IEMA's annual survey on the progress of the profession has just closed, and an early results show some encouraging signs.
The annual State of the Profession survey takes place over December–January each year and is a detailed look at how the profession progressing, and where challenges on pay, employment and equality perhaps remain.
This latest round of research opened on 21 December and closed on 20 January, and examined members’ experiences of:
- salaries, bonuses and commission;
- promotions and team expansions;
- education and qualifications;
- employer commitment to training and development;
- job satisfaction;
- age and gender differences;
- the jobs market for students and graduates, and career progression opportunities for those already in the profession; and
- industry sector and regional comparisons across the UK.
Because the survey has been broadened from looking solely at the salaries of working professionals, this year all members of all grades, including Students, were invited to participate.
Last year, almost 1,000 members took part. Highlights included:
- the median – or midpoint in the range – annual salary for IEMA members at the start of 2016 was £38,180 with the mean or average at £43,812;
- IEMA members working in business or industry to earned a median annual salary of £40,000. This is more than their public sector counterparts (£34,000), whose pay continued to suffer from the effects of public spending cuts and government restrictions on pay increases;
- job satisfaction was high, with 82% scoring it four, five or six on an ascending six-point scale; and
- almost one respondent in five (18%) had moved to a more senior role in the 12 months before the poll, while 59% were in a managerial or leadership position.
To find out how the profession compares 12 months on see next month’s magazine for early results. A full report will be published in the March edition.
