Today’s employees are focused on more than just a steady paycheck. To improve their work-life balance, many media professionals seek flexibility when it comes to hours and work shifts – including the option of four-day workweeks, hybrid shifts, and remote work. In fact, research finds that 42% of office workers would take a 10% pay cut to have the flexibility to work from home. But flexibility is not necessarily a fully-remote work schedule.

New research that looks at the preferences of advertising industry professionals finds that they prefer hybrid work over fully remote or fully on-site scenarios. This stated preference spans demographics, tenure levels, and company size.

However, more would prefer to work completely from outside the office than are currently doing so, and there is a greater gap between current and preferred work scenarios among mid-career professionals, employees of local/regional media agencies, and those who identify as Black, Latino, and/or LGBTQ+. These preferences are revealed in the Myers Report 2024 Survey of Advertising Industry Professionals, based on a recent survey of 3,462 advertising professionals. The gap between current and preferred work scenarios offers insight to media leaders interested in attracting and retaining diverse talent.

Currently, most advertising professionals are engaged in hybrid work:

• 74% work in hybrid situations.
• 25% work entirely remotely.
• 1% of survey respondents work fully on-site.

Of the 25% who work fully remotely, a third are older professionals, 55 and up, whereas only one fifth of younger employees18 to 34 do. More than a third of all employees surveyed would prefer fully remote work.

• 64% prefer hybrid work.
• 34% prefer fully remote work.

The survey found small companies with 1-99 employees more likely to offer fully remote work as an option. Currently, 31% of those employed by small companies work entirely from outside the office, compared with just over 20% of employees at companies with 100-999 employees, and about 24% of those at companies with 20K+ employees. The discrepancy between employees who would prefer to work remotely and those currently doing so was lowest among the smallest companies.

Mind the gap!

Currently only 20% of Black advertising professionals work fully remotely. However, almost twice that amount (39%) would prefer to do so. There are also more Latino (37%) and LGBTQ+ (35%) employees who would prefer to work fully remotely as an ideal scenario. These findings are relevant to leaders responsible for DEI and HR, both as indicative of the need to cultivate more inclusive and supportive work environments, and as keys towards developing and maintaining a diverse workforce.

Mid-career professionals with 8-14 years in the industry are also more likely to prefer fully remote work (39%) than new employees or those with over 15 years of experience. Under 30% of employees with two or less years of experience prefer remote work, suggesting that early career professionals may look to on-site collaboration and interaction to improve their career trajectory, while more established professionals are seeking work-life balance. 

Another significant gap appears among employees of local/regional media agencies, where fewer than 20% work fully remotely but over 40% would like to do so. This is an area for improvement when it comes to maximizing employee satisfaction and reducing turnover. In contrast, the alignment between actual and ideal work scenarios among advertisers and brand marketers is more even, with about 30% currently working remotely and about 35% stating that preference.

While there is a slightly higher preference for fully remote work among those aged 55 and up (37%), it is not dramatically different from the preference among the youngest group surveyed, people 18 to 34 (33%). Thus, the gap based on career experience is more significant than that based solely on age.

Set up for success

Based on the survey data, the report authors recommend investing in remote work infrastructure to strengthen workplace culture and improve worker engagement and effectiveness.

• Bolster communication tools and collaboration platforms.
• Facilitate team building activities.
• Train managers on leading remote teams.
• Draft clear remote work policy.

The report also recommends implementing more flexible work options. Although most advertising professionals of all demographics value the flexibility of working outside the office combined with the benefits of in-person collaboration, awareness of gaps in satisfaction levels can help employers stay competitive by maximizing healthy work environments. Recommendations include:

• Conduct periodic surveys to assess staff satisfaction with current working arrangements.
• Enable more remote and hybrid work options based on employee preferences.
• Consider expanding remote work options for mid-career professionals to retain experienced talent.

Although there are more similarities than differences among worker preferences, even minor discrepancies can point to areas for improvement and help industry leaders maximize staff fulfillment and effectiveness.