Ageism in the advertising industry: ‘Hard to find people who’ve done anything’
The Mumbrella360 conference closed with a bang, as a panel moderated by publisher Tim Burrowes discussed a variety of topics, among them “the ageism in this industry.”
“You walk into an agency and it’s ‘no country for old men’,” Burrowes joked.
Jacquie Alley — COO of The Media Store and chair of the IMAA — had named “ageism” when asked to discuss a problem in the industry no one talked about.
The demands of the industry regarding hours worked, salary paid, lack of advancement, any sort of pay rise after years of service etc., is unrealistic. Yes it is a capitalist and commercial endeavour, but the squeeze on staff can’t continue, and these are the results. Cutting costs and pushing productivity and efficiency takes a toll. Senior executives have no ideas beyond these two and this is the result.
See me for Ad Age 6 years ago – Eight Ways To End Ageism In The Ad Industry: ‘It’s time to do what we’re great at: reshaping culture. For too long we’ve been part of perpetuating a culture that celebrates youth. Evian’s long-running tagline presumes that everyone wants to #liveyoung. But there’s so much we’re not leveraging, strategically and creatively, around the idea of #liveolder.
Tap into the aspiration of age. We’re very happy with who we are. We don’t aspire to be young. But young people aspire to be us. Here’s why:
We don’t give a shit. We have self-confidence that comes with age. We know what really matters. We’re free to express our individuality. We’ve developed our own sense of personal style. We’ve developed our own sense of home style. We have better relationships because we know what really matters. We’re experienced—at everything. We’re well-traveled. We’re starting businesses at the highest rate of any entrepreneur group. We have money to spend.
Lead with what’s aspirational about being older, and the young will follow—not the other way round.’
https://adage.com/article/opinion/opinion-eight-ways-turn-ageism-its-head/2174851/
the older executives pull the ladder up behind them. they get paid tonnes whilst the older middle layers are reduced. If you’re 40+ the older upper management will deem you as surplus and find a cheaper 26-29 year old and then claim the cost saving as evidence they’re growing revenue.