Ad agencies might want to post fliers at the MIT student lounge. New advertising jobs require math and technology skills, and there are more jobs than people to fill them.
The talent pool, advertising technology company executives say, is not a deep one. And those who have the skills are in high demand, often fetching annual salaries that can reach $100,000.
“There is pain for hiring in digital at all levels,” said John Ebbert, managing editor of AdExchanger.com, a Web site dedicated to advertising technology. “The marketers, the publishers, the ad tech companies, the agencies, data management companies – they’re all going for the same type of employee.”
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Instead of working on the wish list, the agencies can start shopping for candidates at universities. Look for specialized programs. The graduates of New York University's M.S. in Integrated Marketing program are fluent in digital, from finance and tech to campaign management and analytics skills--Google, Adobe, and SAS. But do note that these quant-strong candidates are most interested in going client side. Agencies need to show them that they'll be part of the team.