Market Research Industry Salary Review

This article first appeared in Research News , the monthly publication of the Market Research Society of Australia (MRSA), in December 2003. Our thanks to the MRSA, to Lyn Tanner of Market Search and to Peter Coulthart of Field Force Pty. Ltd for permission to reproduce it here.

The first formal internet survey of employment in market research conducted jointly by Market Search and Field Force, has found that average salaries in the Australian research industry vary from $38K to $126K.

While the Australian Bureau of Statistics collects information about labour costs, with the most recent study showing that the average salary for those whose main activity was client service, research, design and analysis was approximately $70,900 in the 2001-02 financial year, this is the first study of its kind to ask individual researchers to specify their actual salary and then break down this data by type of employment.

Lyn Tanner, managing director of Market Search, said that although the company has been tracking salary levels for the past 10 years, this was the first time it had formally commissioned an internet survey.

'The results will help to build an ongoing profile of the employment situation in the market research industry and will be the first of a number of studies, she said.

The survey was conducted online in October 2003. An email invitation was sent to a list of 1400 researchers (comprising current and former Market Search candidates and clients, along with all those with email addresses listed in the MRSA 2003 Directory) which generated a sample, after dead email bounce-backs, of 1000. One hundred and seventy-two responses were received, achieving a 17 percent response rate. The majority of respondents worked in NSW (67%), with the remainder drawn from other states and overseas ( VIC 16%, QLD 2%, SA 1%, WA 2%, ACT 2%, TAS 1%, Asia 5%, other 4%).

There were responses from researchers working on the supplier side and in marketing and advertising agencies, from FMCG, telecommunications, pharmaceutical, government, IT, banking & finance and business services.

The full spectrum, from entry-level to senior, was also represented (MDs, directors, managers, project managers, analysts, graduates, statisticians, data processing and field). 'Other'describes those who had research experience, but did not consider that one of the pre-set titles suited them.

Respondents were asked questions about their industry, area and level of responsibility, salary, packages, areas of experience, staff responsibilities, membership of the MRSA and how they sourced employment opportunities.

Among respondents, salaries varied from an average of $38,000 for market research trainees through to an average of $126,000 for research company managers. The mean salary for a research department manager was $120,900, while other client-side researchers were paid $109,223 on average.

When comparing this current survey with data from previous years, Lyn commented that over the past five years middle management salary levels in agencies had moved rapidly to bring them in line with those in marketing positions.

' Competing salaries within the marketplace, candidate shortage and the desire to attract high calibre candidates from outside the market research industry and from overseas made this necessary and the agencies had responded. 'Buyers'salaries once far exceeded agency packages, but they are now on par. This is very good news for the agencies, whose key staff were often lured to the client side by the dollars.

I believe that the market is in a healthy position regarding salary levels, particularly at mid-management level, but it is the very senior executives and directors who must in the future be offered career progression at an earlier age and salary and incentives that reflect their responsibilities.'

Only five percent of respondents were in the top salary bracket ($200K plus) and they were all aged between 41 to 60 years. Only 29 percent of company managers earned in excess of $151K.

The majority of salary packages comprised base salary plus superannuation. Education, car or even mobile phones did not figure strongly as package items. In fact, Lyn believes the results prove that market research agencies in general do not offer package incentives, preferring bonuses based on profit.

'This is of serious concern in retaining staff when many industries have suffered a downturn in turnover and a reduction in profitability. Payment of such items as MRSA membership may go a small part of the way to generate loyalty or to entice new staff, however companies should look at benefits beyond salary to differentiate themselves from other companies offering simply a salary package.'

Other interesting findings from the survey include:

1. Thirty percent of respondents had spent time as both a supplier and client (mean years for suppliers=8.6 while mean years for client=5.94). More clients were women, but the supplier gender split was close to even.
2. Tertiary qualifications are common, with 92 percent of respondents having a degree and 52 percent holding a postgraduate qualification.
3. Almost half (42 percent) have only been in their current position for between one and two years, 23 percent for 3-4 years, while only 13 percent had been employed for more than seven years.
4. MRSA membership was paid by the employer in 66 percent of cases.
5. Respondents were asked how they sourced employment opportunities. Going to a recruitment consultant was the clear winner at 34 percent, followed by industry contacts at 25 percent and internet advertising at 23 percent. However, if you want to fill a vacancy via the daily newspapers, you are out of step with the majority of respondents to the survey! Just six percent regarded newspaper classifieds as the most effective source of information about employment opportunities.