A lack of progression is one of the most common reasons marketing candidates give us for considering a new role.
They may enjoy their job and have a good relationship with their employer, but the structure above them gives them nowhere to go.
This is particularly common within small or flat marketing teams. The next position may already be occupied, the department may not be growing or there may be no defined step between the candidate’s current role and the marketing leader above them.
When looking for a new opportunity, it is therefore important to understand what an employer really means by “career progression”.
Progression doesn’t always mean an immediate promotion
A promotion is the clearest form of progression, but it is not the only way to move your marketing career forward.
A role may also help you develop through:
Greater ownership of campaigns or strategy
Responsibility for larger budgets
Exposure to senior stakeholders
Experience managing agencies or suppliers
The opportunity to mentor or manage others
Access to new channels, markets or technologies
More involvement in commercial decisions
These experiences can prepare you for the next stage of your career, even if your job title does not change immediately.
However, additional responsibility should not continue indefinitely without recognition, development or a realistic conversation about what comes next.
Look at the structure around the role
A job advert might promise progression, but the organisation’s structure will often tell you more.
Consider where the role sits within the marketing team, who it reports to and whether there is a natural next position.
A Marketing Executive joining a team with Senior Executives and Marketing Managers may have a clearer route than someone joining directly beneath a long-established Head of Marketing with no plans to expand the department.
Neither structure is automatically better. What matters is whether it supports the type of development you are looking for.
Establish what progression has looked like before
Employers should be able to explain how people have developed within the business.
Useful evidence could include:
Previous internal promotions
Employees taking ownership of larger projects
Opportunities to move between marketing disciplines
Formal development plans
Training or professional qualifications
The marketing team growing alongside the business
“Plenty of opportunities to progress” is much more meaningful when the employer can provide real examples.
Understand what needs to happen next
Before accepting a role, try to establish how success will be measured and what someone would need to demonstrate to progress.
This might include developing particular skills, achieving agreed objectives, taking responsibility for a budget or showing that they can operate at a more strategic level.
A recruiter who has taken a detailed brief should also be able to provide context about the team, why the vacancy exists and what the employer can realistically offer.
These are often the details that do not make it into a job advert but can make a significant difference to your decision.
Recognise when you have reached the ceiling
Not every employer can offer continuous promotion. Smaller organisations may have limited management positions, even when they genuinely value and develop their people.
The important distinction is whether you are still learning and progressing within your current role or whether you have reached the limit of what the structure can offer.
If your responsibilities, knowledge and contribution have grown but your position has remained unchanged, it may be time for an honest conversation with your employer.
Sometimes there is a realistic internal opportunity.
Sometimes the next step will require a move elsewhere.
At Kin Collective Recruitment, we provide candidates with honest information about the marketing roles we recruit, including team structure, development opportunities and what progression could realistically look like.