By Amy Weatherlake, Business Director, Equality Media + Marketing
“In the last six months, I have recruited for seven roles across the agency, each attracting hundreds of applicants. As I researched how other companies are approaching recruitment, what stood out was how often job ads ask for years of experience on tools that have only existed for a short time.
“At the same time, AI has absorbed much of the entry-level work where those skills used to be built. The result is a mismatch between what employers want and what candidates can realistically offer.
“We’re expecting juniors to arrive already skilled in areas that change faster than anyone can keep up, while the work that once allowed people to practise and grow into those skills has disappeared. Without practical entry paths, juniors cannot get the experience employers advertise for, and employers cannot secure the talent they want.
“The issue isn’t that juniors lack ability; it’s that the pathways to gaining it have changed.
“The entry-level tasks that once taught research, writing, and production skills are now being automated. That doesn’t make junior roles obsolete; it makes them more important. When AI takes care of the basics, humans must rise to the work only humans can do – thinking critically, framing problems, and making sound decisions.
“Organisational psychologist Amantha Imber calls this the promise of “augmented intelligence” – you plus AI, not you versus AI. She argues that AI’s role should be to create time and elevate human work, not erase it.
“That mindset is crucial for how agencies build their teams. AI can help a junior marketer move faster, but it cannot replace the mentorship, feedback, and judgment that make them good at what they do.
“Mark Ritson has made a similar point from the opposite direction. He has noted how the industry is suddenly full of self-proclaimed “AI experts” who have “total conviction and zero knowledge.”
“The idea that anyone can be a seasoned AI professional is absurd. These tools are new, their impact is still unfolding, and we are all learning together. Expecting mastery from juniors before giving them a chance to practise is as unrealistic as it is unproductive.
“So instead of searching for finished talent that doesn’t exist, agencies need to create structured ways for people to learn. AI can play a central role in this. Imagine a new kind of on-the-job training where juniors use real tools on controlled projects, learning to prompt, edit, and analyse outputs under the guidance of senior mentors.
“They practise using AI responsibly, test its boundaries, and learn where human judgment must take over. This is how capability is built in an era when tools evolve faster than job titles.
“Ritson also reminds us that AI is a tool, not a replacement for craft. He once joked that believing AI will soon handle 80 per cent of marketing is like assuming 80 per cent of cooking will be done with a blender.
“The blender can speed up a process, but the chef still decides what to make. It’s the same in agencies. AI can help produce a first draft or summarise data, but it cannot replace the insight, taste, and creativity that define good marketing.
“The commercial logic is clear. Teams that learn to integrate AI properly reach productivity faster because they are practising the right skills. Retention improves when people can see progress and purpose in their work.
“Clients gain confidence when they know an agency is using technology intelligently, not blindly. The risk isn’t that AI will replace us – it’s that we’ll fail to train people to use it wisely.
“Imber’s view captures this balance. She sees AI as a partner that helps people “find time” for deeper thinking. In an agency context, that could mean a strategist using AI to summarise research so they can focus on insight, or a designer using AI to explore directions before refining them manually. The value lies in what happens after the machine has done its part.
“For juniors, this turns AI from a threat into a learning opportunity. It gives them early exposure to the tools shaping the industry while strengthening the human skills that make them valuable.
“For leaders, it’s a reminder that the measure of progress isn’t how much we automate, but how well our people think.
“AI is not coming for our jobs; it’s already sitting beside us, waiting to be put to good use. The question is whether we will teach the next generation how to work with it – to see it not as competition, but collaboration.
“For me, this is personal. Early in my career, I had mentors who gave me responsibility while guiding me through the learning. They explained their thinking, pushed me to refine mine, and shaped both my craft and my values. That kind of guidance was a gift.
“The agencies that do the same will shape a future where technology expands what people can do, rather than limiting who gets the chance to do it.”