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What the Data Really Says About Morale, Progression and Burnout
Episode 164 with guest Charlotte Rogers, Marketing Week's Deputy Managing Editor and Head of Insight
We're kicking off a brand new mini-series about how marketing roles are changing and its impact, and in this episode we discuss this as well as shine a light on widespread and worrying challenges facing marketers today.
Based on the findings from Marketing Week's 2026 Career and Salary Survey (2,300+ respondents) we're discussing expanding remits, senior roles disappearing, burnout, imposter syndrome, stalled progression, a persistent understanding gap at board level – and what we need to do about it.
Joining Abby is Marketing Week's Charlotte Rogers, Deputy Managing Editor and Head of Insight at Marketing Week. Having worked at Marketing Week for a decade, she is fascinated writing about the marketing industry both in the UK and worldwide and leads on the publication's proprietary research projects, as well as the wider features, and is the co-host of the Marketing Week podcast.
Key takeaways
-
Our marketing profession is in crisis… Marketing roles are expanding and restructuring, often without clear resource or support. Half of respondents said their team had restructured and senior leaders are being cut and not replaced.
-
Burnout is a real risk… Many marketers feel overwhelmed (65%), undervalued, questioning their skills, facing imposter syndrome, and emotionally exhausted. 53% no longer enjoy work that used to engage them.
-
There is a persistent lack of understanding of marketing's true value within organisations and marketers are feeling the pressure to defend it… leading to not speaking up about mental health because they're carrying their own issues AND the weight of the profession's perception.
-
We have a progression crisis… 70% of marketers saw no career progression in the past year. It's hitting parents and women the hardest as 44.6% of mothers said being a parent had harmed their progression, vs 7.6% of fathers.
-
What do we need to do… the only way out of the cycle is for marketers to start advocating for themselves, setting boundaries, and being honest about what is and isn't deliverable. It's not easy but marketing leaders need to speak up for themselves and marketers in their care.
00:00 — Welcome to the Whole Marketer Podcast
02:33 — Introducing Charlotte Rogers
02:58 — The State of Marketing Right Now What the 2026 Career & Salary Survey is revealing about how marketers are feeling
07:00 — More Responsibility, Senior Roles Disappearing
09:29 — Why Marketing Still Struggles to Prove Its Value
12:47 — Afraid to Move, Unhappy to Stay
15:04 — The AI Pressure and the Skills We Actually Need
16:21 — Burnout, Imposter Syndrome, and Suffering in Silence - Two years of mental health data
19:09 — The Added Weight of Defending the Whole Profession
21:23 — Restructures, Rebrands, and Shifting Job Titles
26:16 — The Cost of Constant Change
30:59 — On Saying No (and Why Pushing Back is So Difficult)
33:21 — The Progression Gap Is Worse for Parents
37:19 — Flexibility as a Right, Not a Favour
40:56 — What Marketers Can Control
44:39 — Charlotte's Advice: Know Your Value
Resources
Blog: Burnout - How Leaders Can Support Those In Their Care - The Whole Marketer
https://www.marketingweek.com/abigail-dixon-marketer-resilience/
Marketing Week - https://www.marketingweek.com/
Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abigailcdixon/
Guest: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotterogers/
About The Whole Marketer
The Whole Marketer podcast is here to support and empower the people behind brands and businesses with the latest technical tools, soft and leadership skills and personal understanding for a fulfilling marketing career and life as a whole.
Did you know The Whole Marketer is more than a podcast and book? We're your trusted partners for marketing capability and transformation, providing consultancy, training & workshops, speaking, coaching, mentoring and trusted advisory service.
Visit www.thewholemarketer.com to see how we support leaders to build successful and fulfilled marketing teams with the holistic skills to lead the long-term commercial agenda and deliver the true potential of marketing.
Contact [email protected] to get in touch with Abby and the team
View all episodes
By Abigail DixonEpisode 164 with guest Charlotte Rogers, Marketing Week's Deputy Managing Editor and Head of Insight
We're kicking off a brand new mini-series about how marketing roles are changing and its impact, and in this episode we discuss this as well as shine a light on widespread and worrying challenges facing marketers today.
Based on the findings from Marketing Week's 2026 Career and Salary Survey (2,300+ respondents) we're discussing expanding remits, senior roles disappearing, burnout, imposter syndrome, stalled progression, a persistent understanding gap at board level – and what we need to do about it.
Joining Abby is Marketing Week's Charlotte Rogers, Deputy Managing Editor and Head of Insight at Marketing Week. Having worked at Marketing Week for a decade, she is fascinated writing about the marketing industry both in the UK and worldwide and leads on the publication's proprietary research projects, as well as the wider features, and is the co-host of the Marketing Week podcast.
Key takeaways
-
Our marketing profession is in crisis… Marketing roles are expanding and restructuring, often without clear resource or support. Half of respondents said their team had restructured and senior leaders are being cut and not replaced.
-
Burnout is a real risk… Many marketers feel overwhelmed (65%), undervalued, questioning their skills, facing imposter syndrome, and emotionally exhausted. 53% no longer enjoy work that used to engage them.
-
There is a persistent lack of understanding of marketing's true value within organisations and marketers are feeling the pressure to defend it… leading to not speaking up about mental health because they're carrying their own issues AND the weight of the profession's perception.
-
We have a progression crisis… 70% of marketers saw no career progression in the past year. It's hitting parents and women the hardest as 44.6% of mothers said being a parent had harmed their progression, vs 7.6% of fathers.
-
What do we need to do… the only way out of the cycle is for marketers to start advocating for themselves, setting boundaries, and being honest about what is and isn't deliverable. It's not easy but marketing leaders need to speak up for themselves and marketers in their care.
00:00 — Welcome to the Whole Marketer Podcast
02:33 — Introducing Charlotte Rogers
02:58 — The State of Marketing Right Now What the 2026 Career & Salary Survey is revealing about how marketers are feeling
07:00 — More Responsibility, Senior Roles Disappearing
09:29 — Why Marketing Still Struggles to Prove Its Value
12:47 — Afraid to Move, Unhappy to Stay
15:04 — The AI Pressure and the Skills We Actually Need
16:21 — Burnout, Imposter Syndrome, and Suffering in Silence - Two years of mental health data
19:09 — The Added Weight of Defending the Whole Profession
21:23 — Restructures, Rebrands, and Shifting Job Titles
26:16 — The Cost of Constant Change
30:59 — On Saying No (and Why Pushing Back is So Difficult)
33:21 — The Progression Gap Is Worse for Parents
37:19 — Flexibility as a Right, Not a Favour
40:56 — What Marketers Can Control
44:39 — Charlotte's Advice: Know Your Value
Resources
Blog: Burnout - How Leaders Can Support Those In Their Care - The Whole Marketer
https://www.marketingweek.com/abigail-dixon-marketer-resilience/
Marketing Week - https://www.marketingweek.com/
Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abigailcdixon/
Guest: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotterogers/
About The Whole Marketer
The Whole Marketer podcast is here to support and empower the people behind brands and businesses with the latest technical tools, soft and leadership skills and personal understanding for a fulfilling marketing career and life as a whole.
Did you know The Whole Marketer is more than a podcast and book? We're your trusted partners for marketing capability and transformation, providing consultancy, training & workshops, speaking, coaching, mentoring and trusted advisory service.
Visit www.thewholemarketer.com to see how we support leaders to build successful and fulfilled marketing teams with the holistic skills to lead the long-term commercial agenda and deliver the true potential of marketing.
Contact [email protected] to get in touch with Abby and the team
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