis they did as well as acouple of elves who helped behind the scenes. The correlations onlyshowed using a recruiter as a contributing factor to a higher salaryamong all of the variables.

• I love hearing your reactions, so please make comments, ask questions,and suggest new questions for next year on my blog:

http://illchangeyourlife.wordpress.com

or email me at:

[email protected]

Planner Survey Results 2008

Career

planninggroup

5average years

5average years

personal info

years working

6average years

large shops

gender split