Daniel Burnham 1
Term Project Research Paper
Term Project Research Paper
Assessment of a Career as a Marketing Director
Daniel G. Burnham
Salt Lake Community College
Daniel Burnham 2
Term Project Research Paper
Abstract
For our final paper in BUS1010 we were asked to research a career in the business. We were to
research and conduct at least one interview with a professional in the career path we choose. The
Marketing field encompasses a variety of career paths that can be taken. I have chosen to
research the career of a Marketing Director. Through the online research and the interviews
conducted with Joel Sheppard and Annabel Venner, both Marketing Directors and business
professionals moving up in the business world, I will demonstrate a better understanding of the
job and what it takes to become a professional in the Marketing field. By the end of this paper I
will gain the knowledge, skills, and education as well as a look into the life of a Marketing
Director to decide if this is the career path I want to follow.
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Term Project Research Paper
Assessment of a Career as a Marketing Director
What does it take to become a Marketing Director? Will this be a career path I will want
to take? What does a Marketing Director do that makes this profession coveted. The key points I
will address in this paper are job description, general career path, education and experience,
average salary, and career outlook, as well as a biography on a Marketing Director I conducted
an interview with. The research in this paper will determine if this career is the best fit for me.
Job Description
According to Veronika Noize, a marketing coach (Smith 2013), says a typical
marketing job entails “tight deadlines, shifting priorities due to new market intelligence, testing,
revising, and updating on the fly.” The biggest job responsibility for a Marketing Director is a
strategist. You strategically develop and maintain client valued relationships. You have to direct,
sell, and train in the strategic planning process. Provide strategic recommendations to clients and
staff as well as build and support a strong and strategically focused client/agency team. A
Marketing Director works with Executive Management to identify potential new business
development plans and action steps to secure such business. Lead a team of managers and staff
in the department. Educate and develop account management staff and coach and motivate group
leaders.
A typical day for a Marketing Director as described by Annabel Venner the
Global Brand Director of Hiscox (Walters 2013) is
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Term Project Research Paper
the basics of checking emails, attending meetings and signing off on new
initiatives. Make monthly call with marketing manager from one of the
markets. Weekly meeting with the team to discuss key projects and
deliverables. Attending meetings on key group research and digital
projects. Speaking to brand learning, our marketing capability partner, to
discuss progress on training materials. Review and feedback on creative
work from the local market.
In an interview I had with Joel Sheppard , Marketing Director for Utah
Retirement Systems and Public Employees Health Program, he said “ recently I have to
keep myself informed on the decision making going on at the State and Federal level
concerning the healthcare industry due to the push for healthcare reform. This can have
an impact on this company and I need be able to come up with strategies to steer the
business in the right direction based on these decisions.” “You have meetings with the
Executive Management for the company to come up with plans to stay ahead of the
game.” The responsibilities vary depending on the industry you are working in but these
descriptions listed above encompass the typical duties of a Marketing Director.(personal
communication, December 8, 2014).
Biography of a Marketing Director
Joel Sheppard is a Marketing Director with Utah Retirement Systems and Public
Employees Health Plan. He studied at BYU where he got his BA in Marketing with a minor in
Finance. After he graduated he started as an Advertising Assistant for Key Stone Media. He
worked his way up and in the eight years there to Associate Media Director. During that time he
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Term Project Research Paper
got his MBA in Finance Concentration through Marylhurst University. He was offered a job as a
Marketing Director with Utah Retirement Systems and Public Employees Health Plan. During
this time he has continued his education in Financial Planning and Services with Utah State
University to be more marketable in the financial world because he loves stocks and finance.
General Career Path
The general career path is to get into an entry level like marketing assistance or
marketing coordinator or assistant and working your way up from there. You can see in the
career of Joel Sheppard he had started with one company entry level and worked his way up to
an Associate Media Director in that company. He was then offered a job with Utah Retirement
Systems and Public Employees Health Program as a Marketing Department Director. Annabel
Venner had started in production as a graduate with Smithkline Beecham and after 2 years
moved to a Brand Manager within their marketing team. She had then gotten a job with Coca
Cola as an Innovation Manager. After nine years of working her way up she was offered a job
with Hiscox as Head of Marketing and then promoted to Global Brand Director. (Walters 2013).
It looks like it doesn’t matter what industry you start in because there are always opportunities to
be promoted in another industry as long as you keep in mind the goal of what you want in your
mind.
Education and Experience
A Marketing Director has to have at least a BA/BS degree but an MBA is preferred. You
need at least ten years of marketing experience and at least five years of supervisory experience.
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Average Salary
According to Salary.com, as of December 2014, the average Marketing Director makes
$122,975 per year so 50% of the Marketing Directors in the U.S. make less than that. The
average starting salary is $89, 445 per year.
Career Outlook
Marketing is a part of every industry and there are many categories in the field as well so
you can be a Marketing Director over Communications, Media, and Advertising, healthcare,
Industrial, Product Lines and such. “Marketing has a strong future because of the connection
between marketing and revenue is finally being recognized,” Veronika Noize says, “Back in the
80’s, it was seen as a nice to have department or a cost center, but now it is recognized as the
revenue generator it is.” (Smith 2013) This makes the opportunity great in the Marketing field.
My Fit as a Marketing Director
With my background in operating my own insurance business, I realized I enjoyed the
marketing side of it. I am currently a Marketing and Communications Coordinator so I have got
a foot in the door. With more education and experience I feel I could direct a department and
become a Marketing Director.
Sources
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A Day in the Life of: A Marketing Director.(2010) Retrieved from
http://www.bayt.com/en/career-article-3084/.html
Marketing Director Salary.(2014 Dec.). Retrieved from
http://www1.salary.com/marketing- director-salary/html
Murphy, D., Masterful Marketing [Web Blog]. Retrieved from
http://www.masterful-marketing.com/html.
Smith, J.(2013, March 13) The marketing and advertising jobs with the best future. Retrieved
from http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/03/13/the-marketing-andadvertising-jobs-with-the-best-future/.html
Strategic Marketing Director. Retrieved from
http://www.aaaa.org/agency/compensation/resources/jobs/marketing/.html
Tay, T.(2014, Feb. 8) Careers in marketing: a path for creative and driven individuals.Retrieved
from http://www.udemy.com/blog/careers-in-marketing/.html.
Walters, R. (interviewer) & Venner A. (Interviewee) (2013). Day in the life of a marketing
director. Retrieved from http://www.robertwalters.co.uk/marketing/careeradvice/day -inthe-life-of-a-marketing-director/html.
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Term Project Research Paper