The Score - IABM carries out worldwide benchmarking survey for the broadcast and media industry

Lisa Collins, Head of Marketing, IABM

In January and February this year, we conducted our industry's first international survey to establish industry-wide data on demographics, professional development status and needs of the broadcast and media industry. Named the Score, the survey received 839 responses from individuals in 63 countries - providing the first truly international picture of our industry. Of the respondents, 38% currently work for end-users, 30% for product vendors and 23% for service providers.

The information we have gathered will aid understanding of the gender, learning and skills gaps in the broadcast and media industry - and provide a background against which improvements can be instigated.

The survey has produced some very enlightening results. While some of The Score's findings such as the older and predominantly male demographics may not come as surprises to members, there are also some less-expected results that both individuals and companies will find useful in their planning.

For example, the early entry age indicates that employers may prefer young graduates over experienced professionals, and so the professional development of broadcast and media professionals at an early age may be considered essential. The fact that 20% are self-employed also indicates that companies may often prefer to contract-in expertise rather than employing full-time staff. And while most people in the industry have degree-level qualifications, they are also very aware that they need to keep on learning, but the opportunities to do this remain limited.

Key findings are as follows: An older demographic than other tech verticals 69% of participants are older than 40, 20% between 31 and 40, and just 11% younger than 30 - yielding an industry average age of 46. This shows that broadcast and media professionals are old compared to other verticals - the median age in selected tech companies ranges from 27 to 39. The results also showed that, generally, developing countries have a lower average age and developed countries a higher average age.

Male dominated industry Most respondents are male - only 12% are female, showing that the broadcast and media industry is still very male-dominated. Research by PayScale shows that, on average, the gender divide in selected tech companies is less marked (27% female).

Early industry entry age

Despite the industry average age of 46, the overwhelming majority of respondents (86%) entered the industry when they were 30 years old or below. 10% entered the industry when they were between 31 and 40, and only 4% when they were older than 40. As well as illustrating the sticky' nature of the broadcast and media industry, this finding also has implications for recruitment and continued professional development.

Mobile workforce 22% of respondents are working in a country that is different from their country of origin. This highlights the international nature of the broadcast and media industry and the mobility of its workforce.

One fifth are self-employed

24% of respondents are currently self-employed, and 75% of these people identified themselves as permanently self-employed. This shows that self-employed group is a major factor in the broadcast and media industry as for about a fifth of respondents this is the primary source of income.

Highly educated Most respondents said that they hold a bachelor's or master's degree (61%) while 18% said that they held a secondary education certificate. 12% said that they held a short-cycle tertiary education degree with 8% saying they held a post-secondary non-tertiary education certificate. Only 1% said that they held a doctoral degree when they entered the industry.

CPD opportunities lagging

Most research participants (56.1%) rely on Conferences & presentations and Trade shows to keep up to date with the latest developments in the industry. For 43.7% of respondents, the main barrier to their current professional development is Lack of time . In sharp contrast, most respondents said that On-the-job training/mentoring (38.9%) and Face-to-face training (35.2%) would be their preferred methods to enhance their skills. It is surprising that face-to-face training is still vastly preferred over online training.

LINK:	http://www.theiabm.org/news/member-news/blogart4721...
	See more stories from iabm

Most recent headlines